Rating:
Genre:
Electronica
Release Date: 08/24/2004
Dizzee Rascal, the apprentice, turned
garage rap on its head with his unorthodox programming, drunken-master cadence, and near-hysterical delivery;
Wiley, the master, may serve as the better introduction to what can be a difficult export to understand.
Garage rap's aesthetic of less-is-more isn't immediately appealing to a worldwide audience, while the heavily accented rapping and stark, lo-fi digital production owe far more to West Indies
dancehall than the
blues and
funk that anchor
hip-hop. (So alien does it sound that grime even inspired an embarrassing campaign among music journalists and bloggers to poetically convey the sound with words, first place here given to
Sasha Frere-Jones for a description appearing in
The New Yorker: "like arguments between two implacable robot telemarketers.") While an intrinsic part of the grime scene,
Wiley is hardly inaccessible. He writes monster hooks which he then drives home with his stuttered programming, his rapping avoids the awkwardness of many British artists, and he shows as much personal flair as does
Dizzee Rascal -- a tall order, and one that can't be faked. He also balances his potentially volcanic personality with his role as father figure to his juniors in the scene.
Dizzee Rascal and
the Streets'
Mike Skinner not only harness a brash and volatile sound, they also write material that accurately conveys their paranoia and insecurities.
Wiley has advice for the type of undirected youth
Mike Skinner often paints himself as, preaching self-reliance on
"Pick U R Self Up," using the record's best production (
"Special Girl") for an ode to the type of girl that attracts him (not just sexually), and inviting members of his
Roll Deep crew to share the spotlight on several tracks. He still has a ball on this record, though.
"Wot U Call It?" plays with the academics' endless game of one-upmanship over what to call his sound (perhaps intentionally,
Wiley doesn't even mention grime, the leading contender, as a possibility). He's the garage rapper with something for everyone -- East London attitude and tight productions for
dance fans, as well as nonprovincial material and great beats for
hip-hop heads.
~John Bush, All Music Guide
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