Trim – I Am [Butterz]

Trim is prolific, this year alone he’s released four mixtapes. The grime scene veteran, ex-Roll Deep member and an undisputed grime war hero that isn’t shy of barring with the best has been on one of late, he seems revitalised as his ehttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifpic work rate suggest. He’s got something to say and the beats to back it up. The last time he hit wax was on an experimental eski-esq banger from Becoming Real and that’s just the tip of the ice-burg when it comes to Trim taking on some seriously out there beats. He’s barred on everyone from Starkey to Harmonic 313 in a quest to explore new ground. Hooking up with Butterz seems natural, they’ve been putting out quality instrumentals the last few years that always hit hard but kept it interesting too plus they’ve been crying out for full vocal treatment after some hardcore radio testing with some fine MCs on Rinse.

Trust Butterz to get some quality cuts from Trim and put them on wax, picking Trim after the garage leaning grime banger ‘Boo You’ from P Money & Blacks is a no brainer. They keep that ‘Phase Two’ vision on track by bringing in the MCs and continues to expand their sound. Here Trim vocals two absolute percy’s from the Butterz impressive back catalogue: TRC’s ‘Skipping Rope’ and D.O.K.’s ‘Chemical Planet’ with a remix of the title track from Birmingham’s Preditah to round off the package.

TRC’s instro does exactly what it says on the label, it’s got that skip and Trim hits his stride with his vocal version ‘I Am’ with a tight flow that matches the supple beat bar for bar. Those midi hi-hats and horns next to those irresistibly funky synth lines have that melancholic vibe that suits the introspective self depreciating bars he spits, lines like ‘Put myself in a pickle and belittle myself, piggy in the middle trying to wiggle myself out, I’m the only one who can let myself down’ or ‘East side we’ve got flees, sniffs, we’ve got weed’ and the chorus ‘this is what I am...’ really fit that down key synth melody. But that track still has that grime edge, since the skip is relentless and the synth bright enough to bring out that dark-side humour Trim has which also means it fits that confidence and bravado of lines such as ‘Trim’s in the rave don’t bring your girl out’, ‘I’m a star I can light the sky, with no fireworks’ or the twisted ‘when I creep I have the whole room crawling’ just as well. It’s Trim being Trim you get what you see.

Preditah turns in a filter heavy remix of ‘I Am’, that still manages to keep that sweeping synth funk but adds a stop start kicking rhythm to replace that energetic bump the original has, it’s got a moody edge to it that suits Trim’s vocals especially on the chorus. The skippy flow Trim brings in his bars play off the laid back widescreen energy of Preditah’s instro to add a nice bit of tension that really teases out the introspection and turns the track from a bumping party track to a late night blazer, the mood is flipped.

The flip ‘Notice Now’ see’s Trim upping the aggression over D.O.K.’s Sonic inspired banger ‘Chemical Planet’, he rides that tough funk with some serious bravado, chatting about how you’ve got to take note and when he goes in like he does on this 12” it’s hard not to agree. If you wade into his stream of mixtapes this year you get sizeable glimpses of just how good Trim is but that star really shines when you get a concentrated dose such as this.

http://trimcrises.com/
http://www.butterz.co.uk/
http://butterzrecords.bigcartel.com/

Originally written for Sonic Router.

Terror Danjah – Bipolar EP [Butterz]

Butterz drop their debut release with three grime bombs built to shake floors by Terror Danjah and his evil twin D.O.K. who turns in a remix. The two Rinse FM grime DJ’s Elijah and Skilliam have been making waves of late tearing up the airwaves with solid sets of grime instrumental fire, it’s been a force to reckon with and a refreshing change of pace from MC led mixtape beats that all to often lacked the vitality and hype that grime can have. To lead the charge they come fully loaded with the Bipolar EP.

The gremlin cackle signifies Terror’s return and kicks into action ‘Bipolar’ bright and chirpy first with neon synth pulses before dropping into some gravely basstones. The whole track feels like Terror Danjah in dubstep mode, but with his very unique raw and energetic approach, it’s hype and dirty. The most addictive track here has to be ‘Air Bubble’ the bursting popcorn rhythms get under your skin and bring the boogie. The hyper-funk synth lines and bass manoeuvres twists and turn and play off the bubble-boogie rhythm loops perfectly. D.O.K. takes on a percy with his ‘Sidechain’ remix getting things moving with a geezer coda chanting ‘come on lets ‘av it’ and when the monstrous bass funk hits and the pumping kicks are let loose you’ve got to obey. By the time the next vocal comes in, ‘if I’m going to have it, I’m going to have it large’ it feels like you’ve been sucked into a techno party in another diminution.

