Shazamers' Blog

Getting saddled with the nickname the ‘Godfather of Grime’ can be something of a mixed blessing. Sure, you get respect for being a driving force of one of the most significant recent trends in British music, but it also means that you have numpties screaming ‘sellout’ if you dare to veer from your established template.

From his pirate radio beginnings with a number of different crews, Wiley has done more to promote grime than just about anyone in the game. He’s also experienced plenty of criticism from dim-witted purists for his insolent desire to push things forward and have actual hits. Call it the Dizzee Effect.

‘Reload’ is unlikely to please those who think Wiley should have sworn a monastic oath to stay underground for the entirety of his career, but you can’t see him caring too much. It’s an unashamed pop song that deploys a house-tinged take on drum’n’bass with the sole effect of getting the party started. It’s a task the track accomplishes admirably. Wiley is in fine lyrical form, while collaborator Chip’s verse acknowledges old-school grime with a shout out to Casualty-sampling So Solid Crew members Oxide & Neutrino. Man, remember them?

In any case, the haters may not have Wiley to kick around much longer. If he’s to be believed, forthcoming album ‘The Ascent’ may be one of his last.

“I’d just like to put this album out then make one more solo album then focus on my record label A List,” he told The Independent. “I don’t want to be 34 and still making music myself, I’d rather go out whilst I’m at the top of my game.”

It’s an admirable sentiment and he’s certainly earned the chance to take a rest. ‘The Ascent’ will be his seventh album in nine years, not counting numerous mixtapes and the record label infuriating decision to give away some 200 tracks for free via Twitter in 2010. Forget the narrow genre definitions, Wiley is keeping it real by simply doing only what he wants to do.

Huw Thomas New Music

The latest track from Muse is a lo-fi anti-folk number, with singer Matt Bellamy providing hushed and delicate vocals over a sparse, minimal background. So fragile it could float away on the slightest breeze, so unassuming you could pass it on a busy street and never even realise. Nah, just kidding. It is – of course – a planet-sized, space-prog bombast-athon that sounds like the kind of thing Darth Vader would have on his iPod.

Never knowingly restrained – and all the better for it – Muse are actually at one of their lowest settings on ‘Madness’. As they tend to operate on a scale that starts at gigantic and runs up to supermassive it’s still bigger and brasher than your average song, but at least they’re keeping things interesting.

“I think we realised we had to open up,” Bellamy told Australia’s ABC Radio. “Being in a three piece band is limiting. Over the last couple of albums, we’ve really shown that we know how to do big, bombastic, theatrical crazy stuff, you know? I think the challenge has been creating something that was more subtle and understated in its delivery. I think that’s what we’ve done with ‘Madness’. I think it’s one of the best songs I’ve ever written.”

With their gleeful embrace of the overblown and unshakeable belief that bigger is always better, Muse have often drawn comparisons with pomp-rock overlords Queen. The likeness has never been more pronounced than on ‘Madness’, which sounds uncannily like a 21st-century mutation of Mercury and Co’s ‘I Want To Break Free’. Built around a throbbing synth bassline and processed drums, it’s pretty much guitar-free until Bellamy pops up with a thoroughly Brian May-esque solo a few minutes in. Freddie would approve.

Naysayers may criticise Muse’s Queen worship and straight-faced endorsement of rock’s ludicrous excesses, but those naysayers would be wrong. As waves of ruddy-faced, banjo-twanging poshos attempt to convince us that they are earthy folk troubadors, we need Muse more than ever. The choice is simple: faux nostalgic laments concerning love among the hay bales or star-flecked space operas about alien abductions, conspiracy theories and insanity. We know which we’d pick.

Huw Thomas Tag Of The Day

Huw Thomas Tag Of The Day

After a four-year hiatus following last album ‘Folie à Deux’, everyone’s favourite band named after a minor Simpsons character are back. A lot has changed for the emo-pop outfit in the intervening period. Singer/guitarist Patrick Stump put out a solo album while bassist/lyricist/angular-fringed heartthrob Pete Wentz had a kid and even got round to writing a book. Add it to your Amazon wish list immediately.

