# Grime? - Site: Analog Industries - Author: Chris Randall - Date: 2007-12-09 - URL: https://analogindustries.com/2007/12/grime/ I might be a little behind the times here, but I've recently discovered this new(ish) genre called Grime, which is intriguing me. My 10-second review of the entire genre: play a 45-RPM D&B record at 33, and run the output through Replicant and a big-ass plate reverb set to 80% wet. That said, I am virtually certain that there are readers here who not only know about Grime, but make it (the music, not the kibble.) And you can illuminate us all on what the deal is. Who's the big artist? Why are they good? What are the bullet points? (It's hard keeping track of all these electronic genres, I'll grant, but at least I try.) **EDIT:** I think that I was talking about dubstep. But maybe not. ## Comments (23) **DJ_Statikfire** (2007-12-09): Example track that would fit into the dubstep / grime genre... http://www.mediafire.com/?6tdzcnuv42y **d wagenbach** (2007-12-09): you might want to look at Burial on hyperdub. bleak love songs of alienation **oscillations** (2007-12-09): Burial is pretty amazing stuff; not sure if it's true grime though? The canonical stuff so far have been the 2 Run the Road comps (are there more now?), plus lots of other 12" and stuff of course. The comps are highly recommended; Dizzee Rascal's probably the highest-profile artist here in the states to come out of the scene so far. **Chris Randall** (2007-12-09): I had come across the Burial stuff on Beatport on accident (ironically, while I was looking for minimal house stuff), and that's what triggered my curiosity. I mean, it's dubby, all right, but so much slower and more... uh... fractured? than the norm that I didn't know exactly what I was listening to. I know our two Japan-based contributors will have some extended thoughts on this subject, so I await their posts... ;-) EDIT: Now I'm listening to the iTune Essentials Grime playlist, and it's all just fast-ass hip hop, nothing like the Grime lists on Beatport. I'm confused now. -CR **Hank** (2007-12-09): Perhaps you came across some dubstep? That's pretty fractured, slow, dubby and subbass-laden. **space_monkey** (2007-12-09): I actually don't know anything about "grime" except for burial, which is fairly interesting. **memedesigner** (2007-12-09): Dubstep it'll be, that's the downbeat genre. But the year of dubstep was 2006 ... 8/ **Chris Randall** (2007-12-09): I see what you're saying. When I search in Dubstep genres, I get much more of what originally caught my ear. Now, how the fuck can two so drastically differing genres get conflated like that? I can see someone confusing, say, progressive house and, e.g. deep house. But Grime and Dubstep seemingly have nothing to do with each other. Fucking bizarre. When I listen to the samples in the CM cover DVD that are purportedly a grime construction kit, they all sound like this dubstep stuff. I think the issue is thus: Americans are calling this fast hip-hop genre "grime," and Europeans are calling dubstep "grime." -CR **Jaysen** (2007-12-09): Dizzee Rascal is the one that first got grime recognized with his album Boy in Da Corner. Spare production, frenetic beats and has a very claustrophobic feel to it. Incredible record and really haven't heard anything that quite sounds like it. Very sid-stationy in places. He's known as the British 50-Cent mainly for his penchant for getting shot at and previous drug dealing. Lady Sovereign is another well known grime artist known more for her foul mouth and don't-give-a-shit attitude towards her fans. **Stef Stabilizer** (2007-12-09): Depends what you mean by fast and slow. Both grime and dubstep use half-time sounding things so they are kinda sitting in the 130bpm area Grime usually has vocals, dubstep is more instrumental and usually half time beats. Nice dubstep mix I saw on Audio Lemon here. http://www.divshare.com/download/2917877-571 Download Original on the right is the link to the MP3 download. All this is my best guess but I'm old so what the fuck do I know? **Stefan Goodchild** (2007-12-09): Depends what you mean by fast and slow. Both grime and dubstep use half-time sounding things so they are kinda sitting in the 130bpm area Grime usually has vocals, dubstep is more instrumental and usually half time beats. Nice dubstep mix I saw on Audio Lemon here. http://www.divshare.com/download/2917877-571 Download Original on the right is the link to the MP3 download. All this is my best guess but I'm old so what the fuck do I know? **jackal** (2007-12-09): Grime and Dubstep both stem from the same club scene, Grime being a more MC based form and Dubstep mainly instrumental. Dubstep is heavily based on the rhythms of UK Garage (or Speed Garage, or 2 step). It's basically all you hear blasting out of car windows here in Sarf London! If you like Burial, you should check out Shackleton and Kode 9. **thelizard** (2007-12-09): Yeah, the best entry-point into what Americans call "Grime" (the rap version) would be the two Run the Road compilations. It gives a great overview of not only the sounds, but the bigger and best artists. The "Dubstep" that you might be thinking of... the new Burial album is the tits. Seriously. It might be my second favorite thing to come out this year (behind Spoon... maybe Grinderman...). I keep hearing of an artist called Skream that I know I should be checking out. Also, I absolutely fucking LOVE the Digital Mystikz singles (if you can get past their stupid spelling). Check out "Haunted" (which has an unbelievable bass line) and "Anti-War Dub", which is quite impossible to describe. Both of them are conveniently on the same platter, so it's worth tracking down (or, hell, just downloading). Also, I have a love/hate relationship with genres in general. They get out of hand. I was listening to Tortoise one day, and this kid came into my dorm room and was like "Ahhh, what is this? It's like post-rock but it has strong Salsa and Dub influences. The bass line is very post-punk, but the drum set player is definitely steeped in Jazz."