Review of An England Story in FACT
ALBUM OF THE WEEK
The latest Soul Jazz double CD, compiled by the folk behind London's Heatwave nights, traces the culture of the MC in the UK from 1984 to 2006. There's a strong bias towards artists with Caribbean styles, with the patois inflections binding the compilation together into a cohesive whole...
The two earliest tracks, Papa Levi's 'Mi God Mi King' and Jah Skreechy's 'Walk and Skank' (both '84) are both blissful leisurely dancehall and make me wish I knew more about this whole period. Tippa Irie's 'Complaint Neighbour' from '85 is probably the perfect track to end the mix on; a dissection of miserable tenants with bass affliction that reminds me of the way Ian Dury would spin elaborate narratives out of everyday problems (see: 'Razzle in my Pocket'). Top Cat's later 'Love Mi Ses' actually came out when I was alive, and is an indisputable classic in my close-minded books.
What really got me about An England Story were the nineties UK hip-hop tracks from groups like London Posse. I'd neglected a lot of this stuff growing up, and even when my mates started to prioritise it over the US hip-hop and garage that I was so into, it was only through listening to their records that I ever heard it. Blak Twang's 'Red Letters' is the pick of these tracks, and if everyone I'd lived with had bemoaned the electricity bills with that much style I'd be the most grateful man in East London.
The recent selections are choice too: Wiley's 'Ice Rink' riddim is still the best example of grime's super minimal side, and Riko's vocal of it was, at least until The Bug and Flowdan worked together, the definitive patois style grime track. Doctor and Davinche's 'Gotta Man' is about a billion times better than I remembered, and Warrior Queen's collaboration with the Heatwave is one of her best recent tunes. It's a shame there's no room for Slew Dem's 'Joyride' riddim, which was part of the original Blogariddims mix that spawned An England Story, but it's no big deal.
Years of reading Boomkat descriptions have made me sceptical of the word, but this compilation is essential: it not only provides an insight into the Caribbean influence on UK MCing over the years, but almost every tune is brilliant.
Tom Lea | FACT
