Energized. When someone does something good for you, in general, I think that it is important to make them know that you appreciate what they have done. Say thank you and do it then and there. Today I think I'm going to send out some gratitude because the artist that we have in question here is someone who, although he definitely does get large amounts of credit, I don't think we've come to a point where we're able to put his body of work in the position as being as impactful as it has actually been. What brought me to this point is the fantastic material that Anthony B has been pushing out over the course of the past year or so and it had me thinking about maybe a few others who have shown a similar sudden level of proficiency at such an advanced portion of their career. The one name that definitely stuck out was Tanya Stephens who, about fifteen years ago now, enjoyed a career resurgence largely on the strength of a couple of albums, "Gangsta Blues" and "Rebelution", in 2004 and 2006, respectively. For Stephens, in retrospect, those sets brought her to a certain level of prominence and not just in terms of popularity but for everyone who hadn't noticed earlier in her career, they would go to make it abundantly clear: Tanya Stephens was a genius. The fact that her subsequent work hasn't reached those levels (at least not as of yet), probably suggests that period to be Stephens' prime, looking back, but she well made the most of it. I can also point to others such as Lloyd Brown, Glen Washington, Yami Bolo (Bolo's situation being more of a personal one. I just woke up one day and discovered how wonderful of an artist that man was) and maybe even Mad Cobra as examples of individuals who, despite having already led storied careers and being at a well advanced stage, just one day seemed to find something pushing them into an even higher gear. Such moments speak to the prevailing quality of an artist as they, seemingly, continue to hone their craft and develop no matter what and it also says something about their durability in terms of being able to appeal to multiple generations of fans and remain highly in-demand. That last part is definitely a valuable ability to have as an artist because you can be as skilled and efficient as possible, but if you no one wants to hear a word you have to say or a note that you have to play, you probably aren't going to stick around very long at all. In Anthony B's case in particular, despite how fairly closely I've followed his career over the past... quarter century or so now and how many early winners he served up, all of these years 'The Original Fireman' continues to blaze.
We used to look at that trio of modern Roots chanters -- Sizzla Kalonji, Capleton and Anthony B -- and do so in honouring that the first two seemed to offer more in the way of spectacular moments while it was Anthony B who was more consistent; though his highs weren't always quite as high as his peers (though you could even argue that in some ways), his lows were not nearly as low either (especially in Sizzla's case and I have no problem in saying that despite the fact that he is and has always been my absolute favourite artist has Sizzla) (that man has made some.... strange ass music over the years). The dominant singer from that era, by comparison, was Luciano who is noted for his consistency and, of the three, Anthony B's levels were closest to those of the 'Messenjah'. Lately that is a fact that has been illuminated even more vividly, at least for me. Almost a year ago now, Irie Ites dropped their exquisite ASAP Riddim (currently working on a new Chezidek album is Irie Ites, "Never Give In" - coming on April 14th). and Anthony B would supply them with what was, easily, one of its finest efforts in 'Raggamuffin' and it was around this time that I took a moment to realize... damn, Anthony B is tearing shit up! The man is playing music, but he is not playing! He'd go on to turn in some excellent tunes for the rest 2022 as well such as 'Who Shall I Fear', 'God Alone', 'Right Road' on Bryce Hill's cut of the Marcus Garvey Riddim, 'Inna Yaad' ["One love, now wi waan crime vanish. Black, Green and Gold leave di world astonished"], 'Psalm 91', 'Fire Bun Dem System' ["Lack of opportunity make nuff yet get crazy. Tek out dem pipe and seh dem ahgo blaze it. It's not sure if yuh ahgo live fi si eighty, so give thanks fi life daily"], my personal favourite, 'Most High', across the well-received Rasta Yaad Riddim from Donsome Records and others still (I have a list in front of me and I could probably name another five or six from it) ('Love Taking Over). Maybe you know some of them, maybe you don't know any of them or maybe you know and love them all, but they went to make up a big quality year for the chanter and likely one of the most impressive of his career.... in the year where Anthony B turned forty-six (tomorrow actually as of this writing - probably a few days ago by the time you read it - is Anthony B's earthday, which he actually shares with the Mad Cobra) .
