Low-Life | UK Hip Hop Story | R 2 Tha Beatz - All Inclusive Flag Of Hip Hop [Sidewalk Knowledge Entertainment]

Intro

Early Doors:
1979-1985

False Dawn:
1985-1990

Underground Years:
1990-1995

The Renaissance:
1995- 2000

The Future:
2000 & Beyond

Artists &
Discographies

R 2 Tha Beatz - All Inclusive Flag Of Hip Hop [Sidewalk Knowledge Entertainment]

Tracklist:
01. R2thaBeatz - I Will Not Stop (Intro)
02. Jon Krow - Fuc With Me
03. Ras Supa - What U Thinkin (Remix)
04. Defisis feat. Xeno - M.I.A
05. S.K - Estatez (Gypo Remix)
06. Redbeard - Mic Feen
07. R2thaBeatz - Radio Search (Skit)
08. Jon Krow - High
09. Defisis feat. H.D.Gritty - Slurrrr
10. Ras Supa - Euro'z An Yen'z
11. S.K - Flyin Fuk (X10Dead Remix)
12. Redbeard feat. Jon Krow & S.K - We Don't Talk
13. Defisis - Corparate Culture Catalyst
14. R2thaBeatz - Whatz My Name (Outro)
Sidewalk Knowledge

"I WILL NOT STOP..... ALL INCLUSIVE FLAG OF HIP HOP!"

This is another of those projects that bursts out of nowhere and once you hear it and take note of the quality of its contents you wonder how this could drop without so much as a rumour before it was released. This release has a mix of totally unknown acts and some more well known cats like Defisis who has had his own wax out on SFDB records and did an extensive tour as Blade's hype man. Never the less all of the contributors to this project come correct and all show a strength of character and the skills required to progress further in this game.

There have been a couple of threads on message boards about this (mostly started by John Blood), which received positive responses, but otherwise, nada. This is not surprising as many outlets are particularly one eyed when they choose what to get behind, but here we aim to let you know in an unbiased manner about as much material as we can. This CD weighs in at 14 tracks deep and is pretty much solid all the way through. When we spoke to John Blood he explained that, 'R2thabeatz has been two years in the making and has been inspired by by all UK scene [From John O'Groats to Land's End] and also from the USA by acts like J-Zone, Louis Logic, DemiGodz and Copywrite etc. etc.'. To give you more of an idea of his influences he went on to name a few of his favourite Albums from 2003 which included, 'Louis Logic - Sino-matic and Immortal Technique - Vol 2'.

R2thaBeatz, aged 28, is the producer and main driving force behind the All Inclusive Flag Of Hip Hop. He was born and bred in the Midlands, specifically Birmingham and should be commended for his efforts in bringing all these MCs together and for producing such a hot product. Whilst the cover art work leaves a touch to be desired, it is really the musical content that we are concerned with.

The play list kicks off with a short intro which is throwaway and doesn't make the impact required for the opening of an album. The first full track Jon Krow's Fuc With Me is largely beat based with only minimal instrumentation, but this is a good this as Jon is able to step to the forefront with his verses. Jon's other track High is more musical with an Eastern feel. The multitude of backup vocals make for a bit of a messy delivery on this, but undoubtedly this MC has an ability to articulate his inner feelings.

Ras Supa are next up for the What You Thinking track. R2ThaBeats delivers a frantically fast Apache break based beat. Ras Supa spit in Jamaican dancehall stylee and altogether this track comes over manic and by today's terms quite mental, but more than ten years ago this breakbeat style was the forerunner to Jungle and other genres! Ras Supa's other track Euroz & Yenz is almost as crazy. Ras spurts forth breathlessly as he tells us about the different types of money he gets his hands on.

Defisis comes together with his former musical partner Xeno to deliver a really storming track M.I.A. The beat is really heavy and the really downbeat spoken chorus when described in a written manner sounds weak, but actually really makes this tune distinctive. The two MCs show their familiarity as they go back and forth every couple of lines - real teamwork. Defisis has a new moniker - Thousands of People and this track is taken from the forthcoming Kilroy Thinks I'm An Englishman E.P.

S.K. appears on Estates [Gypo Remix] & Flyin Fuck [X10Dead Remix] and I just love to hear strong regional accents on the mic. S.K. does extenuate his Brummie accent and for the Estates track when coupled with R2ThaBeats' acoustic guitar riff sampled backing the result is mellow, but really extortionately fat. Flyin Fuck gets a while to get going, but the big orchestral samples and brass from R2ThaBeats make for a low tempo bumper for S.K. to let us know what he thinks of people who get on the wrong side of him and his general reckless attitude to life. S.K.'s tracks are taken from his forthcoming album Sex Drugs & On The Dole Highs N Lows.

Redbeard again has his own solo release lined up for release - Tha Bearded Wonda LP from which the tracks included here are taken. He has a softly spoken style which somehow seems at odds with the lyrical content of his Mic Feen track. You would really expect a super hyper persona rather than the laid back stoner we are presented with!

Midway through the LP there is a break from the raping and R2ThaBeats drops an instrumental cut in the form of a radio changing frequencies which allows him to showcase several beats many of which sample up some classical element including harpsichords and he is able to flip these snippets in a pleasing manner when so often samples like these just aren't put together right.

Defisis and H.D. Gritty team up for Slurrr. Whilst the other tracks are good there is something about the Defisis tracks that are just on another level. This track is banging, a simple bass and more urgent violins make for a juxtaposed beat which lets the MCs flip two ways. H.D. Gritty comes quite hardcore with his delivery and is not overshadowed on this in any way.

Towards the end of the CD there is the obligatory posse cut We Dont Talk To The Police which features Redbeard, Jon Krow and S.K. I love this, the MCs break down what they think of the police and I think most people can relate to the harassment described and the reasons for the cynical attitude towards the dibble. The subject matter is serious, but I found that this was almost comedic and did resonate with me. The penultimate track features Defisis again and a rather experimental sounding beat. Defisis tailors his flow to the beat which makes for a stuttery delivery. I'm not entirely sure about this Corporate Culture Catalyst track, it will probably take a while for me to get a proper feeling on this one.

The CD finishes off with another short instrumental, the Outro for which R2ThaBeats hooks up some classical samples over a very basic beat and spells out his name with some Speak'n'Spell voice. Again not much impact to close the LP, but despite a couple of minor failings this is a heavy duty offering which deserves more attention that it has had to date. Make sure that you track down this CD and that you look out for all the forthcoming releases from the acts included on here as well as the Sidewalk Knowledge EP which is out now.

"Its ridiculous if you really think I give a shit, your mind must be limited, I'm in my prime, the world is primitive, idiots talk about sillyness and really miss the whole point of being lyricist" REDBEARD (UK)

mailto:[email protected]