WHEN you hear of the 'Golden Era' of hip hop, three names usually spring to mind: Dj Premier, Pete Rock and J-Dilla - the three icons of underground hip hop.

Dj Premier aka Preemo is one of the founding members of the Gangstarr Foundation, which blew to notoriety in the early 90s with their sound of 'Boom-Bap'.

Gangstarr which consisted of producer/Dj 'Preemo' and lyricist G.U.R.U (gifted.Unlimited.Rhymes.Universal) had massive hits all through the 90's and naughties. When GURU sadly passed, this left Preemo to continue the Gangstarr Foundation.

The most recent release from Dj Premier's Year Round record label is Dj Premier And Bumpy Knuckles; The Kolexxxion.

Bumpy Knuckles also enjoyed undrground success in the 90s under the alias Freddie Foxx, so when we found out The Kolexxxion Tour was headed to the British capital we knew it was not to be missed.

The Venue, The Garage, in Highbury Road, Islington, seemed ideal for the occasion, with a nice sized stage at the front of the room, with a bar opposite at the back.

DJ 279, or Numbers, was the resident on the 'ones and twos' with Braydz, the host on the M.I.C.

They did a good job of warming the crowd up with a good song selection hitting the right demographic.

279's turntable skills were spot on, and Braydz did his job in keeping up the momentum.

However, the music could have been a lot louder (hearing a conversation about the previous night over 'Wu Tang's C.r.e.a.m is never a good thing).

There was only one support act, someone I had never heard of before - Mynature.

The reason I had never heard of him soon became clear. He was being booed and jeered by time he reached the second song of his set. He was an act more worthy of supporting Tinchy Stryder than a hip hop legend.

It was an innapropriate support act that left the vibe a little subdued.

When Preemo finally hit the stage, the atmosphere changed instantly. The front row was now the most desirable spot to be.

Premier took no time in introducing Bumpy, and they got the crowd moving with a selection of tracks from the new album.

The mic was clear and sounded nice, althought the overall audio could have been pumped up.

The building was undoubtedly at its liveliest when Bumpy left the stage and Premier played some of the most famous Gangstarr hits.

The crowd were now jumping and singing along in harmony. Preemo played on his traditional cutting and chopping to perfection, and crowd participation really uplifted the vibe.

Bumpy returned to the stage and they finished their set strongly, covering the whole of the new album, plus a couple of Freddie Foxx classics.

The crowd could have been a lot more receptive and fiery throughout though, with only about a fifth of the crowd reacting in true New York hip hop fashion, jumping up and down screaming "Preemo, Preemo!"

The crowd could have been more responsive and the sound louder, but DJ 279 was class, and it was proved when Premier saluted his skills.

Preemo and Bumpy did thier best to get the place jumping 'NY-style', and rocked the place with some classic hip hop.