A visual story of Grime

56. V/A - Run The Road (2005) / Aim High Vol. 2 (2005)

Both of these releases came at the tail end of the first Grime wave,  Run the Road being the first available Grime comp in the US, acting as both a showcase of the new scene and as a consoladation of the scene to date.
Grime had been fermenting in areas of east London (ends) at this point for about five years post So Solid, forming organically from pirate radio stations such as Kiss FM & Rinse FM from various strands of Garage 2-step, Dancehall, Hip-hop and Jungle influences.
After years of UK hip-hop leaning heavily on US styles, Grime was the breaking point where the UK could finally match US hip-hop, with a style not derivative and with it's own production style, rhyme flows and subject matter.





Of course Jungle always had MC's, but the lyrics were always limited to bigidy-bigidy big up's to the DJ and nonsense fast chat, unfortunately Jamaican dancehall DJ's were much better at fast chat, and as Jungle became a D&B metronomic metal beast devoid of funk (Sir D'Voidoffunk), and thrill seeker urban types gravitated toward the smoother, Puff/Missy influenced bling and space of Garage. MC's voices could be heard and nonsensical gibbering just wouldn't cut the mustard anymore.

Thankfully then the nascent Grime MC's stepped up and developed original lyrics and flows, largely based on Dancehall and the dynasty/tribal images of late 90's hip-hop like Wu-Tang. Grime came in crews such as Pay-as-u-go-cartel, and Roll Deep, where each member had to have a recognisable style of their own, thus increasing competition.

This change in MC style also had a knock on effect of encouraging producers to minimise their sound further, creating sparse backings that often just changed rhythms every 16 bars, and had a cold synthy feel often making little sense without MC's battling aggressively over the backing. Produced by names like Wiley, Target, Terror Danjah, Jammer. Rarely mentioned as an influence on the Grime production sound but it can be heard, is the ice cold digital hip hop sound  created by the Rza for late 90's Wu-Tang under the moniker Bobby Digital, this can't of gone unnoticed by Wiley when he created the Eskimo sound.

The often violent slang, stories and descriptions of east London contained within these tracks were previously unheard outside of 2-tone, punk perhaps, but possibly ever before in music, although clearly a new language to many these were well established tropes and slanguage in these communities.

Run the Road and Aim High are as good a Grime comp as is available of the 1st wave Grime at it's peak, and the Aim High also contains a DVD showing many of the MC's freestyling, mucking about with expensive cars etc.

Classic tunes on these comps include, 'Cock Back' a Terror Danjah posse cut full of brooding aggression, and UK gun centric metaphors abound. Riko & Target's - Chosen One, is one of the best Grime tunes, and a UK no.1 that never was, Riko betrays a heavy dancehall influence and on the Aim High DVD comes across as a modern day Brian Harvey albeit with better taste in music, he even has a silly ponytail and can probably take 8 E's in one night! Target from Pay-as-u-go-cartel backs Riko with a fiery thrusting bounce, producing a everyday pressure tale with a positive, outward looking vibe, 'Don't strive for peace of mind, just keep an open one'.

Females are well represented in Grime and one time hopeful Lady Sovereign does 'Ch-Ching' which is as good as anything Bow-wow-wow did, and has plenty of sass and teenage attitude, shame she tried to crack the US, and got wrangled in record company politics and production sheen. No Lay however is as hardcore as they come, her name itself an arms length threat, like the US Boss, this is perhaps the most uncompromising grime gets, never mind female. Wileys Out Onez riddim rides a chopped and synthesised violin on Aim High allowing Crazy titch to spit mad anger over it, not long prior to his incarceration for murder, and this as he was being touted as a pin up amongst the grime scene, and the first nail in the coffin of Grime pt.1.

So Sure from Aim High explores an underdeveloped aspect of Grime, the Grime soul tune; Sadie & Kano sing a not corny at all duet, and Kano sounds both vunerablke, confident and in a first flush of love (fact fans: Sadie is Shola Ama's daughter).

Kano contributes perhaps the second best tune on these comps with P's & Q's, a force of MC control and UK advice for those who stray beyond their 'ends', or how to behave within your 'ends'. Other moments worth mentioning include Bruza's take on British cockney Grime styles (best heard on compilations), and Destruction VIP, the posee cut featuring the maddest spluttered verse from D Double E and future Grime wilderness hopefuls who kept Grime alive in the lean years, Durrty Goodz & Trim.