Fear of a Black Country #2

09 April 2010, 08:55

So the sun’s just about shining and the summer’s approaching which means one thing – tunes have gotta get bigger, and the windows in your automobile have gotta crack. Despite my pale, sun-shy complexion I do relish summer cruising with subs booming and the distinct smell of Auto Glym in the breeze. This is when a lot of tunes begin to make sense, and to play them loud and proud, without a concern for passers by, is one of the true signs you’re from the Black Country.

Drake – Over (Young Money)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZCQ1fSmGbo

’m not exaggerating when I say Drake’s forthcoming full-length ‘Thank Me Later’ is probably the most anticipated hip hop record of 2010. Sure there are more than enough haters out there who will claim one thing or another to throw muck every which way, but the truth is Drake’s got his bases covered and with the quality he’s already assured us he can attain on his plentiful mixtapes, there are even a few backpackers fighting his corner. ‘Over’ is the first single to be dragged from the hush-hush tracklist and it’s a big one – lyrically Drake covers similar ground to many of the cuts on ‘So Far Gone’, but that’s his MO at this point. Fame, girls, fair weather friends… it seems he’s cementing a persona that gives him a little originality in the Young Money line up and that’s no bad thing. It is, yet again, the production though that gets him top marks on this tune – soaring strings, tight punchy snares and chiming bells courtesy of Boi-1da. There’s an almost ‘Blueprint’-era Hova sound in evidence, and this sample-heavy floor-filler is no doubt bound to be poised against Drake’s more balladeering moments on the full-length. My fingers and toes are crossed that ‘Thank Me Later’ is going to be everything it rightly SHOULD be.

Actress – Maze (Honest Jon’s)

OK so I’m really writing about Darren Cunningham’s latest full-length ‘Splazsh’, but fucked if ‘Maze’ isn’t one of the standout tracks. Appearing on both the 12” single which preceded the album and the album itself (in slightly edited form), ‘Maze’ dials back the pulsing jerk-beats that Cunningham has made his trademark and amplifies the 80s influence that makes up the backbone of ‘Splazsh’. My wife commented that it sounded like a videogame and I can’t really disagree, but rather than go the tried-and-tested 8-bit route (championed by Cunningham’s friend and frequent collaborator Zomby), he brings back memories with the composition, itself while the sound-set is more akin to Georgio Moroder or John Carpenter. ‘Maze’ is probably the most contemplative track on the LP, a far cry from the speed-garage swing of ‘Always Human’ or the sexual shuffle of ‘Senorita’, but that’s fine by me . It proves Cunningham is just as potent in the down tempo as he is in the up, and this multi-faceted, genre hopping competency is what makes ‘Splazsh’ one of the finest albums I’ve heard this year so far.

Erykah Badu – Fall In Love (Your Funeral) (Universal Motown)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7mhDSIM73k

Yeah I know she’s hot property at the moment thanks to a certain nude stunt in Dallas, but that doesn’t detract from the fact that her hot-off-the-press latest LP ‘New Amerykah Part 2 : Return of the Ankh’ is yet another absolute stunnah. Most people have been eager to jump on ‘Window Seat’, the album’s first single and the track which accompanies the ‘offending’ video, but for me ‘Fall In Love’ is the real stand out. With a skittery, none-too easy beat and some fantastically cosmic electronic elements, this track represents the real meat of the album – which at its heart is way more psychedelic than people might want to let on. Sure Badu is still known for catering to a crowd who want things neo and soulful, and that usually means ‘light’, but she’s not done that for a while now, and ‘Fall In Love’ is a great example of this progression. ‘Return of the Ankh’ might not be quite as sonically haphazard as its predecessor, but what it lacks in lip-biting oddness it makes up for in depth and heart. This is a record buoyed by Badu’s grit, determination and passion, and ‘Fall In Love’ represents that absolutely.

Addison Groove – Footcrab (Swamp81)

Juke – what’s it all about? Well I can’t really even pretend to know, all I have is an illicit collection of varying bitrate MP3s, supplied by Boomkat scribe and bass-music knowledge Conor Thomas – who allegedly combed them from Bebo. Or something. Knowing I regularly hopped into the Chicago area, he thought I might be able to scramble over a few of these tunes on whitelabel; sadly though, this is a genre that almost doesn’t exist on wax, rather this is a scene that has evolved from the web and in the digital form. Why release something on 12” when nobody who you know buys 12”s? It’s quicker and easier simply to throw the tune online and distribute it amongst friends and local DJs, and that’s what happened here – with the dances (footwork) gaining as much notoriety as the spiky polyrhythmic bass shuffle of the music itself. Sounding like double-speed R&B at some points and skittering booty house at others, it’s almost impossible to put a finger on Juke at this point, but Addison Groove (better known to many as Headhunter) has given his attempt at the genre. Typically he has rewired the genre to suit his dubstep-by-way-of-Berlin style so the production skill definitely sets this take on juke aside from the ‘real thing’ but there’s no doubt ‘Footcrab’ is a serious dancefloor dominator. Detuned piano stabs and the familiar rolling sample-stutter (a cornerstone of Juke) echo over booming 808 kicks and rolling toms to create pandemonium on any discerning floor. Grab this then do some Youtube research – you won’t be sorry.