Quality first drop from Butterz who’ve got plenty more up their sleeve, Terror Danjah and D.O.K. are on form here. Pair this up with their recent outing on Hyperdub and you’ve started a 2010 grime 12” collection.

Buy @ Uptown Records

Butterz001 - Terror Danjah - Bipolar EP from Butterz on Vimeo.

http://verybutterz.blogspot.com/
http://www.myspace.com/butterzuk
http://www.myspace.com/terrordanjah
http://www.myspace.com/dokmusic

P.S. If you’re a producer get over to the Butterz blog and pick up the parts to ‘Air Bubble’ for your chance to remix Terror Danjah, just for the kicks. Also, hear the remixes so far…

Originally written for Sonic Router.

Trim Freestyle

This is fucked, Trim slays it with Obese on a sick beat this is wetting my appetite for his forthcoming mixtape Monkey Features Vol.1 (See interview).

Listen to Plastician with Nomad, Trim and Obese on Rinse FM the other night, here (Right Click Save As).

http://www.myspace.com/trimbale

MC’s on Funky

There has been quite a bit of debate on whether grime MC’s should jump on funky or not. I for one don’t mind it if the music is good, MC’s spitting on good rhythms is kind of what they do best. But anyway the recent talk about this has generally not really interested me, neither has the music to be honest, until I stumbled upon an old documentary on Hip-House in Chicago in 1989 and it turns out there are a hell of a lot of parallels to what is going on today on the UK underground. Watch it for yourself bellow…

Durrty Goodz – Ultrasound

Original writen for Sonic Router, see it and more here.

The long awaited next CD from Durrty Goodz is finally here and it’s taken time. Ultrasound is the pre-album to the highly anticipated album Born Blessed and the follow up to one of the top grime releases to date the on point Axiom EP.

It’s so good to have him back and Ultrasound doesn’t disappoint, it may not reach the heights of Axiom but it’s solid. There is no need to skip a track, which is good going for a grime CD.

There’s some big productions on here, every beat is huge sounding and punchy. Nocturnal, Rudekid, Taz Buckfaster, Bouncer, Demos, Maniac and Joker all pull out the big guns. A lot of the time they find the middle ground between grime and dubstep, which really suits Goodz not to mention, kills it.

Goodz deals with grime matters mostly, like people going mainstream and electro, the death of raves and the scene. But he does it with a big shit eating grin big bars and hooks.

Highlights include the hyper strings and bass of ‘Party N Rave’ about the state of grime raves. Buckfaster’s ‘Destruction’ is an absolute beast, pure gully. ‘Upset Me’ has a quite dig at Wiley over a minimal bleep beat. The radio sampling ‘Grime Killers’ is a banger and pretty much sums up the CD’s lyrical tip. ‘Forward Skip’ featuring MC Stephen Hawkins really gets in your head with its hype hook.

If this is just the warm up for Born Blessed we are in for a real treat as the levels are high on this one.

http://www.myspace.com/officialdurrtygoodz

Sonic Router

http://sonicrouter.blogspot.com/

The new blog brought to you by the people behind 3barfire and The Sonic Mine Field.

We will be covering all that is good in the world of bass / dubstep / hip-hop and anything in-between.

The idea has been under way for a while now but yesterday we went live!

So far we have covered: Hermutt Lobby, Slugabed, Lloop, Rekordah, Mount Kimbie, Ramp Recordings, Dub Lime, Harmonic 313, Martyn, King Cannibal, 2562, Tectonic, Warlock and Noyeahno, Buddy Peace.

Exclusive Sonic Router mix by Rekordah is so sick you have to get on that. Plus the interview with Tom from Ramp is very informative. Dem's my top tips.


Have a read, bookmark it, whack it on your RSS feeder and feel the bass.


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Fwd> Fwd> Skip/ Skip/

Durrty Goodz came on Logan Sama's Kiss 100 show last night for some live stuff and to promote his new CD Ultrasound (which just dropped through my door).

The guy cracks me up man, he sounds like he has a big shit-eating grin on his face the whole time. He jumps on beats from grime, hip-hop to dubstep and just comes with some fucked flow each time. He is just doing it Goodz style.

His appearance was fleeting yet he brought the hype, spoke some sense and made some jokes. Then he goes and jumps on Chase and Status’ Saxon live with some fucked bars and leaves...

God knows when he will be back he seems to pop up when ever he sees fit then leaves, so for now.

