Finally, after a year and a half, the mercury prize for album of theyear, a stabbing, and endless amounts of hype-slipping across theAtlantic Ocean about a true slice of the U.K. Garage scene (unlike theamusing, but hardly definitive Original Pirate Material)landing stateside and demolishing the anemic backpacker underground,Dizzee Rascal has arrived. While it's difficult to say that anythinglavished with so much unyielding praise could ever live it down, Boy in Da Cornerdoes quite a bit to support it. It is a brilliant collection of bangersthat can be at times furious and frothing, and other times insightfuland contemplative. Rascal doesn't' fall prey to the run of the mill hiphop clich?, giving issues like violence and sexuality their due with amore sensitive eye than most. When others fall prey toself-contradiction and self-involvement, Dizzee finds a consistency andbalance, a sense of control-not bottled or volatile but reigned in,precise and deftly employed. His tracks are punctuated with off kilter,upside down beats that sound like they're coming from water damageddrum machines and synthesizers. They fall on top of each other in afilthy collision of thin, piercing claps of metallic shards and wobblynotes with a thick and heavy low end. The thick East London accent thatdominates his delivery decimates the sleepy flow of mainstream rapperslike 18 Cent as well as the squeaky bleats of American undergroundcounterparts like Aesop Rock. Rascal doesn't cop out and slack on hisbeats for the sake of his lyrics or mumble his way through his tracksto show off his production. His voice is ingrained in the music, asaggressive an instrument as the concussive pipe bomb percussion thatpropels him. "Stop Dat" is a knives-out assault, spitting lyrics acrossan adrenaline-fueled crush of ominous clashes and crunches. Everyslit-eyed glance and sized up plot comes across in his venomous accent."I Luv U" pairs Dizzee with the clearly annoyed vocals of JeanneJacques, trading chorus lines Positive K style over throbbing IDMbeats, and shows that Mike Skinner wasn't exactly telling the truthwhen he said "round 'ere we call 'em birds / not bitches." Along with"Jezebel," this track explores the male female interaction with askeptical and critical eye, lampooning careless sex andirresponsibility while bemoaning the devastating (and cyclical) resultsof teenage promiscuity. "Do It" is a sincere, contemplative piece whereDizzee reveals himself, going deeply into personal insecurity, fearsand doubts and closing with the decidedly upbeat notion that "you cando anything." Boy in the Corner is a devastating salvo thatwill leave Rascal's contemporaries (particularly those in the UnitedStates) shell shocked and dazed. This record will sit at the head ofthe pack and give everyone a target to aim for, whether it is toemulate it's successful formula or kill it with something even moreforward looking and fresh. Hopefully his example will provoke otherhip-hop, rap, garage, grime innovators to come forth and show whatthey've got, and serve as a warning to all those who are alreadystagnant that it's time to fix up and look sharp. samples:
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