Vinyl And The Resurgence Of Britcore
For my debut scribble i'd like to take a look at some vinyl, and the resurgence of britcore. As an example of this, we have for your ears just a snippet of a phenomenal release available on vinyl in true-school home-grown hip hop style. 7 years in the making, featuring 26 MCs (many from the UK), 5 scratch DJs, 3 producers and a bongo player. With artists from all over Europe and beyond. Rohstoff (German for 'raw stuff' or 'raw material') is the ultimate posse cut and a vinyl collectors dream. It even features samples for scratch DJs on the b-side, as well as 3 other tracks. (I know, go on, dribble away)
DJ Highfly found his love for all things hip hop at a time when the UK scene was first finding it's voice. Artists like London Posse, The Criminal Minds, Killa Instinct, Hardnoise, Hijack, Gunshot and more, were carving out the way for the very beginnings of the strong scene we have today. This raw, relentlessly energetic and often political branch of the UK hip hop tree, is coined in the term 'Britcore'. As with all good music, britcore was proud to use its own voice to reflect the opinions of the youth culture at the time. In recent years as radio play lists become more convoluted with generic music, the underground scene (whatever the genre may be) has reacted, and with it has grown from strength to strength. In a time when noise laws threaten our live circuit, and pop music is as far from the reality of the world around us as it could seem, there are more people making music than ever.
Britcore is now enjoying a second golden age, with the likes of The Criminal Minds, Killa Instinct, Warped Ethics, Planet Of The Fakes, 32 Troop, The Mantis Chapter, Dookie Squad, Suspekt UK, Chrome & Ill Inspired and many more releasing new albums and batches of sell-out vinyl in true home grown style. Britcore was always big in Germany, and its family tree has always enjoyed the fruits of this, cross pollinating with German producers and Mcs. People getting together with love and passion for the music. Its worth a special nod to the labels striving to do this, like Rohstoff's Britcore Rawmance, and B-Line Recordings and Fathop Records too.
This is grass-roots hip hop and real underground music put onto wax and out there to the people. Rohstoff is the dictionary definition. Intricate and heartfelt, inventive and heavy, and a fabulous example of not only the UK hip hop voice, but also what it can achieve when it spreads it's wings.
- Invokal, Verbalist Journalist.
Grab yourself a copy of "Rohstoff" by DJ Highfly on Vinyl below by clicking on the official artwork!
Rohstoff by DJ Highfly
Label: Britcore Rawmance
Format: 12" Vinyl EP
Release date: 12 July 2014
Illustration: Exile
Graphic Design: Mr. Tibbz
