'93' - Mowgli (album review)

At a total running time of way too long this album is impossible to describe in a snapshot and too lengthy (25 tracks) to run through track by track. It’s not that the tracks lack quality but UK Hip Hop MC Mowgli could have got a couple of LPs out of this one and we wouldn't have had to find an hour and seventeen minutes to listen to the whole thing!

What can be said is that Mowgli takes a personal and fairly unique approach to Hip Hop with producers Platitas, Miss Moss, Chris Fader, Jimmy Whagwarn and Fred Fades serving up beats, some of which can hardly be described as ‘Hip Hop’ – and that’s not a bad thing. Tracks like ‘The One’ and Oliver-sampling ‘Tax’ are more conventional Rap tunes. The sometimes Jazzy, sometimes Electro-ish productions will no doubt keep you surprised without ever sounding too leftfield making for a mind-altering, perception-changing journey.

Lyrically Mowgli has a lot to say although he says it all cryptically meaning listening to, not just hearing, this is essential – your brain must engage with his words. The medium of profound but sick rhymes allows Political and Social issues to be addressed and assessed in a way that even the most ign’ant rap fan could appreciate.

‘93’ is out now on Dodeca Records and is available from http://www.mowglihiphop.com/.

'Champion Fraff' - Contact Play (album review)

Look past the dopely presented CD and the well executed tracks (great production, talented MCs) and ‘Champion Fraff’ is an hour’s worth of schoolboy humour, tales of drunkness and unsubstantiated sex stories brought to you by a group of lads who are proud of their wasteman personas.

If Mr. Key, Dirty Dyke, Ronnie Bosh, Ed Scissor Tongue and Jamm Baxter were actually funny then their funky and technical rhyme styles, sing-along choruses and bouncy production would be put to good use. ‘Fingers In Your Nose’ is a song about snot, now Dead Residents proved on Vee Kay’s ‘Bogey Homicide’ that that concept can be funny, but when Contact Play do it, it’s just not.

‘Death of a Prick’ is proof that this crew have what it takes as they tell the story of a man wastes his life away. Now I don’t know for sure but it seems that a lot of the lyrics are just a front and that if you met them, these guys would actually be quite nice – who knows though. This LP is not for me but I can think of heads who would love it.

Production comes from TwoManySteps, Adrian, Cire, Karem Fraiche, Mr. Constant, Andy Dextrous, Medison and Jimmy Wahgwan – no names that I know but each certainly knows how to build dope beats – my favourite part of the album.

‘Champion Fraff’ is out now on School Bully Records and can be bought at Suspect Packages.