Blue chip. Surely it's become a gradual piece of evidence of my aging but I have to admit that I've lost a bit of touch with my forever beloved Dancehall to a degree, in the evolving sense. I'm still well acquainted with the more 'usual suspects', even with what they have to offer in the present and going forward (so I, like You, am currently waiting on albums from both Beenie Man and Bounty Killer) and I pay enough attention to at least be familiar with the younger stars as well... but if you start to get into their details, I'm not where I once was a generation ago. Why? Again, surely this is a result of my increasing anciency, but the music just doesn't sound the same to me and it probably shouldn't. The style of the music that I grew up listening to (and was well present throughout my first decade and a half or so of adulthood) has become a sasquatch. There're crazy ass rumours of its existence, but it cannot truly be verified (....because it doesn't exist) (sorry). The sound is Hip-Hoppified and, for the most part, most of current Dancehall is what we used to call 'experimental' back in da day and, even when I was young, I kind of hated it. So, while I do intently follow the works of certain individuals like Beenie, Bounty, General Degree, Agent Sasco, Spice, Ward (21 (biggup Suku, a producer who always churns out actual, authentic Dancehall riddims) and maybe one or two others (more on that in a second), the genre, in the largest sense, has walked away from a bit. And I'm okay with that to a degree because it's the way of the world. People age but a lot of art gets younger and younger as younger people become the ones creating it. One of the most unfortunate aspect of having lost a bit of touch has definitely been that I haven't been able to appreciate SKILL as much as I once did in the Dancehall because, in previous years (and really throughout its entire history), there've been some truly remarkable and downright devastating talents produced in that arena, several of which, even amongst those not noted for some type of lasting stardom, have made an incredible impact on me, personally. But like I said, its been awhile. Up until within the last few years or so when I ran into an artist by the name of Shenseea (do not let the image and the hype and the controversies confuse you: Shenseea has a skill level with words which is maddening), it had been an unfortunately loooooooooong ass time since the last time I had really been impressed by a young and up and coming Dancehall talent.
Certainly I am forgetting someone between the two points (DAMN, I hope am) (maybe Mr. Williamz), but before the beautiful Mandeville native caught my attention, maybe the last young predominately Dancehall name that truly captivating me while on their way up, was a very interesting and dedicated young DJ from out of Kingston by the name of Bramma (D Bomba). For me, the artist came with one BEAUTIFULLY FAMILIAR characteristic that I had heard in very few individuals, but had (and still does) always caught my attention: There is a certain commitment to one's craft and development that Bramma possessed in a similar way to someone like a young Assassin (an older and grizzled Agent Sasco still has enough of that devotion to spare) (that man is a genius). And for what he seemed to lack in flashiness and charisma (which basically means that he didn't have a lot of bullshit surrounding his name when he first arrived on the scene), Bramma, like Sasco, more than made up for with a gradual progression which most of his peers were not demonstrating. Much of his early material would come via Big Ship and Di Genius, Stephen McGregor (more on him later) (he also did a lot of early work for Delly Ranx back then) (incidentally, a lot of Delly's stuff was tracked by McGregor at the time, if I recall correctly) productions, and while much of the business of scoring the biggest hits on those riddims was left to the likes of Mavado, Vybz Kartel and Aidonia (and I put Aidonia and, to a lesser degree young Kartel in a different category when it comes to skill. For me, they both represent talents which are far more [un]natural (martian-like) gifts and though I definitely appreciate the hard work they've put in, they would have had less of it to do than... just about anyone else), behind the scenes and b-sides of singles Bramma was steadily improving and I immediately gravitated towards it. Tunes such as 'Stand Alone' ["No need friends fi war, yes, I'm on my on"], 'Last Man Standing' ["When di war done fast and one win, who a di last man standing?"], the damn inventive 'Run Fi Him Life' ["Mi sneak up pon him wid di Berlin shottie. Bwoy him ah run like Merlene Ottey. Dash weh him spliff like burnin pattie"] ('Run Fi Him Life', in particular demonstrated Bramma's unique delivery of almost sounding like he's out of breath ALL THE TIME) and a whole heap of others were going about the business of making a fan of Bramma's out of me. And... yeah, when's the album Stephen???
