Sir Spyro ft. Teddy Bruckshot, Black Steve, Killa P & Flowdan – WISH
Stormin left behind a glittering legacy after he sadly passed away in 2018. A founding member of N.A.S.T.Y Crew and a drum & bass emcee with SaSaSaS, he conquered the pirate radio airwaves and the international festival stages.
‘Topper Top’ stands as one of his most loved tunes. First consigned to the USBs of Sir Spyro — the producer — and the DJs who possessed it, the tune tore up radio and club nights until Deep Medi finally released the record in 2016. There’s a stirring of excitement when the hooves clatter and the guitar starts to pluck, and when Stormin assumes his long-running alias of Teddy Bruckshot, spitting patois lyrics in the most guttural of flows, the dopamine receptors activate. It’s a sonic whirlwind.
‘Wish’ is produced by Sir Spyro and features posthumous vocals by Teddy Bruckshot. Featuring his brother Black Steve, Killa P and Flowdan, the five come together for part two of a modern grime classic, no curse of the sequel in sight.
Those hooves start to clatter, guitars begin to strum, and Spyro’s producer tag bellows atop the beat. As quick as a flash bass pours through the speaker, and Teddy Bruckshot spits rapid flows, the lightning strike to Spyro’s thundering production. Black Steve’s hook ties the tune together, Killa P’s verse is unrelenting, and then it’s back to where we started for the second Teddy Bruckshot verse. It’s a motion-blur lyrical dispatch, traversing several subject matters and still making time for brief pitch-changes throughout. Flowdan takes the final verse, somehow managing to hit vocal registers lower than the deepest sub-bass. Each emcee leaves you breathless. Teddy Bruckshot, Black Steve, Killa P and Flowdan cover every inch of the beat, channelling the immediate nerve-hit of a radio or club performance. Top-level grime done right.
‘Wish’ is most importantly a banger. But it’s also a way to celebrate and preserve the legacy of a legend in Black British underground music; handled by all the right people for the job. Play ‘Wish’ loud.
Jake Plisken x Tintz – Mind Ur Business
Underground heavyweights Jake Plisken and Tintz collide for ‘Mind Ur Business’. The tune sits on the axis of grime and dubstep, a loose sonic connection that has existed since the beginnings of dubstep; and when fully realised, provides a vast club-crossover potential for all artists involved. As you’d expect, ‘Mind Ur Business’ is brimming with low-end pressure; it bubbles and boils through the speakers, eventually joined by a plush flute riff later in the track. Tintz’ vocal is measured, playing out like a mind-map of delivery as he calls out rival emcees, chats about life, and drops his ‘black like’ lyrical calling card. The beauty of a tune like ‘Mind Ur Business’ is that producer and emcee meet in the middle. No one’s trying to out-score each other, just two artists contributing to a sustained vibe throughout.
Manga Saint Hilare x Lewi B ft. Roachee, Snowy & Logan OLM – Activated (Remix)
Manga returns with the remix of ‘Activated’. Released back in 2021 as part of “Glow in the Dark”, this version is super-charged, featuring an intergenerational mix of grime emcees. Up first: Roachee, navigating the beat with precision. Next: Snowy, scorching the microphone with jagged delivery. Logan adds an expressive touch to the remix, the appeal coming from how he manipulates his vocal tone over the instrumental. Manga takes the final verse, his bars skipping at speed between the bass blasts and eski clicks. One of grime’s best tunes of last year gets a fresh lick of paint for 2022.
Adam R x Joe Fire – Hold Up
Rising grime producer Adam R taps emcee Joe Fire for his latest single, ‘Hold Up’. Sitting somewhere between grime, trap, and dubstep; the beat is minimal in scope, peppered with vibrating bass lines, clipped vocal samples and eerie melodies. Fire’s spacious delivery graces the instrumental, as he lets off bars about what he might do to an opp if they cross him. Overall ‘Hold Up’ is a real head-nodder; deep, dark, and full of vibes.
FFSYTHO – Yeah Yeah (prod. by Glitch)
Fresh from collaborations with The Bug and Jabru, FFSYTHO returns with grime-garage heater ‘Yeah Yeah’. Produced by Glitch — who lays down skittering drum rhythms and speaker popping bass lines — to which FFSYTHO spits the kind of acid-tongued bars she’s become known for. A real peak time dancefloor banger ‘Yeah Yeah’ detonates the speaker cone with ease.
GUTTR – my b’s emo
Noods Radio and Audio Technica drop the second video from their GRIP collaboration. I featured January’s drop here, and February saw up-and-coming emcee GUTTR drop ‘my b’s emo’. GUTTR drops one-two punch flows over heavy percussion and grainy melodies, making his way around an old Bristol Rovers social club, which manipulates thanks to trippy camera work.
JT The Goon – Stand Off
JT The Goon kicks off 2022 with ‘Stand Off’. JT remarked that the tune was “made with energy” in the Bandcamp notes, and he wasn’t lying. Mammoth bass lines make up the bulk of ‘Stand Off’, modulating as they depart the speakers, eventually complemented by a heavy kick-drum pattern. It’s not all shock-and-awe low-end, though. There’s still time for the melodic riffs JT has made his name on, which give the track a dash of nuance as the bass melts your brain. ‘Stand Off’, then, is rave-proofed music from one of grime’s essential producers.
The Art of Grime 