WHATMORE may still be largely unknown, but that is unlikely to remain the case for long. Their sound is refreshingly free of calculation, rooted in hip-hop but equally willing to pull from soul, pop, and punk rock whenever the songs demand it. Much like Beastie Boys, they can pivot from rapid-fire rhymes over skeletal beats to full-blown bursts of loud, scrappy guitar music without warning. The common thread is simple: keep the crowd engaged by any means necessary.
Judging by the reaction inside the Bataclan, that strategy is working. It is rare to see an audience respond with this much fervor to an opening act they barely know, but the room was fully invested by the end of the set. When several members of the band launched themselves into the crowd, the whole thing tipped into glorious chaos If the audience didn’t know WHATMORE before, they do now.
