The best new CD I have heard recently is Boy In Da Corner by Dizzee Rascal, a 19-year old black British rapper. (Thanks to Simon Reynolds’ blog for turning me on to this–his extravagant praise of the album is altogether justified). Now, I’ve been skeptical in the past as to the Brits’ ability to rap (last year’s much-hyped Original Pirate Material, by Mike Skinner, aka The Streets, struck me as a big bore). But Dizzee Rascal is something else again. His vocal delivery, or flow, is as wide-rangingly expressive as any hiphop MC I have ever heard; despite my prejudice against British intonations, I was immediately blown away. His lyrics are violent and bleak, about life in the slums, but totally different in mood as well as detail from American so-called “gangsta rap.” They combine toughness, vulnerability, cynicism, hopelessness and a grim determination to get on with it. This is as “real” as anything by 50 Cent, but twenty times smarter and more affectively powerful. And there’s not an ounce of the self-congratulation that has been the unfortunate defining characteristic of most mainstream US hiphop since Biggie (and that reaches its extreme point with Jay-Z). As for the music–Dizzee Rascal is his own writer and producer– it samples a wide range of stuff, most of which I can’t quite identify; it has the rhythmic propulsion of the best UK garage, but it’s harsh and dissonant and stutteringly percussive in ways I haven’t heard elsewhere. There are also odd, off-kilter choruses and refrains, and several songs feature brilliant boy/girl call-and-response arguments. All in all, this is an amazing album, and I hope it gets released in the US soon (though I’m not holding my breath expecting it to be a hit here).
PS: Dizzee Rascal was stabbed by an unknown assailant a couple of weeks ago, but apparently he will be OK. This is a sort of 50 Cent-esque “realness” that we really do not need…
Dizzee Rascal
The best new CD I have heard recently is Boy In Da Corner by Dizzee Rascal, a 19-year old black British rapper. (Thanks to Simon Reynolds’ blog for turning me on to this–his extravagant praise of the album is altogether justified). Now, I’ve been skeptical in the past as to the Brits’ ability to rap (last year’s much-hyped Original Pirate Material, by Mike Skinner, aka The Streets, struck me as a big bore). But Dizzee Rascal is something else again. His vocal delivery, or flow, is as wide-rangingly expressive as any hiphop MC I have ever heard; despite my prejudice against British intonations, I was immediately blown away. His lyrics are violent and bleak, about life in the slums, but totally different in mood as well as detail from American so-called “gangsta rap.” They combine toughness, vulnerability, cynicism, hopelessness and a grim determination to get on with it. This is as “real” as anything by 50 Cent, but twenty times smarter and more affectively powerful. And there’s not an ounce of the self-congratulation that has been the unfortunate defining characteristic of most mainstream US hiphop since Biggie (and that reaches its extreme point with Jay-Z). As for the music–Dizzee Rascal is his own writer and producer– it samples a wide range of stuff, most of which I can’t quite identify; it has the rhythmic propulsion of the best UK garage, but it’s harsh and dissonant and stutteringly percussive in ways I haven’t heard elsewhere. There are also odd, off-kilter choruses and refrains, and several songs feature brilliant boy/girl call-and-response arguments. All in all, this is an amazing album, and I hope it gets released in the US soon (though I’m not holding my breath expecting it to be a hit here).