Big Dada is one of the heavyweight labels of UK hip-hop and their new
compilation, Extra Yard (The Bouncement Revolution), certainly sees them
punching their weight.
New material is provided by Roots Manuva, Ty, New Flesh, Gamma, Lotek HiFi
and Part 2 which all makes a refreshing change from those poor value
compilations which just re-hash lots of tunes you already have.
Perhaps more than any other UK hip-hop label Big Dada has its own
distinctive sound, and this is never more obvious than on Extra Yard. There
is a bounce to the Big Dada beats, and most of the rappers on their highly
impressive roster have a rough ragga twang - so no poor US imitations here.
Roots Manuva is without a doubt Big Dada’s biggest hitter, and he offers
several knockout blows on Extra Yard. Wildflower partners him on the
banging Born Again, while Fallacy, Rodney P, Blackitude, Big P and Skeme
complete the all-star cast on the incredible Witness The Swords - a tune
which quite simply cannot be played loud enough.
New Flesh weigh in with three excellent tracks, the pick of which is the
catchy Lie Low, while Gamma’s Killer Apps is the suitably slamming lead
single from the compilation.
This is UK hip-hop at its very best - but let’s not pigeon-hole the talent
on this album unfairly. This is quite simply hip-hop at its very best.
www.bigdada.com
Reviewed
by Fraser Syme
|
