As the bass started to rumble, an obelisk rose out of the stage, glowing bright red. This was the start of the Kayne West set, as he took to the stage in Marlay Park, Dublin. He roared into a version of Black Skinhead that immediately had the crowd bouncing. At this point we still hadn’t managed to see his face, as he wore a ski mask for a large portion of the set. There was a small crew on stage, with Kanye to the fore, a DJ behind and occasional guitar also.

The set covered a wide spectrum of his career, and had something to please most of the audience. It was a festival set in truth, and didn’t focus on the new album in too much detail. Highlights on the night included Diamonds from Sierra Leone, Touch the Sky and Stronger. He finished the night with the strangely lacklustre Blood on the Leaves.  The visuals were very impressive and the glowing box to the rear of the stage looked great as the sun started to set.

There was a post leaving cert vibe to the crowd and a bit too much hormones and beer in evidence. There was even a couple of scuffles, which the bouncers moved quickly to end. There was a multitude of glasses of beer thrown into the air also and a whole lot of bad dancing! All part of the fun.

As I was leaving the venue and walked out onto the Grange road, a black car whizzed past with police escort. Kanye wasn’t hanging around in Dublin this time, or maybe he was dashing to his favourite cinema in Laois for a late show, who knows.

For more events in Dublin, check out our Event Guide.

Set list after the images.

Set list:

Black Skinhead
On Sight
I Don’t Like
(Chief Keef cover)
Mercy
Cold
Clique
(Kanye West, Jay-Z & Big Sean cover)
Can’t Tell Me Nothing
New Slaves
Power
Stronger
Hold My Liquor
Runaway
Run This Town
(JAY Z cover)
Diamonds from Sierra Leone
Heartless
Jesus Walks
All Falls Down
Touch the Sky
All of the Lights
Good Life
Bound 2
Blood on the Leaves