Despite being a fan of hip-hop and rap, my
experience of writing about and reviewing it is fairly limited. It's
with this in mind that I approach my review of the début full-length
from Ed Sheeran championed rapper Mikill Pane, with caution. Blame
Miss Barclay is 15 tracks of
sun-soaked hip-pop that paints pictures of life in the country's
capital through often upbeat and optimistic lyricism that's
occasionally offset by an austere edge that manages to propel Pane
just beyond the commercial pitfalls that befell the likes of Dizzee
Rascal's later releases. As a result, this leaves an album that's got
a raw, gritty candour about it whilst managing to maintain a
commercial quality that will appeal to even the most fair-weather rap
fans.
The eponymous 'Blame
Miss Barclay' is a solid way in which to kick off proceedings; a
rap/metal fusion that packs more than it's fair share of punch and is
an ode to a high school teacher to whom Pane credits his love of
language, something which becomes evident in later tracks.
Conversely, following track 'Roll On' couldn't be more different.
Produced by dubstep/grime ensemble True Tiger, the track is a laid
back, blissed out dub that features the expected upstrokes and
excellently integrated brass that make the track a true Summer beat
whilst track three 'Summer in the City' continues the albums high
quality and warm vibes even if again, it brings a completely
different aesthetic to the table. A chilled out and upbeat affair
that brings to mind tracks like Dizzee Rascal and Lily Allen's 'Wanna
Be' though thankfully, not as cringey. It's also the first instance
in which Pane's lyricism drops somewhat, though only with the
occasional bar and never anything worth mentioning specifically.
Though the first
few tracks on Blame Miss Barclay are
upbeat, celebratory tracks with Pane's humour permeating each, it
doesn't take long before his more serious side begins to show
through; it's here that the true level of his lyricism begins to
become more pronounced. Tracks such as 'No-one Gets Left Behind' or
'Rooftops' seem confessional rather than celebratory and it doesn't
seem to matter whether the stories Pane spins are true or not, such
is the calibre of his penmanship 'You Don't Know Me' in particular
address racism in a narrative that comes across like a less violent
Plan B.
It's the
juxtaposition of upbeat joie de vivre
and confessional yet universal angst that sets Blame Miss
Barclay apart from other rappers
at the moment but it's never going to a contender to less commercial
social commentators such as Akala. That said the commercial viability
of the record is obviously an intentional facet and one which will
allow Mikill Pane to find fans across the board. Trite rhyme schemes
such as one which revolves around beer will deter the most stringent
of rap fans, who'll dismiss it as pop music whilst the flow and
wordplay on tracks such as 'Dirty Rider' do enough justice to suggest
that there's far more to Pane than his poppier elements/
Whilst it's not a
perfect album, there's enough going on with
Blame Miss
Barclay to give it repeat
listens were rap your thing. Clever wordplay and a solid flow is
occasionally offset by more shakier elements such as easy rhymes or
poor schemes but as a whole it's obvious that Pane enjoys what he's
doing and he's clearly good at it. The choruses of certain songs seem
as if they've had at least some input by the aforementioned Ed
Sheeran which isn't strictly a bad thing when the verses they
separate are as solid as they are. Definitely an album worth checking
out particularly if you have an interest in groups like
The Streets
or
The Mitchell Brothers, there's far worse you could be listening to
out there.
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