Logan Rip:

http://www.mediafire.com/?ywkntrtkzcr

Go and grab Ultrasound from UK Record Shop, I have a feeling I’m going to be playing it all day, more words to come no doubt.

http://www.ukrecordshop.com/item/durrty-goodz-ultrasound.html

http://www.myspace.com/officialdurrtygoodz

Oh yeah have a Wiley dis track while I’m at it, this is the last I heard from the war and I’m still not sure who’s winning / who to support / if it’s still going.

P U R P L E

Joker – Gemmy – Guido

These three are doing it for me right now; they are bringing a mad Dr. Dre style funk to the 140 bpm dubstep / grime template. They have been at it for quite a while now but hell they are kicking this year off well.

First up is Joker for a start he has one of his sickest productions Digidesign dropping on Hyperdub next month but then what really got my ear was this mix:

‘Hope y’all all like it about 45 mins of wow sound MIXED MY ME http://www.zshare.net/download/5344464594dfa8be/ Track listening coming soon no hype ting just good muzik’

Heny G - Delayed Style

Silkie - 7-1

Joker & Ginz - Purple City

Joker - Psychedelic Runway

Joker - Gullybrook Plain

Joker - Digidesign

Guido - Tango 140

Gemmy - Espaniola (SOMETHING LIKE THAT )

Gemmy - The box Remix no.2

Gemmy - BT Tower

Gemmy - Back 2 the future 2012

Gemmy - ........

Joker - Do it

Joker - Early Morning

Benga - Buzzin

RSD - Naked Mario Kart

Skream - Unknown

Silkie - Weird Piano Quest - The Unknown

Rude kid - Are You Ready (instrumental)

Maniac - Three Crows

Joker & Rustie -Play Doe

Joker - Untitled.rsn

NELLY FERTARDO -SHOW TIME YA GETTT ME! LOL

That’s how he described it anyway. It’s maybe the best mix I’ve heard him do apart from his Bristol Rise Up and Generation Bass sessions on Marry Ann Hobbs Experimental on Radio One. So many bangers and so much great music it has to be heard.

Gemmy next, he is Joker’s mate (these three are all from Bristol) they have been making tracks for quite some time together and they are still young’uns. Joker’s mix nicely showcases a lot of Gemmy beats for you to check out so do that… What’s exciting me the most though is the fact that Gemmy will be dropping the Supligen EP on Planet Mu pretty damn soon.

Guido is the third part of the puzzle, he is rooted in a mad grime based future R&B kind of area, not unlike Joker and Gemmy but then has a sound all of his own too. Check this out:

‘yo whats poppin peeps just joined the forum, heres a 29 minute mix ive done... hope u like it http://www.sendspace.com/file/yrv8pk PEACE guido’

Tantalized - Guido

Beautiful Complication - Guido, Aarya & Ruthless

Chakra - Guido

You Do It Right - Guido

Orchestral Lab- Guido J

ohnny 5 - Gemmy

Mad Sax - Guido

Do It! - Joker

Tango - Guido

Digidesign – Joker

It’s one of the most addictive mixes I’ve heard in a while, I must have listened to it about 5 times the day I downloaded it. The stand out tracks for me are; the amazing Beautiful Complication as it really adds some sexy vocal soul that is sometimes lacking in dubstep and grime beats. Orchestral Lab is another beauty that needs a shout out, I’ve heard rumours that it’s going to come out on Peverelist’s Punch Drunk label but I have no idea how true that is.

So there you go the Purple Trilogy, check them out.

http://www.myspace.com/guidoproductions

www.myspace.com/thejokerproductions

www.myspace.com/djgemmy

Starkey – Ephemeral Exhibits

Starkey the Philly based street bass badman is only going to drop his debut album on the excellent electronica label Planet Mu imagine that. If you’re not familiar with Starkey yet pick up your ears and take them over to the dance floor. He makes street bass, which is a kind of mish-mash of all things a little bit dirty and full of bass. It could range from Grime, Dubstep, Bassline, Electro, Hip-Hop and god knows what else in-between. He also likes to make it all sound a bit wonky and Sci-Fi in a kind of B-Movie style.

Ephemeral Exhibits takes us on a journey through space via the gutter, Starkey manages to pull off beautiful melodies and dirty skanked out dance floor hype all at once. The guy has an ear for music, this may be something to do with his classical music training; he has been playing piano since he was about five and has done classical scores. He is defiantly in love with the dirty end of the dance floor spectrum though as this album suggests in bucket loads.

Gutter Music kicks off the album in fine style, it sets the tone perfectly with wonky, growling, wobble bass and punching drum patterns designed to move you. Check out the forthcoming Gutter Music EP on Keysound for some tasty vocal action from renegade Grime don Durty Goodz on this one. The album just features the original instrumental though, but good god its pure hype.

