Dizzee Rascal Vs. Atmosphere
We compare Dizzee and Slug’s new albums!
By Jeremy Azevedo
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Last week saw two big US releases in underground hip hop, one of which is currently tearing up the pop charts. While UK grime artist Dizzee Rascal attempts to replicate his overseas success with the help of Definitve Jux records in the US, a brilliant marketing campaign on the part of Rhymesayers records has finally catapulted Slug from being every rapper’s favorite rapper to genuine mainstream recognition. |
But outside of all the hype, are either of these albums even any good? And if they are, which album is superior?
Dizzee Rascal: Maths + English
Dizzee Rascal’s new album, Maths + English may not be selling as well as Atmosphere’s record, but that may have something to do with the fact that the album has already been available in the UK for the better part of a year now. XL records may have been cautious about exporting Dizzee and his decidedly English patois after fawning press over “Boy in Da Corner” didn’t translate to record sales back in 2004. Thankfully, Def Jux records have absorbed some of the perceived risk by taking up distribution duties in the US.
Maths + English is not really similar to anything in American hip-hop. The ‘grime” style popularized by Dizzee is sort of a combination of gangster, two-step, island dancehall, and synth. Dizzee’s heavily accented and aggressive flow is the perfect compliment to the unusual timing of the beats on this album. Many of the songs, like “Flex” and “Da Feeling” are meant to be club bangers, but the better songs are the 90’s west coast gangster funk jams like “Excuse Me Please” or “Where Da G’s”.
One of my favorite hip-hop songs of all time is “Run” by Ghostface. The second song on Maths + English, “Sirens” is like a sequel to that song, it’s a hyped up masterpiece, reminiscent of KRS-One’s “Sound of the Police” in theme. I also can’t get enough of “Paranoid”, and also “Hard Back (Industry)”, a great song about being in the recording industry. Honestly, I never really latched on to Dizzee Rascal before, but I keep listening to this latest album over and over. Maths + English is easily my favorite hip-hop album since I re-discovered Cage on “Hell’s Winter”.
Atmosphere: When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold
Atmosphere, which consists of rapper Slug and producer/DJ Ant has been spearheading the independent rap scene for the better part of ten years. Their newest album, “When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold” is their highest charting album by a landslide, but is also one of the most far-out albums they’ve recorded to date.
Slug is known especially for his introspective, thoughtful and at times even self-abusive lyrics. When Life Gives You Lemons is no different, except in that it offers no alternative in the form of a more lighthearted track peppered in here and there. I know that it’s not considered cool to say this, but my favorite of all their albums is still “Seven’s Travels”. That record had fun, bouncy songs, dark, brooding songs, really heavy stuff seamlessly incorporating stiff sarcasm from start to finish. When Life Gives You Lemons is a much more cohesive album, but I’ve always gone in for variety over continuity.
At first listen, you might think that Ant is toning his style down, especially because the first two songs are so minimalist. As he album unfolds, though, you come to see that as a producer, Ant has surpassed nearly all of his peers. Even Dan the Automator, Danger Mouse and the RZA are going to have one hell of a time topping this one for sheer creativity and (I swear this is not a lame attempt at a pun) atmosphere. Just listen to “Glasshouse” and see if you don’t hear the evolution.
So which album has the edge? When Life Gives You Lemons is brilliant, accessible, and nearly every song is great. The more times you listen to it, the better it gets. But at the same time, it’s a bit safe, at least for guys as talented as Slug and Ant. Maths + English is slightly more fun, if for no other reason than the fact that it sounds genuinely different than anything I’ve ever heard in the genre. In the end, it doesn’t really matter though. If you ask me, you should treat yourself and pick both of these albums, I assure you that you won’t be disappointed.
Atmosphere: When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold
Score: 9 out 10
+1 if you are a big fan of Atmosphere’s earlier albums
-1 if you think Slug is sorta becoming the Wes Anderson of Hip-hop, always crying about the same bad father/son relationship and the resulting intimacy problems that resulted from it over and over again for f**king eternity.
Dizzee Rascal: Maths + English
Score: 9 out of 10
-2 if you can’t understand a goddamn word the dude is saying.
+1 If you can’t understand a word the dude is saying but think that’s half the fun.
-5 if you’re a Revolutionary War veteran who’s still sore at the English to this day.
