The tail-end of the summer will see two of grime's lynchpins in Royal T and Terror Danjah release LPs on both Rinse and Hyperdub respectively and I gave the former my seal of approval in a review for Clash Music.
On the basis of a series of releases over the last 2 years, grime owes a debt of thanks to stateside labels. Starkey's label ventures 'Seculasis' and 'Slit Jockey' are well documented fans having released music from J Sweet, Numan and Mella Dee but 'Hot Mom USA', an imprint run by DJ Shiftee who only yesterday released an excellent 'US meets UK' mixtape alongside Elijah, is the latest to give grime's unsung heroes a platform.
This time it is Spooky who has been chosen to provide the goods with 'Code 9', a surprisingly different chest-plate rattler to be released on September 3rd. Listening to Spooky's radio / club sets, it is sometimes easy to forget that aside from his bullish reworks of grimy favourites like Preditah's 'Circles' or Faze Miyake's 'Take Off', hs is an excellent producer.
Code 9 seems less complicated, less erratic and more focused than previous endeavours. My initial reaction upon first hearing it was one of quiet satisfaction as opposed to immediate rewind which may not sound completely positive but in hindsight, probably is. I think what I'm trying to say is that, for me, this is Spooky's most palatable single release for some time. Whilst his flair for making 8-bar classics is obvious, Code 9 just seems that little bit more considered, more in keeping with the grime that is starting to make headlines outside the genre's steely confines. Remixes from fellow hidden gem Moony, his a glorious little 2-step rework, and Wheez-ie and Star Eyes are also well chosen and take the original in new and exciting directions. A genuinely impressive release from both label and artist.
Code 9 will be available to purchase digitally as of September 3rd from all good online outlets.
'Life at 140' is a new monthly feature I'll be providing for Clash Music, documenting my take on the best music and events from the world of grime each month. August's edition features music from Royal T, Spooky and Moony plus news of a Butterz tour, Maybach and Faze Miyake's FWD debut.
Incredible line-ups, cheap entry and a fantastic venue all underpin London's newest and most exciting Friday night, The Upfront Project. Hosted at the newly-refurbished Lightbox in Vauxhall, The Upfront Project aims to showcase dance music in a whole new light with names from across house, techno, garage, disco, funky and just about everything in between being brought in to light up South London's clubbing forecast. With Jam City, Ben Westbeech, Darling Farah and Paul Woolford all having played the night's opening dates, the calibre of future guests remains just as strong with Cooly G, DJ Rashad and Simon Baker all confirmed to play over the next few weeks. In short, a quite brilliant new club night.
Hot off the back of his release on my in-house Coyote Records imprint, Doncaster's grime virtuoso Mella Dee is back with another solo outing, this time via Forefront Recordings. Forecast for a September 10th release, the 'Ruff Cuts' EP gives us another insight into Mella's undoubted potential and sees him dabble in and out of a variety of bass-driven sub genres. A producer with a comprehensive back catalogue alongside Woozee under the excellent Mista Men guise, Mella's recent solo forays have all shown promise and Ruff Cuts is certainly no different.
'Gassed' is a down-tempo bassy house cut with strong grimy undercurrents, underpinned by the sampling of Crazy Titch's infamous dispute with a taxi driver and oozes dance floor swagger, whilst 'Fazed' continues the trend but instead opting for a more mellow, summertime feel. 'In The Bits' rounds off proceedings in similar fashion, uniting elements of grime, garage and house in a style Mella has made his own in recent months. Great stuff.
The tenth installment of Uncle Albert's collaborative mix series with Sonic Router sees Belfast's Bloom take to the stage with a great introductory 70-minute mix. I managed to catch up with grime's most intriguing new face on life in Belfast, radio influences and the incredible success of 'Quartz' too.
In my latest piece for Clash Music, I caught up with precociously talented man of funk Swindle, on everything from cutting his teeth alongside Danny C to Butterz and his forthcoming debut album on Deep Medi.
Wednesday August 8th sees the latest installment of Formula Records nights at esteemed London Night spot, East Village with Terror Danjah, Formula protege Notion and Hyperdub's Ill Blu to join label boss Champion on the night to celebrate the best in grime and funky. With Terror Danjah ('Dark Crawler' feat Riko), Notion ('Digits') and Champion ('Crystal Meth / Speed') all fresh from recent releases, you can expect a glut of fresh, upfront material too.