Starkey doesn’t just go for all out dance floor bombs though he also has a mellow side that comes out every now and again in the form of a emotional dance floor weeper, like Marsh. With its hushed pipe blows and half step, dirty south Hip-Hop drums; it has a sad kind of vibe with a spooky edge, Yoda might skank to this on his marshy little planet all on his own in Star Wars. If you listen carefully you can even hear him moaning with an alien pitch bend. More mellow vibes come from the classical string led Time Traveller.

Other highlights on the album are the aggravated bass shakers of Pictures, Dark Ally, Pressure and the hypnotic music box banger Striking Distance; they all have the hyped energy of a madman Stark Bot on a rampage with a digital chain saw with lasers in his eyes.

The final two tracks are kind of special as well: Bang Bang the Witch is Dead, which featured on the Angel EP earlier in the year on Creative Space and the epic closer Spacewalk. Bang Bang… is a wonky bubbler that sounds a little like you are falling over and dancing all at once, which lets face it we have all done at some point. Spacewalk is a classic last track, it has everything you want: happy and euphoric vibes and a bouncy up-tempo rhythm mixed with huge bass and beats, plus that melancholic end of night kind of sound.

Starkey’s Ephemeral Exhibits: Robo Street Bass From Out Of Space.

Joker & Rustie – Play Doe / Tempered (Kapsize) 12”

12” number two from the new label Kapsize, which is owned and run by the young talent Joker, the 19 year old from Bristol. The first 12” was a solo effort and features one of my favourite Joker joints 80’s, number two comes with even more fire power.

Side A is a collaboration between Kapsize head honcho Joker and Glasgow wonky beat maker Rustie. They fight over whatever equipment they have laying around the studio to create a track that is the best of both their worlds.

You get sparse lilting beats with that dirty south hiphop bump to them and deranged synths that Timberland wishes he could have thought of. Not to mention the massive bass weight, the low-end spectrum to this as with all Joker stuff is pretty huge and will make your teeth shake on a big system. I’m pretty sure they sample Busta Rhymes or something with the small vocal sample, ‘Ha’, but I could be wrong there. I remember hearing this on Generation Bass in Jokers set and thinking man this is a banger. Rustie brings a bit of a hip-hop swagger to the beats that is more than welcome, he gets his wonk on and makes this track a certified future R&B, Hip-Hop, bass bin shaker.

The flip side is Rustie flexing his 140 bpm mussels on his own, Tempered is a real treat I just love it when people like FlyLo and Rustie bring the tempo up to dubstep kind of speeds for a few tracks. They really know how to bring different things to the table. This track is no exception, it goes really well with the A Side and has a kind of aquatic vibe, with some massive 808 style drum work outs and a synth to die for. Rustie with his wonk on, keeping it bumping and aquatic.

This 12” is kind of special and there isn’t quite anything like it around right now. Kapsize are doing things differently and with style. Joker the young’un is tearing up floors world wide now as is Rustie. These two better keep working together when they find them selves in the same town, the Bristol Vs. Glasgow combination needs exploring more. Big up Joker & Rustie.

http://www.myspace.com/kapsizerecordings

http://www.myspace.com/rustiebeetz

http://www.myspace.com/thejokerproductions

Dusk & Blackdown – Margins Music (Keysound Recordings)

Another excellent dubstep album for this year we have already had treats from 2562, Flying Lotus at very different ends of the spectrum and from different countries. Margins Music is pure London all the way through to it’s core, in much the way Burial is, but then Dusk & Blackdown sound very different indeed from all of those artists I have just mentioned. So what do they sound like?

Margins Music is a diverse melting pot of sounds that you could hear in and around London but especially the edges hence the name Margins Music. This album is like taking a drive round different neighbour hoods as the sun sets and night life comes into full effect. The backdrop being bass and beats with a sprinkling of London’s found sounds such as Desi, Grime, Dubstep, Eastern, Techno, and lots in-between. The liner notes by dubstep scribe and Dusk’s other half, Blackdown describes Margins Music as a travel through the city to great effect and a lot better than I could ever do, as I live up North.

Darker Than East that features the Roll Deep Entourage sounds like a mosaic of found sounds and interviews about the place they grew up in on a bed of screwed up bass and electronica. This sets the tone for the album well as this theme runs throughout in other gems like This is London.