... wtf? **myrnaloy** (2007-12-09): Issue 279 of The Wire has a primer on dubstep. I second the Shackleton recommendation and further suggest you immediately grab the Soundboy Punishments comp. **DaveAA** (2007-12-09): I thought Dizzy Rascal was 'crunk'? **jackal** (2007-12-09): There's quite a crossover between Dubstep and Techno happening at the moment, with Shackleton remixing Simian Mobile Disco, and Ricardo Villalobos turning in a killer remix of Shackletons "Blood On My Hands", I heartily recommend the latter in all it's 18 minute(!) glory. **nimhbus** (2007-12-09): Yeah, Burial is very very cool, but i'd say it was 'intelligent Dubstep'. Grime tends to be a bit more lo-fi, nasty and often has a criminal shouting over the top in a london accent. It's been around for 3 years or so, and you're right to say that's it's slowed down/glitched up drum and bass type of thing. **vae** (2007-12-09): I always thought most of dubstep sounded like somebody tried to combine Massive Attack and Rhythm & Sound vibes using really boring sounds and ideas. I don't know what's gotten into me. I love good hiphop, d&b and dub techno among all the other good shit, am really fond of lots of stuff dubstep artists seem to be influenced by... And I still don't just get most of the stuff that gets categorized dubstep. Tried listening to practically everything that my friends and acquaintances recommend and borrow - the Soundboy Punishments compilation, Kode9 & Spaceape stuff, Burial's first album, Various production (that feels really different from the other stuff) et cetera... I just don't feel the sounds and vibe in most of those, it doesn't sound awful but just kind of boring. I guess I should check out the new Burial and hope to be surprised. I also guess it might be one genre I'll totally start digging about five years after nobody else's interested anymore. **Tom** (2007-12-09): Yeah you're a couple of years late on this one, but it's not like it fucking matters WHEN you discover something. In fact, it's probably better to come across something on your own rather than experience it during its initial wave of hype. What's important is that you keep an open mind and seek out new music from time to time. Once you've decided that you've heard it all and there's nothing else out there worth hearing, that's when you become out of touch and lame. Dubstep is pretty unmistakable, I think. It has the feel of dub, but with a way darker vibe and perhaps most importantly, signature ?wobbling? sub bass. I think this Benga track definitely has a quintessential dubstep sound: http://www.planet-mu.com/media/discography/music_box.mp3 My favorite dubstep tracks have got to be (Venetian) Snares "Sabbath Dubs" 10." PERFECT production. "Electric Funeral" (track 2) gives me chills. Check it: http://rec-order.nl/record.php?record=324 As for grime, I think at this point so many people making different types of tracks want to be called grime, because it was supposedly ?the next big thing,? that the only hard and fast rule is that the track has someone rapping with thick London accent. Beware, a lot of (most?) dubstep is pretty repetitive and boring. -Tom **jimi_t** (2007-12-09): This would be *the* dubstep tune - certainly the one that popularised it in London (Skream - Midnight Request Line) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7W_yi6uFtn4 Unfortunately, its a bit too slow for the ASBO generation (AntiSocial Behaviour Order for the non-UK ppl; basically teenage wannabe gangsters) so throw in some influences from Happy Hardcore and Jungle and this is the kind of stuff thats coming up http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKRHJ_-mRo4 POS obviously, but ridiculous for the sake of it (Fuck 'em, the cheek...'Don't mind them mate, they're just trying to get big offa myspace innit?) The best example I could give to explain the culture around it is this (very funny) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4PthyDuFbk **aKido** (2007-12-09): Burial, it's not really dubstep, but i think this is some of the best new music of the last 10-15 years. Here's a great tune and video by a dubstep artist Kode9, who runs the label that puts out Burial's music http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaU-pnassYM **valis** (2007-12-12): To clarify my first paragraph above, the general vibe of dubstep heads (especially towards the Burial end) reminds me a lot of 'intelligent' dnb in the mid 90's (somewhat intellectual/passive/elite about their music) whereas breakstep reminds me of 'jump up' or the jungle producers who kept making jungle when everyone else had given in to the 2-step beat. Grime's vibe reminds me squarely of what we called 'hip hop ballers' (wanna be's & otherwise) in N. Cali, and the people I know in the UK often regard grime nights as being full of Chavs. And yet at the same time I know a few people who regard grime as having brought back the MC's in a way that they haven't had since early Jungle (90-92). Personally Mc's annoy me so I can't say I have the same connection there... **oldmanfury** (2007-12-12): Good lord I have a hard time not getting queasy every time someone starts slinging around the 48 different techno sub-genres... give me the good old days when they'd lump everything into 1 genre and then argue about what fits in it after the fact. Like industrial... Throbbing Gristle, Skinny Puppy, Sister Freekin' Machinegun, Cat rapes Dog, John Waterman, Einsturzende Neubauten, even my work as Erinys got lumped into one big unhappy melting pot that nobody wanted to be in. But very few bands were arrogant enough to claim they had created new genres (other than throwing an adjective or two in front of the word industrial). Well... I suspect that Bill Leeb may have created his own genre, so maybe I'm off base here. Crunk... doesn't that have something to do with puting on clown makeup? Or was that Black Metal... man I'm confused.