Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed Peel, and there was some guitar music I could dig, Royal Trux, Flying Saucer Attack and Belle & Sebastian spring to mind. However much of what I listened to and spent hard earned cash on during the '96-'02 era was Drum'n'Bass, hip-hop, electronic and of course Reggae. These musics simply seemed to be innovating and steaming ahead of the competition on a week by week basis. Culminating in the millennial situation where characters like Missy Elliot, Roni Size, Wu-Tang, Daft Punk and the dancehall reggae producers of Kingston Jamaica, had the charts sown up and pop artists borrowing heavily from their styles.
Dancehall reggae had been steadily developing since Prince Jammy first switched on his Casio for Under Me Sleng Teng back in '85. You can trace the development using the budget priced Greensleeves samplers which began in the early dancehall era, they take you through the classics of the genre: Tiger, Ninjaman, Cutty Ranks, Yellowman, Beenie Man, Buju Banton, Capeton et al. fiercely competitive, each new track aiming for the next level.
It was the opposite situation from 4/4 indie rock which wanted to ignore 40 years of progress and multiculturalism in rock, batten down the hatches and party like it's Hamburg 1960. In '97 the NME even declared hip-hop the new rock'n'roll, although they shied away from putting say Wu-Tang or Mobb Deep on the cover and opted for an anonymous drawing of a beanie hatted youth instead.
Every month the new dancehall 7"s from Greensleeves, not to mention the imports , showcased new rhythms voiced by both big DJ's, veterans and upstarts. The 7"s eventually stopped and the new tracks were compiled exclusively on Rhythm albums and mix CD-R's. I preferred the 7"s as you could mix them up, the albums could wear a bit thin after listening through 20+ tracks all on the same rhythm.
There are so many great rhythms from this era, but they seemed to culminate around '02 with the Diwali rhythm, whereby the feedback loop of dancehall, hip-hop and electronica seemed to be reaching the same conclusions. Finding rhythms in the most unexpected and inventive places. Syncopation taken from Jungle, Bollywood and Arabic music, the rise of the internet suddenly making all this stuff available worldwide. For the size of the country Jamaica produces more music than any other nation in the world.
To the uninitiated perhaps dancehall might seem impenetrable, with the Jamaican specific references, fast chat and patois, but repeat plays pays dividends, and even if you can't understand what they're on about (which is sometimes for the best) you can feel the rave energy, vocal skill, personality.
Diwali was when the public seemed ready, there were major hits utilizing the rhythm, which kept coming way after the initial run of 7"s. Even greater is that each rhythm album is a snapshot of it's time, you might not get all the big shots (no Buju, Capleton or Sizzla on Diwali), but you get one shot DJ's doing their best to stand out (Egg Nog, Bling Dawg, Zumjay).
Maybe the competition is what makes this music sound so fresh, without the funds for artists to use live bands, producers create a rhythm and DJ's compete to provide their vocal. A situation that would be criticized in the UK as being like an Xfactor style treadmill.
Steven 'Lenky' Marden created the Diwali rhythm from his 40/40 studio, and this remains the work he is remembered for.
Bounty Killer kicks of proceedings with Sufferer, a conscious selection reminding listeners of his ghetto roots. Bounty Killer had at this point been in the top echelon of DJ's from the mid 90's. After being shot at 14 he decided on the Bounty Killer epithet and a musical life reflecting the realities of ghetto life back at the world in the most dazzling way possible.
This is Bounty Killer at Sting festival Kingston, JA 2002. Hardcore!
T.O.K. are next up as the male boy band trio, who slavered everything in auto-tune way before Kanye. Wayne Wonder then does his No Letting Go, which became a huge tune in it's remixed form, it's a great love song and summer anthem, making Peter Andre seem even more of a twunt.
Assassin then brings the ragamuffin fire with Ruffest & Tuffest, always reliable for a banger. His vocals gruff like Buju with a clever flow, good luck at picking out any lyrics. His career has been a slow burner, although always considered among the best in dancehall circles but never had that crossover success like yer Shabbas, Beenie Man or Elephant Man. However perhaps now his time has come. After a name change to Agent Sisco he was featured heavily on Kendrick Lamar's The Blacker The Berry single.
This is one of his big tunes, albeit not on the Diwali riddim.
