rubberdingyrapids
Well-known member
elijah,you should blog more...
Grime-where did it all go wrong?
- Thread starter luka
- Start date
viktorvaughn
Well-known member
Dot Rotten is still a character rather than just a technical MC to me tho, it's just his character is a certain way. I think these things can be judged on re-listenability and I listen to Dot all the time at work.
yyaldrin
in je ogen waait de wind
I can't get that audio file to play and the download seems to be unavailable as well, can someone up this?
Stepping back though, does any one realistically expect any scene to be permanently amazing? As much as I dislike it when it happens, creative movements burn out - they do. Perhaps some movements burn over longer timescales, especially when information was slower to exchange (jazz for example) but they always rise then fall.
With that in mind I think grime's done better than average, reached a median rather than becoming mostly unlistenable like dubstep.
With that in mind I think grime's done better than average, reached a median rather than becoming mostly unlistenable like dubstep.
Yeah, as people have said, Grime's actually in pretty good shape at the moment! Especially on the instrumental side, but even MC wise I reckon there's a lot of good stuff going on, especially up norf/midlands with people like Sox.
The real question is, isn't it actually a bit of a lowering of expectations just to ask for Grime to be interesting? What about some new innovation that changes Grime so much that we have to think of a new name for it? Grime's been going strong for 10 years, but it'd be nice if in 10 years time we had something different.
Lyrically also, beyond just a lack of characters, would it be treading too much in boring white-boy UK Hip Hop territory to ask for Grime to come up with some interesting responses to the social-economic-political clusterfuck of a situation in this country? Is it possible to imagine Grime tackling 'bigger issues' in a way that enhances rather than stifles the music?
The real question is, isn't it actually a bit of a lowering of expectations just to ask for Grime to be interesting? What about some new innovation that changes Grime so much that we have to think of a new name for it? Grime's been going strong for 10 years, but it'd be nice if in 10 years time we had something different.
Lyrically also, beyond just a lack of characters, would it be treading too much in boring white-boy UK Hip Hop territory to ask for Grime to come up with some interesting responses to the social-economic-political clusterfuck of a situation in this country? Is it possible to imagine Grime tackling 'bigger issues' in a way that enhances rather than stifles the music?
rubberdingyrapids
Well-known member
no. the thing about grime is that it addresses these things in an unfocused way. and maybe not being able to focus is what lends/lent the music its energy. without wanting to be a cunt (or maybe i am being a cunt), a lot of mcs didnt have the best education, so expecting them to be the most articulate people while still retaining their own voice is probably a bit much. but i dont think it matters, even if its not directed anywhere in particular, the anger can still be felt. im not sure grime has had a chuck d-type artist who has shown the music can be political yet. there is reflective grime like chosen one and some of doogz' more recent stuff though thats not exactly political grime, more conscious/reflective. im not sure who the grime immortal technique is.
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rubberdingyrapids
Well-known member
or plan b's first album!
Elijah
Butterz
Nah see you are looking at things in absolutes.
Having a conscious tone in your music is harmless.
slackk
-
Of course it's harmless. Doesn't mean I want to listen to it.
(this is not to say that the idea of reflections on actual society and that in grime bars are bad because they're not but "conscious" rap has horrible connotations in my head and I think with good reason).
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rubberdingyrapids
Well-known member
i think harmlessness is part of the problem. (though id prob worry a bit about someone who liked ONLY gangsta/hardcore rap and nothing else in the genre). granted, in grime, 'conscious' (or idk, 'reflective') content can sometimes mean a song like dizzee's 'imagine', which is pretty terrible, but it can also mean a song like 'chosen one' or 'sittin' here'. ok im struggling to think of more good examples of this. i have 2 'conscious ragga' comps from the 90s. not sure if i could fill up 2 for grime.
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benjybars
village elder.
Mercer Finn
MF Damn
When I was first getting into grime (thru Run the Road and the big studio albums) I got the sense of a mini-genre of songs about how stuff was so much better when you were a yout, when you were either less aware of the world's ills, or free from the responsibility of dealing with them. Things like:
Dizzee 'Sittin Here'
Ears 'Happy Days'
Roll Deep 'Remember the Days'
Lady Sov 'Those Were The Days'
Can't think of any other examples, so maybe mini-genre is overstating it.
Generally quite like the more introspective soppy stuff, like 'Never Ending Story' by Dogzilla or Kano's 'Sometimes'.
Dizzee 'Sittin Here'
Ears 'Happy Days'
Roll Deep 'Remember the Days'
Lady Sov 'Those Were The Days'
Can't think of any other examples, so maybe mini-genre is overstating it.
Generally quite like the more introspective soppy stuff, like 'Never Ending Story' by Dogzilla or Kano's 'Sometimes'.