Rua Sound co-founder Rob Flynn on the label’s explorations in jungle, drum & bass, grime, footwork and hip-hop
Tag: grime
Mango x Mathman won’t be keeping it too Casual on first Irish tour
In an interview in 2017 just before the release of Mango x Mathman’s debut EP Wheel Up, MC Mango told me: “Grime music isn’t alien in Ireland anymore.” He’d been considering the growing acceptance of […]
Giggs’ Big Bad self
After releasing his debut album in 2008, South Londoner Giggs is bordering on being considered an OG of second wave grime. Blockbuster hook-ups and features with the likes of Stormzy, Drake and M.I.A. have helped […]
Outer limits grime abstraction on Mosca – Touchie Riddim
Copenhagen label FLUF has been prolifically releasing deviant abstract electronic music since 2017, fuelled by future sonics and a self-effacing sarcasm that transcends any pseudo academic pitfalls. I’ve said it before, but the regular type-font […]
Mathman interview: ‘We’re writing our history – right now’
“Our history books are being written day by day by the artists around us, and that’s a very powerful thing.” Get Adam ‘Mathman’ Fogarty talking about Irish hip-hop and he goes off on one, in […]
All the right noises: February & March 2019 in 20 tracks
From long-form ritual ambient, to sick Finnish grindcore, to Japanese brain-fry hip-hop and a love song to an ancient sea sponge living on a dying coral reef, here’s a selection of the best music from […]
Sound minds: January 2019 in 21 tracks
Thank u January, next. Here’s some music you might’ve missed under the deluge of shit memes about how long it lasted. Last month was powered by street meat, desert synthwave, dank dub, DIY minimal wave, […]
Mango x Mathman’s last taps-aff rave of the year
Around a year ago I interviewed duo Mango x Mathman about the amazing 2017 they’d had — and they’ve only gone and doubled and tripled their efforts this year. From their usual festival shut-downs, to […]
Should we care about The Streets’ comeback when Mike Skinner doesn’t seem too fussed?
Last October, rapper Mike Skinner announced the return of his landmark project The Streets with as little fanfare as the project’s ‘retirement’ in 2011. “Spoke to my old band! Told them we need to sing […]
21-tune salute: February 2018 playlist
Apart from blizzards and broken resolutions, February was brought to you by nervy electronics, hip-hop, battered rock, depraved noise and plenty of soothing ambience to offset all of the above. 1. Factory Floor – Heart […]
Mango & Mathman interview: ‘Grime isn’t alien music in Ireland anymore’
When it comes to street art in Ireland, the North’s politically-charged pieces have always got the headlines, but a recent mural of Stormzy that appeared in Dublin dragged the pop culture discourse down south. Back […]
Roots Manuva interview: ‘It’s like a mud fight instead of a ballet’ (2008)
Not renowned for their modesty, most commercial hip-hop artists assign some ethereal majesty to their MTV-bankrolled ‘vocation’. For Rodney Smith Aka Roots Manuva, it’s a base instinct, a subconscious tic “I find it hard to […]
Just Shut Up – it’s Stormzy’s year
Last month Stormzy seemed like the world’s biggest pop star — even if it was for one week only. The London MC has been grime’s biggest hope since Wiley and Dizzee Rascal, the most likely […]