If Assassin was up and coming in '02, then Spragga Benz had peaked in the late 90's. Audiences in JA are faithful, to their homegrown artists so there will always be a place for Spragga, he still voices the rhythms and can do conscious and gully styles, although tends towards rasta message music these days.
Tanya Stevens is fantastic on this comp as always. Up and coming in '02 and mentored by the legendary Lady Saw, she more than redressed the gender inequality with always intelligent lyrics.
Check this beauty out....
Egg Nog & Danny English - Party Time on the Diwali riddim. See the hands clapping at the party.
Anthony B is a Bobo Ashanti Rastafarian and spits angry righteous fire like Sizzla and Capleton. Perhaps not best represented by the tune on Diwali, heres a clip of him at Sting with Sizzla. This is what those little emoticon flames were invented for.
Crissy D is up next with an R&B flavoured version adding simple zips and stepping synth chords to the riddim,
Hawkeye is up next, most active from 95-05, he voiced a string of great tunes, but perhaps suffered from a voice not as distinctive as Beenie Man whilst having a similar flow. His lines and choruses are catchy. I'd love to see a single artist compilation of some of these DJ's like Assassin, Buccaneer or Hawkeye. Your move again Soul Jazz.
This is Hawkeye on the Orgasm riddim, and Go Rachel on the Mud Up riddim which I have on 7".
Quite rightly the most unhinged version of Diwali is saved for the 'Energy God' Elephant Man, adding another video with much clapping dancing going on. Hoovering mentasm sounds are perhaps supposed to sound like an elephant? pissicato synth strings and a horn noise following the whole melody creates a suitably unhinged atmosphere for the lunatic of the dance.
Wayne Marshall is a singjay who was breaking out in the early noughties, releasing loads of singles followed by his debut album in '03. Overcome is a good tune with a g-funk style pitched up synth line, however he got overshadowed by Wayne Wonder with his No Letting Go. Marshall released a Jamaican album encouraging good manners in children in 2014 called Do Good Jamaica.
General Degree is shortened to Degree for this album and provides Inna. Underrated and reliable for a banging catchy tune, this is his classic dancehall smash Traffic Blocking.
Zumjay had a short career with a string of singles at the turn of the millennium, he moved to US and joined the army in 2005. This video is great.
Mad Anju also peaked in this era. Wha Dis Fadda on the Ants Nest riddim was his big breakout tune. Got this on 7" too. Sweeet.
Beenie Man then does his War Is Over the first of several tunes he would cut on Diwali. At this point Beenie Man was a veteran of dancehall even though still young. His supreme mic skills developed as a child star DJing alongside the likes of Shabba Ranks, Admiral Tibet and Ninjaman. Until 1994 when he released the clash album Guns Out with Bounty Killer, the rivalry has continued since. Beenie Man has put out tons of great tunes and is worth investigation in his own right, Maestro from 1996 must stand as one of the greatest albums from this era of any genre.
This film explains some of the on/off rivalry between Beenie and Bounty.
Cecile does Respect Yuh Wife, redressing the flagrant misogyny elsewhere. These subjects would not even be covered by white rock music. I've always found it strange how hip-hop and dancehall can be accused of egotism and misogyny, when these are also rife in a rock music filled with big babies. Why can't ghetto styles be seen as a reflection of the truth and potentialities of how men and women behave to each other, good and bad, too ugly too real for some, they would rather black music was preserved in a more acceptable past 1950s Memphis, 1970s Kingston, 1980's New York. But it will keep moving on, that's the point.
Bling Dawg was upcoming in '02 and has been having big hits in the last few years, he has connections with another of the biggest artists who started in this era Vybz Kartel.
Mega Banton was a veteran with a gruff voice like Buju Banton or Burro Banton, his biggest hits were in the 1990s out of the Black Scorpio stable.
That completes the original album. Diwali however would not die. Wayne Wonder was the first to travel and spawn hits both sides of the Atlantic. This was quickly followed by other vocalists who wanted their piece of the Diwali magic. Sean Paul on a rapid rise to stardom with his laid back and addictive flow hit big with Get Busy, then Caribbean pop empress Rihanna with Pon De Replay.
Diwali the unstoppable riddim, the right riddim at the right time,
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