It's going to be awhile. I can back on these very pages to a post we did more than eleven years ago, "Most Wanted 2011", to show how much I was looking forward to a full project from Bramma (and that would have been a couple of years following when I first started calling for it) (and looking back on that list, every single artist has released an album since then except..... Lady Sweety) (speaking of talent). He'd also be featured on "The 10 Best Reggae Artists Without Albums", where we ranked him at number one, which was a dozen and a half years ago. So, by those parameters and just how often we mentioned him in the early stages of this blog, Bramma's album, whenever it came, would have been one of the most anticipated projects in the history of these pages... maybe even THE most anticipated (with respect to Queen Omega's next full release). Once upon a time I figured the DJ would take the route of several of his peers in the mid 2000's when people like Chino were doing albums which were released in Japan (and even prior to that, if I recall correctly, artists like Ward 21, Spragga Benz and even Kartel were doing the same), but that didn't happen. Instead, Bramma would slowly (damn slowly, CREEPING) be building towards a full project. There were mixtapes that were released as official materal (meaning they were charging you for them in some cases) and things really began to look bright in 2017 when the very well received "One A Day" EP reached. But still, was an album forthcoming or was Bramma in the process of following the frustrating course set by Aidonia. Thankfully, he was not. In September of 2020, FINALLY, we would get our collective paws on "Rugged & Deadly", the full and official debut album from Bramma. The set would come via Riddim Force Records in association with Bramma's own GGod Records imprint, where he has made his home following his days aboard the Big Ship (he does still sail, occasionally ), and be distributed by VPAL. And the wait was over! Because it took such a long time to materialize, "Rugged & Deadly" would very much feature a different type of an artist than we were originally introduced to back in 2006, Bramma had matured. Though not entirely gone was the warrish youth who sought to be the last man standing (he still isn't completely gone, even now), Bramma had developed and expanded on his repertoire and become a talent that was much more versatile by that point. What resulted was a sound that, although well enjoyable, was far different from what I would have envisioned literally more than a decade prior when I began singing Bramma's praises - but we made it here and the world is a much better place because of it!
I was actually quite surprised at what "Rugged & Deadly" turned out to be musically. There wasn't really ANYTHING in the way of modern hardcore Dancehall music. Much of the album vacillated somewhere between Roots, old school Dancehall and Lover's Rock/R&B (WHAT!) which, again, would have been extremely difficult to believe would be the case when we were listening to Bramma's earliest stages. Thankfully, however, what remains ever-present is the tremendously high level of skill which is present from the very first selection, straight through the last. Okay, maybe I say that on a technicality because the actual first track on Bramma's long anticipated debut album, "Rugged & Deadly" was an intro (which was nice, albeit kind of ominous), but the album's first tune was its infectious, lyrically dominant eponymous effort. As far as the title of the album, it's fine, but you would think that when you do have a song for that title, you'd want to have something that the masses would gravitate towards and something that is easily digestible and emblematic of that particular artist's gifts. If that's the case, 'Rugged & Deadly' serves its role to near perfection as Bramma shines throughout and sort of sets the tone for what is to come ["I'm like a shadow, like a whisper, move incognito. But superstar, like Jackson 5, Michael and Tito"]. Next we arrive at a tune that was an early single for the album, the heavy social commentary, 'Belly A The Beast'. You LISTEN to this song. It has flashes of downright genius and is such a fine step ahead of what you may've hoped young Bramma would develop into (like Agent Sasco did before him), when he gained experience and matured as an artist and a person. 'Belly A The Beast' was MASSIVE and is my favourite piece on the whole of "Rugged & Deadly". Next up was another single (I LOVE how they treated this project, in retrospect, as the really big deal that it was) in the aptly titled 'Big Chune'. This one is a very nice celebration of the music, but it must be said that, later on, we get an even stronger dosage of this one ('Bigger Chune'???) as, joining Bramma is none other than the captain of the Big Ship himself, the legendary Freddie McGregor (and biggup McGregor who just recently signed a deal with Warner for his publishing and a sure to be big new album is on the way from him as well). As is the case in all things, McGregor's presence turns up the quality of the already strong original and, between its two versions, 'Big Chune' definitely offers a good blend of the vibes on "Rugged & Deadly".