The first distinct section / trip through LDN is on a Punjabi / Desi / British-Asian vibe. The track Con/Fusion (Out soon on 12”) featuring the sublime vocals of Farrah who pops up on two other numbers as well, is one of my favourite the use of traditional drums and an irresistible techy synth hook with a mellow laid back tone juxtaposed with Farrah looped vocal is beautiful. Lata VIP continues the flow of Desi influence on an instrumental tip into the excellent Kuri Pataka (The Firecracker Girl) that features Teji & Farrah. This is another standout and will be on the same 12” as Con/Fusion. Kuri Pataka has a catchy vocal hook that draws you in before looping it and bringing the hype with a drum roll and big Asian strings. Rolling Raj Deep sounds like a freaky hybrid of Bollywood dance instrumentals and badass dirty underground sounds. The bass is huge as always with Dusk & Blackdown that goes without saying…

The next part of London the album ventures into is the ends of the Grime warriors, (Keysound Radio) sets the tone with some field recordings of a pirate radio show before Durrty Goodz spits bars over Concrete Streets. He is one of my favourite Grime MC’s for sure, and he brings it to this track the hook, ‘I from these streets, from these streets, everyone will tell you I run these streets’ buries into your brain as does the bass and hooks. Trim’s The Bits is up next in the Grime section, this is the same version that was on Soulfood Vol.3 Trim’s excellent mixtape earlier this year, I have already chatted about that before so I won’t go into detail. Dis/East brings a eastern vibe to the grime section with tingeling shimmers of string sounds and bells of some kind laid on top of deep bass and some electro style skitting drum patterns. That flows into the Aformentioned This is London…

Then the rain comes down for the final trip into some more ends. The foundsounds AKA keysounds hence the name on Margins Music are sublime you really get the feel of the place they were recorded and it adds some beautiful atmosphere to the record, not unlike Burial does with his deep pirate crackle and fuzzed out loops of drizzle but as I said before they are pretty different in sound. Iqbal’s Groove with that mighty fine vocal tones of Farrah comes on like an Arabic / Asian dub hybrid of massive proportions. The driving bass really keeps things moving. The Drumz of Nagano pound like a Japanese electro bass freak out and then melt into the Detroit techno influenced Focus. Focus came out recently on 12” and I can’t get enough of it, I put it in my first ever dubstep mix and blended it with a Derrick May remix of Night of the Jaguar as the strings and skipping beats fit together so well. This draws Margins Music to a close in euphoric style like darting lights in the midnight traffic of the London metropolis.

Check it out right away you won’t be disappointed…

MRK 1 – Get Out Clause / Infected 12” (Earwax) [EAR007]

This 12” is dropping on Earwax on the 8th September 2008 and sees the return of Manchester’s MRK 1 AKA Mark One of Virus Syndicate.

Get Out Clause is a dirty and raw skanker that will shake up the dance. The grizzly bass osculation will rip through you as the beat skips and pounds around like a beast on the rampage. The whooshing build up sound reminds me of a house track by Hatiras called Space Invader. There is a cheeky little vocal sample that I can’t quite place but it sounds a little like Jay Z. Get Out Clause is an energetic electronic pure dance floor track.

Infected is on the flip and is a slightly subtler affair with some live cymbal samples that add some warmth to the production. The half step groove and deep synths add a dirty grime edge to the track. Every now and again the half-step drums are interrupted by a wicked skipping robo rhythm that induces a little more energy. I am really feeling the dirty grime energy in bass music right now and MRK 1 certainly has that in bucket loads. I much prefer this side of the 12” to the first this seems to be the case with me I always go for the more subtle grooves rather than the full on dance floor bombs.

MRK 1 and Earwax have made a brilliant 12” here that well satisfy many heads…

I mean just check out ho has been letting this rip on the scene: Pinch, Joker, Plastician, RSD.

MRK 1 / Mark One Space

Virus Syndicate Space

Earwax Recordings

Dusk & Blackdown – Margins Music Video

Keysound Video presents... Dusk + Blackdown: Margins Music from Keysoundrecordings on Vimeo.

Starkey – Angel EP (Creative Space) 12”

A four track EP from state side bass warrior Starkey on Creative Space he has created some sublime beats for this 12”. I’m not even sure if this is dubstep and to be honest I don’t really care, its just beautiful bass music. The combination of huge bass swaggering hip-hop style beats and a beautiful warm glow put this release near the front of the pack.