2020
So how do you follow that up??? There're two things you can do immediately and Anthony B is doing them both. The first and most obvious is to just continue right along the same pace and the one or two releases that I've heard from Anthony B in the first quarter of 2023 have done nothing to dampen my excitement for his recent output (check 'Gunman Town') and the other thing he could do is to link up with Ineffable Records and, I don't know, maybe do an album and call it "Bread & Butter", because, why not?! The album becomes the artist's very first since 2020's "King In My Castle" (which, for some reason, I sometimes remember as being not very good, but I think that's because I always got it confused with another album which I did not like very much, due to a similar cover) (biggup Spragga Benz).At just about three years old now, "King in My Castle" has aged very well with standouts such as the HUGE 'Liberator', the title track, 'Great China Wall' and 'Dubbing Tonight' still ranking quite highly. In recent years, Anthony B's own Born Fire Music has taken over the majority of his full releases. Along with "King In My Castle", 'they've' done projects such as "Life Over Death" (which did quite well commercially if I recall correctly), Rasta Love (which wasn't very good), the excellent "Tears Of Luv" from 2015 and others. While Born Fire is not officially listed as being on board of "Bread & Butter" (as far as I can tell), the artist himself is credited with the labels everywhere we've seen so I would imagine that its construction is very much a matter of being 'business as usual' when it comes to Anthony B making albums these days (and he does some production as well). Born Fire is the descendant of KB Music which was Anthony B's older label, responsible for the outstanding "That's Life" album from 2001 (which included one of my favourite songs that he has ever done, 'Black Coffee' ["Black coffee, no sugar, no cream. Black Woman you a di queen, mi a di king!"]. He has had very good success, however, in working with a variety of different labels and producers, clearly, throughout his career for albums. Following his early years with Richard 'Bello' Bell and company at Star Trail, Anthony B has worked exceedingly well with others dating all the way back to Black Scorpio for "Wise Man Chant", and through years with Flava McGregor, Al.Ta.Fa.An (who supplied him with "My Hope", a modern classic on these pages) and, definitely Frenchie and Maximum Sounds who have made beautiful music together with Anthony B on multiple sublime releases including "Higher Meditation", "Rise Up" and, of course, the all conquering "Black Star" (hopefully they give us another someday). As for Ineffable, if you've been paying attention over the past couple of years or so, you have surely encountered their name quite a bit in pushing a variety of different works. I believe that the first time that I ran into them would have been a ridiculous two years (does not seem that long), when they did Turbulence's most recent album, "The Remedy" (which Anthony B featured on), along with the same Neva Stop Booking who also works on "Bread & Butter" as well. Ineffable has done tons of things recently including some Soca, work from the Green Lion Crew, Collie Buddz. as well as both "Melody" and "Red Reign", the most recent studio efforts from both Konshens and Demarco in 2021, respectively. So Ineffable have checked all of the proverbial boxes as a distributor - they know what they're doing. That being said and no disrespect, however, but apart from something maybe 'mainstream oriented' (maybe), I do not know the label which could have diminished my excitement to get to hear a new album from Anthony B and, by its end, "Bread & Butter" proves to be precisely what I expected and what I wanted. Let's talk about it!