If you're searching for even more in the way of big combinations, Bramma and Riddim Force have you covered as, along with Freddie McGregor, also making guest appearances on "Rugged & Deadly" were both Anthony B and Luciano, respectively (I'm sitting here having a hard time thinking of a combination between Anthony B and Luciano and I can't come up with anything off the top of my head, but I know it had to have happened at some point). For his part, the Original Fire Man chimes in on the all kinds of fun 'Dancehall Rock' and he BLAZES.
"Wi ah give it to dem inna Dancehall style
Give it to dem
Give it to dem
Come mek wi show dem seh wi well versatile
Give it to dem
Yow, Dancehall caan stop
Ghetto youths ah put it on like a snapback
It ah bust like a gunshot
Everybody seh Dancehall inna top-spot
So if you have a gun inna yuh waste, please don't shoot up di place
Cah mi love it when di woman dem ah bubble dem waste
High grade marijuana deh pon di base
Fi mek mi high like mi flying to space"
This one was just a REALLY fun vibe and they made an equally fun video to show it off, making for, easily, one of the biggest moments here. Luciano would come through in a very typical Luciano fashion but one which came as unexpected from Bramma at the time on 'Africa'.
"Extra, extra, biggup every ancestor
Black like tar, coulda love mi skin texture
How long wi unda bondage, take mi back to di West, hey-
CIA kill Robert Nesta
Dem trick wi, put wi pon a ship, a ship, a ship
Time ah tick, ah tick, ah tick
That nah no slip, ah slip, you sick
Why dem ever thought wi build di pyramids of Egypt?
WI WRITE BOOKS, DEM READ IT AND THIEF IT"
The singer has made dozens of tracks like this and he'll be more than happy to make dozens more (as will the rest of us), but I so enjoyed hearing Bramma take on such a piece and, unsurprisingly not only doing well but, arguably, doing some of his best work in the process [side note: Luciano and Anthony B did a song together called 'Too Greedy'. Listened to it, doesn't sound familiar but it's excellent and not too hard to find, take a listen for yourself]. And though he doesn't carry the weight as his father, Luciano or Anthony B as a vocalist, the aforementioned Stephen McGregor also makes an appearance on "Rugged & Deadly", on 'Warning', which he also produces. I don't care if it would have taken twenty years to get here, YOU KNOW Di Genius had to have at least one tune on Bramma's debut album. This piece, although very catchy, isn't a favourite of mine, but the riddim carrying it features all of the colours and textures that we've come to expect from its creator (you know the rest of us are old as shit when Stephen McGregor is in his thirties) and, of course, I was happy to see him involved in some type of way. And not to be left out either are Mr. Mojo Morgan and Zagga who come through on separate drops, 'Hot Ah Street' and 'Wi Deya'. The former is a downright THICK look at certain darker aspects of society:
"Tell mi if you ever wake up inna di morning and gunshot ah beat
Last night you drop asleep
Couldn't touch, it hot a street
Sirens from all angle, all angle
Police, soldier wid some big guns wid broad handle"
'Wi Deya', on the other hand, is a BRIGHT inspirational song about having self confidence and self esteem and giving your best effort in life. Zagga, who I need to be paying more attention to (he's had a pair of recent releases of his own), makes a enjoyable tune partner for Bramma and although it is entirely too short (the shortest full tune on "Rugged & Deadly" by forty seconds), 'Wi Deya' is a winner.