Angel is a beautiful and mellow tune with huge bass weight and deep soulful vibes, yet it’s still perfect for the dance floor. This soul/grime/dub crossover is so good, its sunshine stepping if ever I heard it. The next track Bang Bang The Witch Is Dead does exactly what the title suggests, with its huge industrial sized beats and a spooky retro introduction that opens out into a big throbber of a bassline. It’s not quite as deep and soulful as the first track but some of the same elements still remain and make this, well… Bang. The flip is just as brilliant and opens with Drip, which is a melancholy slow booming track, the kick is massive, as is the low-slung bass. They both compliment the subtle synth lines perfectly, and watch for the drop it’s serious business. Drip is one of my favourites on this 12” along with Angel. The final tune Brilliance Tones does nothing to let the side down with its wonky, oh shit I’m falling down the stairs leaning rhythms, can you fall and dance? I’m not sure… Anyway its brilliant as the title suggests the breakdown really mellows the track out before the skiting badass drums come back in with the bass to destroy you.

Starkey is sublime and has an album forth coming on Planet Mu check him out.

www.creativespace.gr

Trim – Soulfood Vol.3

Trim, Trimothy, Trimbal, Trimski, what ever you want to call him that’s just fine. He goes by many names and is the badman grime MC from E14. Soulfood Vol.3 is one of the best mixtapes I have heard in recent times, it’s up there with Dot Rotten and Durrty Goodz fighting for the top spot. The production is top notch and features a hell of a lot of people my favourites being; Jerzey, Blessbeats, Brain, Radioclit, plus Dusk & Blackdown. The beats go from stripped back sparse vibes to full on ragga influenced ones, echoing London’s massive array of musical influences. Trim’s bars are excellent and original. His flow is laid back and lazy in vibe compared to other on the scene that like to spit venom with speed and aggression. Trim still bites just as hard as anyone though as he proves on the excellent beef track The Low-Dan, he doesn’t even rhyme on that one, its more of a talking thing.

As with many in the Grime scene Trim likes to talk about doing his thing and not wanting anyone to copy him, as well as stirring up beefs with bravado and bragging about being the best. Trimski also opens his heart a little bit to talk about the struggle of life in general on songs like Inside Looking Out. His sense of humour shines through on most tracks, which is one thing I love about grime, the English sense of humour cracks me up. The whole mixtape is top quality I can’t fault the tunes one bit, some stand out taller above the rest but overall it’s very consistent.

A little run down of some of the vibes: Signal, the opener is a low lobbed ragga style beat with a ace vocal hook, ‘If you didn’t catch my name, I will throw it to you, and for those that can’t catch, I’ll roll it to you, or you can kick back and I’ll flow it to you’. Ask For Trim is a darker one but with a just as catchy hook, the bass growls as some subtle gunshots are used as percussion. For Real comes on like a dancehall classic with the shout of, ‘Yo, Vibes!’ in a heavy Jamaican tone. Full of Shit is a dark skipping minimal grime stepper with a bassline that sounds like a computer game from 1990. Inside Looking Out is a slow emotional one with sci-fi atmospherics a badass beat with a wonky edge and some plucky little strings. Just Do Your Thing is another straight ahead grime beat but Trim has some of the catchiest hooks and bars I have heard ever, he makes most beats a treat. Old School Bars, starts slow and builds into a beast with the tempo moving up and synth violins building the tension as Trimble rides it. The Low-Dan is the talking thing, the lazy wonky flow that’s about abusing Flow Dan. It is a massive tune and the stand out on this tape, which is one hell on an achievement. Bleeps, bloops and 8-bit flourishes punctuate the lazy flow. Put Your Mind To It, stick a needle on this dub, its fat. It’s a real dark side whopper of a track, with evil bass and bars. Dusk & Blackdown make a brilliant backbeat to Trim’s The Bits, it’s an off kilter and full of wonky samples that echo sounds from around London, there is a slight Asian hint to the loops used.

Trim’s Soulfood Vol.3 is one of the reasons I’m loving grime right now, the quality is so high in some areas. I don’t know what he is going to do next but his myspace mentions Vol.4 and on this mixtape he mentions an album, but who knows…

Modern Classic: # 4. Dizzee Rascal – Boy In Da Corner

Is it to early to call this a modern classic? It came out in 2003 and won a lot of fans and critical acclaim. It still stands up to listens now in 2008 and Dizzee’s profile has gone through the roof, with another two ace albums and even a number one. This is a super raw in your face production from Dizzee, he made most of it and pretty much took Grime into the mainstream single-handed. This album pretty much introduced me to the genre, as it no doubt did for many other people that don’t live in London and have access to pirate radio and all that. Fix Up, Look Sharp is a massive tune that will still get the floor bumping in a lot of clubs round the land, you still hear in on the radio even now. The album is full of gems with attitude and energy; there isn’t even the cheese pop moments like on later albums.

