Such Wonderful Examples

Lady Sovereign “Ch Ching” – This song is exactly the reason why we actually need the word “grime” as a genre descriptor. I’m not sure if “grime” is really the best word to describe this sound, but there really needs to be some way of categorizing this music. A lot of what gets referred to a grime just sounds like interesting hip hop to my ears (for example: Dizzee Rascal, Wiley), but this track is just barely hip hop. It’s this strange, mesmerizing, strangely alien mixture of dance music, hip hop, reggae, modern r+b, video game music, and IDM. This exists primarily as a result (or is that a synthesis?) of the past six years of popular black music from both sides of the Atlantic, and a global culture which accelerates and encourages subcultural cross-pollination at a rate unthinkable even ten years ago. (Click here to buy it from Juno.)

Q And Not U “Wonderful People” – This is apparently part of an ongoing campaign to teach indie kids to dance (again) by presenting dance beats and synth lines in the comfortable context of punky guitar rock – a bit like taking your pills in a bowl of pudding. I’m not criticizing anyone. mind you, and if you’ve been following this blog for a while, you know that I am obviously a big fan of this sort of thing. Q And Not U get some bonus points for a) that excellent synth solo which begins at the 1:50 mark b) feeling a lot less oppressive and heavy than a lot of other indie bands playing in a similar style (!!!, The Rapture, The Faint, Interpol), and c) for getting a great, crisp mic sound on their guitar and drums. (Click here to pre-order it from Dischord.)