Concert Review: Injury Reserve

By Jennifer Romero
Music Journalist

Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to see Injury Reserve during SXSW and instantly knew this was a group I needed to follow. The group consists of three members, two rappers and one producer. I spent time diving into their older music leading up to the release of their self-titled debut album Injury Reserve.  The self-titled album is a consistency of alternative hip hop with slower paced songs, along with a fair share of upbeat songs such as “GTFU.” 

Monday night I was able to see Injury Reserve for a second time on their world tour after actually getting to dive deeper into their music collection. Knowing more about the group and learning their songs extremely heightened the experience. The group’s range of music and versatility of simple hype songs to the struggles of life is relatable and attention grabbing.  With two openers, Body Meat and Slauson Malone, I was beyond ready to get the show started. When the group hit the stage, I was in extreme awe just seeing the group perform right before my eyes. 

The group opened with “Koruna & Lime” from their debut album, followed by personal favorites such as “Eenie Meenie Miny Moe” and “Wax On.” While rapping my favorite verses and getting hyped with the crowd, I was also intrigued by the visuals of the show. On stage, there were blue lights flashing on cue that emphasized the lyrics and the beat of the songs. It was especially enjoyable to see the visuals when the group shifted from serious songs such as “Colors” to hyped songs like “What’s Goodie.”

Injury Reserve was such an experience because of their versatility and ability to produce rage songs while still having a serious tone where the lyrics are actually saying something. This is important to me because it’s reminiscent of Brockhampton, another group I love. 

Brockhampton and Injury Reserve create these songs that can be vulnerable but still give the crowd a hell of a show. Both groups are able to show you their rawness with not only their lyrics, but in the live performance as well. You are able to go into both artist’s music and know it won’t be one generic sound. Similarly, when I first saw Brockhampton live, it was at a smaller level than they are now with their skyrocketed success. I truly believe Injury Reserve is on this route of upward success, selling out major venues and booking major festivals quickly. This is definitely a group you want to be on the lookout for. 

Featured image by Jennifer Romero.