Before we get into what you're going to hear on "Bread & Butter", let's talk about what you see. I do not know the artiste of note here but, as I have said in the past, I do so enjoy when people draw artists and this is just a really cool cover. Of particular interest would be the logo for the aforementioned Born Fire Music, as well as the subtle but lovely tribute to the immortal Lee 'Scratch' Perry. That cover is excellent and if I neither knew or gave a damn about who Anthony B was, it would grab my interest. If I were then to go on and actually take a listen to the music, I'd also be impressed, but it would take a minute. Following the solid title track/intro is the very first tune on "Bread & Butter" and one which is sure to grab attention, 'Save Humanity' alongside the captain of the Big Ship, Freddie McGregor. Unbeknownst to all of us (or at least to me, maybe you knew), much like the last album I reviewed -- Queen Omega's "Freedom Legacy" -- before this album had been officially announced, they had been poured out a few singles and the House Of Riddim guided 'Save Humanity' was one of them and, despite everything I just told you about Anthony B and the link... I do not like this song! It isn't horrible, but it has this... almost overly somber lick to it and it just does not work for me with its kind of choir-ish vibe. It also doesn't do much lyrically and never truly gets going for me, but I'm going to assume that I'm likely in the minority on that one. Moving on, the real fun on "Bread & Butter" truly gets baking on its second full tune, the lovely 'Music Free My Soul'. Again, you look at that title and you may be expecting something not entirely dissimilar from what we got with the opener, but that isn't what happens here, 'Music Free My Soul' is just a good time!
"This music teach me to be calm and humble-
Cuz nuff people ah fall and stumble
So I got no time to sit down and ah grumble
Man haffi roar like di lion inna jungle
Music mek mi si life form a different angle
Mek mi mind get strong like Smaosn
Light it up like a Christmas candle
Sing it loud like di Banner, Star Spangled"
It will not change lives anywhere, won't even come close, but 'Music Free My Soul' is a JOY to listen to. Next up is another pre-album single, 'Chill Out'. Coming through on the Cali Roots Riddim created by the aforementioned Cali Buddz ["So I can't say another word. From I get the high grade from Cali Buddz. Every time I smoke, it travel through mi blood. Mek mi si more stars than up a Hollywood"], 'Chill Out', this one actually has a similar vibe to the tune which it traces on the album, making for one sublimely unexpected tribute to Reggae near the head of the release courtesy of a pair of its finest tracks and I have to mention how lovely the end of 'Chill Out' is with its very brief, yet all kinds of delightful, moment of Dub. Another recognizable drop, the HEAVY 'Weed Baby', is up and though it certainly sends us in another direction, the quality levels are not dipping in the slightest. This tune kind of got me into thinking more of specifics in that, we may not slot him in the same way that we do several of his other also very gifted peers, but you do not stick around in the way he has and have the impact that he has without having something to say and Anthony B is an incredible lyricist. He says small things during 'Weed Baby' that come off SO effortlessly and organically that one would think it almost a remix of an older piece (and maybe he did write it years before we heard it, but there is a certain amount of comfort within 'Weed Baby' which you do not expect on such a 'chaotic' sample. Just as they did in the case of the first, House Of Riddim also helms the second combination from "Bread & Butter", 'Everybody', featuring the great Busy Signal. The tune, somewhat surprisingly, has a not too different vibe from 'Save Humanity', but where the 'Save Humanity' is kind of slow and dragging at times, 'Everybody' is bright. There's a certain level of pleasantness within this unity driven track that is damn difficult not to like, even if you may not love it (you're going to be singing along with it fairly soon - watch).