However, one thing that remains unchanged is the band’s love of songs with names wordier than the average lyric sheet. Where you stand on titles like ‘Sending Postcards from a Plane Crash (Wish You Were Here)’ and ‘I’ve Got a Dark Alley and a Bad Idea That Says You Should Shut Your Mouth (Summer Song)’ is a matter for your conscience, but they definitely come in handy if you’re trying to pad out a review.

While the unwieldy monikers might still be in place, Fall Out Boy have switched things up a bit at a musical level. The new track – henceforth known as ‘MSKWYDITD(LEU)’ for reasons of brevity – steps away from the breezy emo-lite of hits like ‘Sugar, We’re Going Down’ towards anthemic Maroon 5 influenced pop rock. The track’s big shiny choruses are unlikely to alienate any of their old fans, but it’s good to see the band growing up gracefully and not simply trying to rehash past glories.

“I think that the music dictated the return,” Wentz told VH1. “We definitely wanted to make new music and we wanted to make new songs that people would be able to embrace, and hopefully relate to. We tried a couple times in the past year and it wasn’t necessarily gelling, and then we tried again and it seemed like we were making something that was a little more compelling.”

‘MSKWYDITD(LEU)’ is the first track from forthcoming new album ‘Save Rock and Roll’, sneakily announced on the same day that the single dropped. Set for release in April, it will be interesting to see how they’re new direction pans out. In the meantime, be sure to check out the video for ‘MSKWYDITD(LEU)’, which inexplicably features rapper 2 Chainz burning a load of musical instruments in the woods.

Huw Thomas Tag Of The Day

Bastille’s rapid rise is a testament to the power of cooperation. Starting out as the solo bedroom project of songwriter/frontman Dan Smith, the expanded band have become one of the busiest live acts in the business. In the last year or so they’ve notched up dozens of festival appearances and regular gigs, all before they’ve even got their debut album on the shelves.

The LP ‘Bad Blood’ is now on the verge of its March 4 release, so it will be interesting to see if their recorded output lives up to the standards set by their work on stage. Judging by ‘Pompeii’, fans shouldn’t have too much to worry about. It’s a rousing and heartfelt track that throws everything at the wall to see what sticks. You’ve got some nicely pulsing synths, a tasty rolling bassline and a few group vocal breakdowns that are machine-tooled to ignite mass singalongs in big fields.

It’s a ‘more is more’ approach that initially seems somewhat odd for an act built around a single performer. Things make a little more sense when you discover that Bastille isn’t entirely a dictatorship with Smith in the Stalin role, but something far more collaborative.

“I normally start with the idea and record it quite a lot of it onto my laptop which will then get passed around to other members of the band and also a mate of mine who is a producer,” Smith told Fortitude. “When the demo gets passed around my original idea will transform with the help of different creative minds. You start to see little tweaks, ideas and improvements take shape and piece together quite nicely. It’s quite a patchwork process but I really like it.”

It’s clearly an approach that’s paying dividends, as Bastille unmistakeably sound more like a band than a disguised solo artist. To paraphrase those awful motivational posters found in the offices of terrible Brent-like businessmen: “teamwork makes the dream work.”

Huw Thomas Tag Of The Day

‘Dope’ is a curious mash-up of influences. The loping, double bass sample recalls Cypress Hill at their bonged-out best, while there’s a nice early Death Row feel to the menacing minor key chord stabs. Chuck in some escalating acid-tinged squelches and you’ve got a fairly tasty package. While Tyga’s lyrics – a relentless stream of data explaining just how amazing he is ¬– won’t win any prizes for originality, his tricksy delivery and capable flow easily take up the slack. In his 4,765th guest appearance this year, label boss Rick Ross provides some contrast with a more rugged verse of his own.