I was most surprised by "Rugged & Deadly" carrying as much LOVE material as it did. No less than three selections literally feature the word 'love' in their respective titles - 'Hurt By Love', 'Blame Love' and 'My Love'. The first of these (which comes complete with its own skit before it begins) is not a highlight for me, HOWEVER, that riddim which underpins it, a creation of S.H.S. Records and DJ Nico, its DELIGHTFUL. It is GORGEOUS! And I found myself about to sing its praises in full, simply because the composition is hypnotic. 'Blame Love' is stronger and is the type which may've fallen between the cracks, but that's to the fault of everyone who ignored it. 'Blame Love' is exquisitely written for what it is. We typically don't stress that point in songs like this one, but if you take it 'frame-by-frame', the DJ says some things on this one which're damn hard to forget if you tune them in ["You tell mi seh you wouldn't lie, you wouldn't cheat too. God ahgo beat you, another man you gi it to?"]. As for the rather unusual sounding 'My Love' is somewhat similar to 'Blame Love', although I don't rate it quite as highly. I guess... I'd call it... R&Bish, but the Touch Point Records guided track well incorporates a variety of different tones. Again, I know you may not want to one something like this, but do be sure to pay attention to what is said on it, because it subtly finds Bramma in a fine form (he's always in a fine form....). 'Journey' isn't a 'love song' in the normal sense of the phrase, at least in my opinion, it has more of a.... social element to it. It's a song about how people behave and mature; and while it does center around love, it doesn't stay there totally. Regardless of how you come to label it (and obviously it is close enough that I choose to mention it here), 'Journey' is a HUGE tune.
"Love sometime can be complicated
So much time wasted
I think it's overrated
Love, dem seh, a di opposite of hatred
Some ah seh it sacred
A nuh nuttin fi you play wid
Now, tell mi how di fuck you end up naked-
Inna room ah drink Baileys, wid a man well over him eightys?
Never know I woulda si dis day
Never know it woulda be dis way
Seh she no waan no other man, so how you have a bag a man?
Mi si her run a scamma plan baby
Dis mi waan yuh understand:
SEH GANGSTA NAH DO TAG-ALONG
A BEST YOU GWAN AND TROD ALONG, YUH CRAZY
Yuh si I'm outta di chase
Feel betta now dat you outta mi space
I think I'm outta this race
She ah run di road, oughta think she need a roadman
Gwan pon yuh journey"
What I'm wondering is at what point in his development did Bramma become capable of this ^^^. Was he 'the last man standing pon dis battlefield alone'? Or did it come later? Whenever he arrived at this point, he did it every bit as powerful as the STUDIOUS youth who we remember on his way up.
The biblical 'Who'm Shall I Fear' fittingly follows Luciano's 'Africa' on "Rugged & Deadly" and, following giving praise to The Motherland, Bramma gives a hefty praise to The Almighty. He does so in a way which isn't completely spiritual but does have one foot planted firmly in everyday life ["How you waan fi tun gun pon mi? How yuh waan fi harm mi? Tek mi life from mi? Whappen to family? Jah Jah send Yuh army!"] and what Bramma ultimately does is to remind all to be careful in whom we place our trust and who and WHAT we choose to honour. And though we don't have the obligatory mama song on this album, "Rugged & Deadly" does have a pair of just as mandatory ganja tunes in 'All Ganja Man' and 'Sensie Ride'. 'All Ganja Man' (also has a skit of its own) is infectious ear candy-like old school heavy vibes (think Mr. Williamz) which is guaranteed to make some part of your anatomy move rhythmically, and 'Sensie Ride' doesn't drift too far from that sound. They're actually quite similar ('Sensi Ride' has a very LOUD quality to it, if that makes any sense) (it probably doesn't) and if you take them collectively, they do represent one of the biggest songs on the album.
I have a couple of critiques of "Rugged & Deadly", with the first being that at sixteen tunes in length (nineteen in total with an intro and two skits, it's maybe a little too long. But with that being said each and every song here does have some admirable trait to it, there's nothing here that's HORRIBLE in anyway. Andddd I definitely do wish that Bramma and Riddim Force had just given us one nugget of modernized hardcore Dancehall music. Just allow me that one massive adrenaline rush to let out my frustrations and get angry to.
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