The World Provider / Ad-Hawk

A mic, a discman and three suits are all the World Provider needs to entertain, but this was no ordinary gig, this was a revue. With Berlin-based renaissance rhymer Ad-Hawk, tarty rapper Miss Matches and Dr. Octoboobies in the house, Perfect School (the headliners' label) was in session. The World Provider and Ad-Hawk (aka the Royal Tease) appeared at the top of the show with preppie clothes, goofy grins, childlike choreography and a dorky tune called "This Is Who We Are," followed by a hilarious short and sweet Pearl Jam medley with devilishly grunged-up vocals. After a spot of '80s karaoke, Miss Matches, featuring DJ Dr. Octoboobies, turned up the heat with "Momma's Boy," a naughty number to put a strut in your step. Next came the World Provider, crooning through a Judas Priest cover and impassioned original songs about big city girls and John Manley. With his arms flailing and legs kicking, our Provider gradually peeled off his suit and track suit, revealing the red and white plastic one-piece handed down by Canned Hamm's Big Hamm. The set ended with all the night's performers joining the World Provider on stage for a freestyle session, which, if it had been a contest, Miss Matches would have won. Ad-Hawk was up next, spilling low-brow wit like Canadian ex-pats Chilly Gonzales and Mocky before him. While he's not the most magnetic MC, and his wordplays sometimes stretched too far ("swimming in the celeba-sea," for example), his showman style, minimal beats and sinewy backing brought the set to life. Then the evening ended as it began, with the Royal Tease singing their hearts out in gold sequined capes like indie-electro superheroes, bringing bright, goofy, friendly entertainment to the stage and sexy beats to the dance floor.