The middle of "Bread & Butter" really illustrates its diversity as the material you'll find there is... all across the board. A strong example of that would be the fascinating [very] recent single 'Beautiful And Sexy' which, at least to my ears (and probably only mine, but who cares), almost sounds like a Zouk song on the slightly more intense side. 'Beautiful And Sexy' isn't the strongest on any level (its chorus may just rank as the weakest on the album), but it has a quality and a hard-to-shakeness to it which made me see it as not a problem at all. Songs like it do have their place, particularly on albums, and it serves its purpose and not woefully. Stronger and oddly subtle is 'Hot Spot' that rolls through just ahead of 'Beautiful And Sexy'. Should you just give it a cursory and casual listen, you're probably going to miss something from 'Hot Spot' and just style it as kind of a 'party song', I would imagine; but even a little digging beneath the surface will change that immediately. Though he speaks about some of the more flashy things in life and possessions, Anthony B is saying that you've worked hard to reach those things and:
"You no haffi do nobody nothing fi dem no like you
And ah hate up
And ah fight you"
There're those amongst us who are hateful and jealous and blindly spiteful of people who have anything that they want and do not have. Despite its title and its fun sound, 'Hot Spot' is a song whose message is pertinent as reaching often comes with an unexpected and strange burden as well. S-Class Beats supplies the sonics for the relationship focused 'Heaven In Your Eyes' (biggup Gappy Ranks) and.. whatever you call its genre (maybe R&B) (and also biggup the fine backing singer/s here as well. She/they do a fine job). There's an infectious pounding in the riddim making it nice for my ears and what lies atop it, while not a highlight, is pretty decent actually. Chronic Law joins in for 'Stand Firm' and although this is another selection with a much different type of vibes to it, the duo manage to produce a more than memorable set founded on the idea of maintaining oneself and ones morals during tough times (you know right from wrong and you know it all the time). There is also a nice sense of a more broad form of motivation ["Never give up. Never lose faith, Jah Jah deh yah fi you"] which actually helps to bring the more specific themes full-circle (I am not only speaking to you, I'm talking to everyone who can hear me). The absolute gem from the middle of "Bread & Butter" and one the biggest winners you'll find anywhere here is definitely the Massive B produced 'Back To Normal' from a couple of years back. This isn't necessarily that triumphant winning moment celebrating any post-pandemic jubilation, this was right in the middle of that forlorn quarantined, socially-distanced type of mood and, apparently, like many people Anthony B was struggling and longing for a return of normalcy (you know, what Soca was for like two seasons). I kind of love this song, I admit. Its wrapped up in this very cool and glowing kind of vibes and it isn't dramatic for the most part so you don't get the feeling that the artist is on the brink of losing his mind, but is just reached the point where he's thinking that enough is enough. Clearly times have changed for the most part these days and it's just as apparent that he is making the most of it.
"Lock down, mi nah si mi girl long time
Wi only talk pon Facetime
Every night, every day it time-
Long fi mi handtouch up her waistline
Heart it ah pain, caan find Panadol
Imagine toothache and caan find Cafenol
And everywhere wi turn is a next funeral
So I don't care about teeth and tongue
I waan party and wheel and tun
Hol on pon mi woman like cheese and bun
NAH LET GO UNTIL JESUS COME
So mek mi tell you this mankind:
Memba blind caan lead blind
Mi tell you more than one time:
NOBODY CAN STOP DI SUNSHINE"
BOOM!
The final lot of tracks from "Bread & Butter" actually carries what I consider to be its finest effort altogether as well as other very nice bites to round things out. Actually bookending the project is a pair of very solid combination tracks in 'Irie Love' and 'Revolution'; the former finds Robbyn Goode joining in while a stacked lineup adorns the latter as Lina Mulan comes along with both BrammaandZamunda. Technically 'Revolution' also brings in the legendary Dennis Emmanuel Brown as it's a reworking of his classic of the same name and, as you might suspect, it is absolutely golden! The super-voiced Zamunda handles what would have been Brown's portions in the original and when you add the other three -- two of whom, Anthony B and Bramma, are well long proven talents, while Mulan also impresses greatly -- you have some serious results as the quartet comes together to make their case that it is long time that things began to change. 'Irie Love' also sounds quite familiar as it seems to check in, at least partially, on a cut of a classic riddim and... I have to admit, I enjoy it even more than 'Revolution'. You've heard sets like this one before as well: The girl meets someone and finds out she has 'a thing' for the Rastaman but this one is just adorable! It's such a cool vibes with just a touch of spice to it that makes it work perfectly and the vocal link between Anthony B and Goode works perfectly. She has a certain 'crispness' [???] to her voice that I find hypnotic and if you have not heard her music before or have not heard much of it, now would probably be a very good time to become acquainted with one Robbyn Goode. Fresh single, and another House Of Riddim production, 'Into The Dark' also appears on "Bread & Butter, unsurprisingly and there's nothing wrong with that. I do not love this song, which is a a lover's piece but, to its credit, its almost Country tinged chorus does have something to it which will ensure that it stays with you (perhaps even annoyingly) well after you've moved on to the next track.... 'Mankind Evil' for the increasingly crucial Train Line Records. The sound of 'Mankind Evil' is a little odd because if you listen to what the chanter says, it's pretty much a basic, straight-forward tune that you would hear regularly in Reggae and Anthony B has probably well made dozens of similarly situated songs, but it has almost a Hip-Hop sound to it which works very well in its case. I appreciated the 'mature' shift in vibes because you will not pick up on that if your antennae are not functioning properly. Finally, I have saved the best for last (wasn't by design, just kind of worked out like that) because although you will hear more pleasing pieces on this album and probably a few of them, you will not hear anywhere else here how Anthony B absolutely ruins a riddim as he does on the Mint Records sponsored 'Drop A Bomb'. That riddim is decent, actually. It's pretty basic and light, but it has kind of a spiraling sound to it which makes it stand out, but it does not stand a chance!