Despite the blinger-than-thou attitudes espoused in ‘Dope’, Tyga isn’t solely about the glitz. New album ‘Hotel California’ promises some soul-searching introspection amid the tales of booty and Bentleys.

“This album is very personal,” Tyga says. “It’s about my experience of being at a hotel and suddenly realizing how far I’ve come in my career. It’s also my desire to feel at home these days, since due to my success I mainly live life on the road. The only home I ever knew was California, so this album is about those dual feelings.”

Tyga has roped in an impressive list of producers for the new record, including DJ Mustard, Jess Jackson, David DA Doman and The Olympicks. He’s also recently announced that the next single to be taken from ‘Hotel California’ will be ‘For the Road’, a collaboration with his old mate Chris Brown. As long as Chris is involved, we’re sure it’ll be a massive hit.

Huw Thomas New Music Rick Ross, Tyga

Old-school meets new on ‘Unorthodox’ as hip-hop pioneer DJ Premier teams up with rising Brooklyn MC and typographic renegade Joey Bada$$. It’s a match that works out pretty well. Premier’s beats are vintage in the best sense of the word, demonstrating why he’s still one of the most important names in the game. His groundbreaking early work with Guru in Gang Starr would be enough to earn him a lifetime pass to the hip-hop hall of fame, but he’s stayed relevant over the subsequent decades by working with just about every major name in rap. True, he also collaborated with grunting backwards cap enthusiasts Limp Bizkit, but everyone has an off day.

Premier is on much surer ground with Joey Bada$$. Since dropping his debut mixtape ‘1999’ last year, the young Brooklyn MC been tipped as one to watch. ‘Unorthodox’ sees him living up to the billing with style. His verses are dense and knotty, telling tales of street life that ring with authenticity. Chances are he’ll land a million dollar contract and move on to talking about how much his shoes cost, but right now he’s offering a more grounded take on hip-hop than many of his contemporaries.

Hopefully, he’ll be able to hang on to what makes him special as his career progresses. A debut album, as yet untitled, is scheduled for sometime in 2013 so we should find out soon enough. Early signs indicate that his strong social conscience should keep him on the straight and narrow. “It’s the problems in the world that we often get our inspiration from, and these people need voices to speak for them,” he told Prefix. “Some people won’t speak up, and some people don’t have the ability to. We’re the voice of the people, and we support them.”

The oppressed and downtrodden could certainly have a worse spokesman than Joey Bada$$. Long may he make his voice heard.

Huw Thomas New Music Joey Bada$$

From beginnings as the parent-scaring face of grime, Dizzee Rascal has taken an improbable career trajectory to become something of a minor national treasure. Lest we forget, he popped up on that misguided 2004 remake of Band Aid and played a role in last year’s Olympic opening ceremonies. Hardly the work of a terrifying, hoodie-clad urban bogeyman.

Critics complain that Dizzee has forsaken the hard-edged sounds of his debut ‘Boy in da Corner’ for more chart-friendly bangers like the Armand Van Helden-produced ‘Bonkers’. We say pish to these critics. There are few things more annoying than a successful artist banging on about his life on the streets when we all know that he’s a millionaire who lives in a diamond-encrusted mansion on the moon. Dizzee’s situation in 2013 is probably pretty sweet, so why shouldn’t his music reflect that?

‘Bassline Junkie’ is certainly in keeping with Dizzee’s more party-focused outlook. A thumping celebration of bottom-end pleasures, it is a jolting shot in the arm for anyone jonesing for a low frequency hit. It’s a short, simple and brutally effective track, even if Dizzee’s repeated demand for ‘Bass, dirty stinking bass’ can’t help but remind you of this more culinary bass jam.

‘Bassline Junkie’ forms part of Dizzee’s forthcoming new album, his first in four years. The man himself is clearly enthusiastic about his latest release.

“I’m at a point where there’s so much music,” he told Radio 1. “It’s mad. It’s the best-produced album I’ve done so far because of the calibre of producers I’m working with. It’s all big league.”