Boy In Da Corner has some massive bouncy beats mixed with some sparse electronic atmospheric stuff that was a massive pleasure to my ears when I first came across it. Dizzee’s flow is brilliant and he is even getting props in the US as a rapper. He was even in the running for best MC in vibe magazine recently, he got knocked out by Andre 3000 in the first round though that was a tough match up he had going on there. I have a feeling the fantastic I Luv U was the first track Dizzee made and it’s a story about modern love and lots of back stabbing fakeness that goes with it. The beat is huge and bouncy as hell, it goes off when he plays it live, which I have been lucky enough to witness a few times. A lot of Grime is pre-occupied with bravado and name-calling, with a bit of swagger thrown in for good measure. Dizzee does a bit of this but he transcends that a lot of the time too with some more personal lyrics, which is one of the reasons I think he has grown in stature so much since he dropped this album. Sittin’ Here deals with this self meditative side as does Brand New Day other tunes are about anger and frustration like Stop Dat, I Luv U, Cut ‘Em Off, Hold Ya Mouf and Round We Go.

Sittin’ Here opens the album with a laid back vibe and lyrics about sittin’ around while the urban environment goes round him and he is seeing things go down the pan. There is a hopelessness to it like he doesn’t know what to do about any of it so just sits there. This is done over sounds of ambient noise from the city and a rolling sharp melody, with fat bass and skitting/clattering drums. Stop Dat is an evil sounding beast of a tune with some badass aggressive MCing from Dizzee. When the huge bass plays of a little twinkling synth melody about half way through the tune, it really goes off, I love the phrase, ‘screw face’. I Luv U is such a huge tune and still gets played quite a bit, I read about Blackdown dropping it recently at FWD>> and it going off big time. The looping I Luv U hook is awesome then the bouncy beast beat drops hard. Dizzee rides this one in style, and interchanges lines with a female in great style to add to the story of fucked up ‘love’. Brand New Day is a sunny little number with a chiming melody and laid back bass vibes. It’s about reminiscing about times before so much violence in his area, and wanting people to grow up. 2 Far features Wiley and is an amazing tune with a bit of an eski beat style to it. Both rappers are on form here, in fact I can’t think of any bars Wiley has done since that I enjoy as much. ‘I'm getting stronger bro your getting weaker broi came straight from the gutter lay lowI'm a ninja turtle u can't step into my circlein a sound flash I will hurt you’ is just a brilliant set of lines. Fix Up, Look Sharp is the next tune and what a huge one it is too, this is the one that propelled Dizzee into everyone’s face. I don’t think I need to say much about this tune to be honest every one knows it, ‘Sweet as a nut mate, sweet as a nut’. Cut ‘Em Off is a minimalist little banger with sparse beats and bass with echo drenched vocals about being a badass in true grime style. Hold Ya Mouf is another angry one with some gunshots and shit coming back on you if your not careful, the line, ‘If your not careful you might get hit by a chair’ cracks me up. God’s Gift features on this tune and has a massive angry style he scares the hell out of me on his bars. Round We Go is some other level space invader style grime madness, the beats and flow is just sublime. Jus A Rascal is a bit of an anthem and I remember it getting quite a lot of plays on mainstream radio, there are evil sounding subtle rock guitar and a strange operatic chorus. Wot U On is another mad beat with backward sounding drums and sci-fi loops, then that huge bouncy bass again. Jezebel is a sweet sounding one but has a hell of a bite. It’s all about some girl who got knocked up young and who is always in trouble, or got loads of STD’s. Seems 2 Be has an ace intro by a girl sayin’ how bad and nasty she is, the beat is another sci-fi beast with a strange high grimy radar sound going on. Live O sounds like the strangest phone line in all history, its cold and claustrophobic with Dizzee spitting bad bars on top of it. Do It is the final track and is a bit of a grime ballad if there is such a thing, it’s a laid back beauty of a tune.

Dizzee Rascal has gone off the scale since he dropped this album and he continues to make ace tunes and albums, yet Boy In Da Corner is maybe his defining moment so far. Big up Dizzee…

Dot Rotten – R.I.P. Young Dot

Dot Rotten has killed off Young Dot and taken on a new alias for his new mixtape this is top quality Grime all the way. But first what about this Young Dot? Well he dropped a free mix tape under that name a while ago and it was an absolute beast, download that for free at the link bellow…

Y.D.O.T. This is Just the Beginning

Now come back and get ready for the death of Young Dot and the brand new Dot Rotten mixtape. Dot is a producer and MC who makes some big beats and started doing that, as he couldn’t get beats off producers to rhyme on. I think he made a good move as he has some beauty’s here and is prolific as hell and has loads of volumes of instrumentals for other MC’s to buy and do their thing on.