"So it's time to open a better door
Mi no waan fi si mi woman dem ah turn no whore
So politics, promises:
Wi no waan no more
Cah wi know things can be better than before
Because they've got no love for you, no way they got no love for mi
THEY DON'T LOVE DI EARTH, SO THEY DON'T PROVE TO LOVE NOBODY
There's a message in my music, listen now, vocally
THEY DON'T WANT TO SI US LOVING EACH OTEHR SOCIALLY
TOTAL MIND-CONTROL OF YOUR SOUL, DEM WAAN GLOBALLY
SO RASTA NEVER STOP BUN DI FYAH
WI SEH "NO DADDY"
NO PARTIALITY
NAH FEAR NOBODY
CUZ THESE POLITICIANS ONLY LOVE MONEY"
That part hits a point (right at "TOTAL MIND-CONTROL") where it ascends and though he never really sounds mad, there is a whole heap of contempt and.... concern in Anthony B's voice throughout this gem of a tune - the single greatest on this album in my opinion.
Overall, while I'll likely best remember "Bread & Butter" as a sort of 'means to an end' (what happened when during one of those times when Anthony B was breathing fire all over everything he touched and needed to release something), it's still a very good release regardless of what type of context it exists in for you, personally. Take away the entire backstory (that's no fun!) and what you have is a set that is pretty diverse musically, but not so much that it runs any type of risk in alienating the vast majority of Anthony B's fans - Reggae fans. Furthermore, if you do actually choose to look at it in the way that I do, "Bread & Butter" just.... makes sense! It appears to be in the process of garnering quite a bit of attention and, again, for the work that the man has been doing as of late, I hope that it turns out to be successful in the widest way possible. "Bread & Butter" and all the vast majority of his recent work demonstrates that, just in case you were wondering, Anthony B --after all these years -- is more than capable of doing the amazing, as he continues to torch in 2023.
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.
Overall, outside of that, "Rugged & Deadly" won't get nary a bad word out of me (that's a double-negative and poor writing) (I don't care!). Although its sound and focus is somewhat surprising for his debut release, this is the type of album that I would have eventually seen Bramma progressing to and if you were to tell me, back in 2006, that he would be doing a project like what this turned out to be in 2020, not only would I have not been surprised, but I would have been damn pleased by it. It would have vindicated everything that I thought about the youth who seemed to have his head on straight and was in the process of dedicating everything he had to the progression of his skill and his artform (listening to it, "Rugged & Deadly" sounds like an album I would expect someone like Anthony B or Spragga Benz or maybe even Beenie Man to make). But this would have been his fourth album or so (the first two would have been produced by Di Genius and then Bramma would have linked with some European label to do a set inlike 2015-16ish) (you see! I had all of this planned in my head! Why doesn't anyone ever just listen to me!!!!) and, in that respect, "Rugged & Deadly" is nearly perfect. Riddim Force Records provided the artist with a unique but fitting light to star in and he soared. While not the Dancehall powerhouse that I figured his debut album would be, "Rugged & Deadly" is a further demonstration of a monstrous talent in Bramma who, if you've been listening, my long-winded ass has spent the better part of the past decade and a half telling you was truly something special.