“This past year or so, moving to Miami, I’ve actually had a life,” he said. “I feel a lot more settled now. I’m coming out ready just really wanting to get out there, perform new music. I’ve been doing the same songs for a little while now, and it’s cool, but it’s nice to do some fresh material.”

Huw Thomas New Music

Chemistry is a funny thing. You might think that a veteran hip-hop producer who grew up loving DJ pioneers like Red Alert, terminator X and Marley Marl would have little in common with a self-confessed ‘nerdy white kid’ who started out making house music. ‘Higher’ suggests otherwise.

Just Blaze has been in the game for years, producing tracks for Jay-Z’s ‘Blueprint’, ‘Blueprint 2’ and ‘The Black Album’. Baauer is quickly making a name for himself with monstrous electro/hip-hop party anthems like the irrepressible ‘Harlem Shake’. Together they’ve produced one of the most infectious tunes of this young year.

‘Higher’ starts big and keeps going bigger. An aural assault of hip-hop prowl and concussive dancefloor electronics, its crescendos have crescendos. It sounds immense when listened to on YouTube, so we can only imagine how truly megalithic this would be out of some massive speakers in a packed room.

The track also has the major distinction of featuring a vocal drop from none other than Blaze’s bud, Hova himself. It’s good to have friends in high places.

“I got a call [from Jay-Z] when we were working on ‘Higher’,” Blaze told MTV Hive. “I figured it might be cool for Baauer to meet Jay, so I took him over there with me. When we left, I was like, ‘Wait a minute. I just had an idea.’ Ran back in and I told Jay-Z, ‘Could you do a drop for the tour?’ It was originally just something we would utilize somehow during the show. I had him record it for me, right into my phone. The night we put it out, we were trying to figure out an intro and I was just like, ‘We got it. Just put the Jay-Z track at the top’.”

It all sounds so simple, but then the best recipes often are.

Huw Thomas New Music

Just once, it would be nice to see a rapper namecheck a slightly cheaper and more practical car. Sure a Bentley, Rolls Royce or a Lexus is classy, but what kind of fuel consumption does it get, what insurance bracket is it in and how easy is it to park? Beck bigged up the humble Hyundai on his ‘Midnite Vultures’ album back in the 90s, but no one followed suit. Hip-hop just doesn’t care about N-CAP safety ratings and generous manufacturers’ warranties.

Just like spud-faced, manufactured outrage-generator Jeremy Clarkson and his Top Gear accomplices, rappers don’t want to talk about vehicles that their audiences can afford. They’re about the aspirational, big-ticket rides which are solely the preserve of the mega-rich. Top businessmen, royalty and – yes – successful hip-hop artists.

The popularity of tracks celebrating vehicular excess suggests that most listeners aren’t too concerned that their idols are rapping about things they’ll never own. They just want to go along for the ride. Florida’s Ace Hood clearly understands this. By naming his latest track after the maker of the world’s most expensive car, he’s clearly aiming high.

Much like it’s namesake, ‘Bugatti’ is a low-slung and glossy creation. Ably assisted by Rick Ross and Future, Hood delivers an autotune-inflected paean to life’s pricier pleasures. There’s not much going on behind the shiny surface, but who ever said a good party needed a subtext?

At least Ace Hood is working hard for his money. ‘Bugatti’ comes from his forthcoming album ‘Trials and Tribulations’ but he’s also just released a new mixtape. Titled ‘Starvation 2’, the tape features guests like Meek Mill, French Montana, Yo Gotti, Choo Choo and Kevin Cossom. It’s something that Hood is intensely proud of.

“‘Starvation 2′ is my latest but greatest creation thus far,” he told AllHipHop. “I’m proudest of my growth with this mixtape. Seeing life through my perspective, I think this is the purest form of substance and hunger.”

If the dude’s hungry, he should think about getting a less expensive car. We hear Hyundais are very economical.

Huw Thomas New Music