Son Raw will be in Europe next spring. Can’t come soon enough.
Butterz just turned 5 this weekend, celebrating with their first Room 2 takeover at Fabric and a 4 hour Rinse session with more or less every major producer that’s ever graced their presence. Looking at that photo, it’s a bit hard not to see it as a statement: this year has seen a wave of new producers coming to Grime from left, right and center but there’s something to be said for the wave of artists who didn’t come to the genre but were born into it. There’s a variety of styles on display – Royal-T and Flava D’s masculine and feminine takes on Garage, Faze Miyake and Darq E Freaker’s Trap-influenced bangers, P-Jam and Rude Kid’s noise, Last Japan’s slower, housier take and Terror Danjah’s inimitable swagger.
All of these approaches – and the ones absent from this lineup – are valid and that’s what’s made Grime such an exciting genre to follow in recent years. Let’s remember not to turn it just another style of electronic music – if it ain’t Road, it ain’t right. Here’s to many more fam.
Meanwhile, Dusk & Blackdown’s Keysound continues to act as the alternative to the alternative – digging deeper and darker than House, Grime and Dubstep to uncover new territory. While they’ve been criminally absent from radio recently (Rinse – c’mon), The Butterz gang graciously gave them some time last week for a showcase of their own, and their crew brought it just as hard. My personal favorite moments include Wen vs. Parris in a battle for who has the most floor rattling sub bass, Luke Benjamin’s post-apocalyptic poetry, Moleskin going H.A.M and Mumdance and Logos’ Techno-Grime explorations.
These are two interesting crews to contrast: whereas Butterz’ music feels like it should be blasting out of every radio from Brixton to the Bronx, Keysound’s material is more willfully underground and inaccessible, which in a weird way, makes both crews incredibly complimentary. Needless to say, I’m gutted I missed Fabric last week. Someone better throw a party while I’m out there next Spring.
Stream/Download:
MP3: Butterz 5th Anniversary Show ft. Royal-T, Moony, Flava D, Elijah & Skilliam, Last Japan, P Jam, Spooky, Mr Mitch, Darq E Freaker, Faze Miyake & Rude Kid
Mp3: Keysound Showcase on the Butterz Show ft. Dusk & Blackdown, Wen & Parris, Luke Benjamin, Moleskin + Mumdance & Logos
