Whether you know Kimya Dawson through her clever songs like “I Like Giants” or through the fact that she was all over the original soundtrack to the movie Juno - there is no denying that the woman is one big creative hub that continues to churn out brilliant anti-folk jams, a feat which has gathered quite a large cult following worldwide.

On the other hand, you have Aesop Rock – an icon in indie-rap circles for his undeniable flow and penchant for rhyming over some of the best productions available in the genre. Hits like “None Shall Pass” and “Daylight” have been widely praised by both the mainstream and the underground – another sure-shot cult icon with a very large following.

Now bring Kimya and Aesop together and you get quite an interesting mix of anti-folk-indie-rap, which could really go either way – luckily, for the most part, it worked.

The night started off with Dawson making taking a cozy spot in the middle of the stage whilst the front row, obviously full of fanatics, screamed out random declarations of love. Aesop Rock quickly followed and stood to the right of Kimya, waiting for his moment to shine as Dawson started off with one of their latest collaborations.

The songs was pretty much what you’d expect from Kimya Dawson – a lovely acoustic melody and her sarcastic rhymes woven together to form the kind of story where you actually want to know what happens next. The only difference was that every now and then Aesop would chime with a tightly packed verse – it was something you that took a bit of getting used to, hearing Aesop flow over an acoustic guitar. He sounded a bit uncomfortable on some songs, such as the opener “Delicate Cycle,” but on the ones where he managed to match the melody, he came through blazing.

Aesop left the stage to give Kimya an hour to move us with her solo material. The brilliant “Singing Machine” introduced us to her world, followed quickly by the sad “Tire Swing.” All the punters hanging out on the balcony rushed inside at this point, just in time to hear “Loose Lips.”

Dawson began to tell us about her album for kids Alphabutt, before performing a few numbers of that. “Bobby-O” and “I Like Bears” got the crowd heavily involved in the choruses, while the childish humour of “Alphabutt” made everyone laugh.

While the childrens’ songs were nice, it was Kimya’s more M15+ songs that proved the highlight of the solo set. The very depressing “Remember That I Love You” and the popular “I Like Giants” received the most love before Kimya re-introduced Aesop Rock to the stage.

A few more Kimya/Aesop songs - which including a very interesting number called “Walk Like Thunder” – and then Aesop had his turn to give us his solo tracks.

As soon as DJ Big Wiz dropped the beats, the night changed dramatically and all of the sudden all the guys rushed to the front to start bouncing around as Aesop Rock gave us one of the best hip-hop shows Sydney has seen all year.

I have to admit, I never really dived deep into his catalogue, but as soon as Aesop started flowing I was instantly hooked.

Crowd favourite “Citronella” sounded amazing live, as did pretty much every track he performed with his partner-in-rhyme Rob Sonic. A few cuts from the trio’s group Hail Mary Mallon were thrown into the mix as well and fit quite well in the set. “Smock” proved one of the highlights of the night, but was outshined by the monster “No Regrets” which Aesop rhymed over mixed-in beats like Redman’s “Da Goodness,” Dr Dre’s “The Watcher II,” and Run DMC’s “Sucka MC’s.”

Both emcees proved guaranteed party-starters but DJ Big Wiz wasn’t one to be outshined. A short lesson in turntablism really sparked up the fans before more tracks like “Daylight” rocked Manning Bar.

Kimya came back out to perform some more Aesop/Kimya tracks, but this time is was Dawson adapting to Aesop’s world as hip-hop beats shook the floor and Dawson did her best to do her own thing alongside Aesop’s rhymes.

While their joint songs are all great, it seems each artist is a lot more comfortable in their own world – Aesop sounds a bit unsure over the acoustic guitar, and Kimya’s spark fades a bit while a beat is playing. However, if this concert is anything to go by, their upcoming collaborative LP is sure to be a winner.

Kimya left the stage again to let Aesop close the night with “None Shall Pass” and it was well worth staying the full almost-three-hours.