My favourite tracks bookend this release I’m Not One Of Them has a wobbly loop mixed with some rhythmic vocal samples before kicking off into some heavy grime beats with a slight American influence to it. Dot Rotten’s flow is wicked and he try’s to separate him self from the average crowd of grime MC’s in the lyrics. I’m A Professional is a sick sick track with doubled up vocal tracks to make a mad effect, with an ace double beat behind it, and some synthetic orchestral stuff to notch up the atmosphere. The sung hook is excellent and makes this track a cracker.

Is It War is a beef track about generally taking people down just the way these Grime heads like it. The beat is a good one mind with low-slung horns and stuttering vocal samples. MC’s Don’t Bother Me is a catchy number and Dot spits bars about not being bothered about the scene and doing his own thing. It has some real emotion to the track. Each tune has something top quality about it, be it the beat, hooks or bars, Dot Rotten just brings it. Under the Grime swaggering and posturing about beefs and being the best, there is a deeper emotional heart that often comes out in the backing track with its spooky atmospherics. The lyrics often touch on wanting to better your self and struggling with it all. This Year is a lo-fi minimal beat beast with some solid bars and hooks, ‘Calm down!’ it’s a bit like a proper underground UK version of Lil’ Wayne’s A Milli, but about getting cash rather than having a fuck load. This brings me onto the next tune I’m A Leader, which echo’s Weezy F with its auto tuned vocal hook and synth melodies. Pain And Strife is a bonus track and has some wicked bars, but the beat is a little weak compared to the rest of the tape, I guess it’s a demo or something. It’s got some heartfelt lyrics mind and for that I salute him. Picking a stand out track is hard as hell here Dot Rotten is solid.

Two instrumental bangers feature on this mixtape Grime And Bass is a beast with a real heavy swagger to it. It makes me want to duck for cover, as it sounds like a fucking war is happening its that heavy. Bazooka is some next level stuff that dropped a while back now so I gather. Low-slung horns and what sounds like a drill loop up then drop into some wicked vocal samples that remind me of old skool house tunes, ‘duh, doo’ ripped up reversed and made into a groove is irresistible. Dot Rotten has skills as a producer and MC.

Rest In Piece Young Dot but long live Dot Rotten…

Buy Dot Rotten – R.I.P. Young Dot here.

Durrty Goodz – Axiom EP

I’m lagging behind with Grime I’m still listening to Dizzee Rascal’s Boy In Da Corner so I thought it was about time I dug up some more up to date stuff. It looks like I failed at doing that too, as this Durrty Goodz EP came out some time last year but it is by far the best slice of Grime I have heard recently, its off the wall.

The production is sick to say the least one of my favourite Dubstep producers Peverelis does a track here I love his stuff on Dubstep Allstars Vol.06 and his recent 12” especially the tune Junction. Durrty Goodz flow on all these proper high-end beats is brilliant, he can do it fast and with a bite like no other MC I have heard recently. I think it’s the beats that raise this above other Grime releases for me. DVA’s beast Keep Up that starts the EP is a hell of an opener with its stepping bassline and a fuck load of energy. Coki’s beat on Take the Scene Back is fat I keep spinning that one. The Youngers has some well pitch shifted vocal work that reminds me of Dizzee and Lil’ Wayne to some extent. The usual Grime subject are covered about their ends, and taking the scene back, but its done with such flair and style over those sick beats it really shines through. JJ’s beat of Licence to Skill is wicked the bass is huge and the flow frantic, with a hint of bond theme as the hook, which is either good fun or annoying I’m not sure. Boi Dem is another stand out track that bassline by Bass Clef is huge I have to check out more of his productions. Title track Axiom really made my ears prick up the super fast speedy flow is out of sight, Durrty then slows it down and kicks off again, it makes you want to rewind right away. Switching Songs II has a 2-step vibe to it and is a nice different more soulful angle to the EP, time for a quick bubble I reckon. He gives us a bit of a Grime history lesson with a tight flow too with some of Wiley’s and Dizzee’s beats thrown in their for good measure, amongst other old school Grime anthems I don’t know of no doubt, I love the packman blips. Give Me The Music Feat. NY is a spacey future Grime groove of the highest order and closes the EP in style, or the secret track at the end does anyway.

Durrty Goodz is wicked Axiom is the best Grime release I have heard in a while I look forward to seeking out more sick beats and flows soon.