Horrorshow have established themselves as a household name in Australian hip-hop, but their status in the Inner West of Sydney is on another level altogether. The sold out crowd at the Gaelic would have cleared any doubt that the duo are nothing less than revered in their hometown.

We arrived towards the end of Seth Sentry’s set, to an already packed crowd. It was upbeat, but still felt fairly laidback, much like a vibrant local pub on a Sunday afternoon. Seth Sentry has an unique stage presence compared to many of his hip hop counterparts. He maintained quite a calm persona as he smoothly delivered his lyrics and interacted with the hoodie clad crowd up the front. There were a few extra arms in the air for last year’s hit, The Waitress Song which, from the response, had been eagerly awaited.

Horrorshow ( Nick Bryant-Smith and Adit Gauchan) began their set with Triple J favourite Thoughtcrime, the biggest single from their latest album, Inside Story. The audience was made up of dedicated fans, but it seemed to take them a few tracks to warm up.

Truth Be Told saw the vibe pick up significantly, marking the first time the crowd really engaged with the beat. The beats were noticeably strong throughout the whole set, showcasing the outstanding production skills of Adit, who has produced both the duo’s albums in their entirety. Even tracks with a darker edge, of which there’s quite a few, were audibly striking and enticed you not to stand still.

Haze, Solo’s duet with Elefant Traks’ female star Jane Tyrrell, was a highlight of the set; everyone was captivated by Solo’s singing ability (a rapper that can sing!), complimented by Tyrell’s mesmerising vocals and the emotive beat. The harmonies were sweet and the pair shared a delicious chemistry on stage, warmly hugging at the end of the song.

Horrorshow continued to serenade the crowd and managed to play for close to 90 minutes without losing momentum. Singles The Rain and No Rides Left were memorable, but the energy of the show reached its peak as good friends Spit Syndicate joined them on stage for Showtime, for one of the closing tracks. You couldn’t help but join in with the token hip-hop arm bounce, the electricity in the room outweighing any reservations of being cliché.

The recently released Our Song with Seth Sentry capped off the night. In a rare occurrence for gigs these days, there was no rehearsed encore; after the set they had played, there was no need for one. Horrorshow’s engaging lyrics and often beautiful music is hard to pin down to one genre, meaning their fans are a varied mix of people; all of whom left the Gaelic that night firmly reassured of the remarkable talent of this band.