★★★☆☆
Three Stars
Wiley may be known as “the Godfather of Grime”, but it’s a certain Dizzee Rascal who has had the biggest impact on the genre, an impact evident on Wiley’s latest album, ‘The Ascent’. Grime is a genre with notably humble origins. Pirate radio, homemade mixtapes and beats made on PlayStations — its roots couldn’t be any more underground. Going from ‘I Luv U’ to ‘Dance Wiv Me’, Dizzee was the first to cross over to the mainstream, creating a career template for ambitious grime MCs everywhere. Wiley, Tinie Tempah and Tinchy Stryder all followed suit. Of course, accusations of “selling out” will follow them for the rest of their careers, but it’s hard to condemn them for wanting a slice of the big time. Putting grime’s internal politics to one side, the important thing is whether the music is good, right?
While he is clearly aiming for chart success with ‘The Ascent’, it’s also clear that Wiley wants to maintain his position at the top of the grime game. The first three tracks are an energetic and promising start, culminating in ‘Skillzone’, a straight up banger with Wiley and seven other MCs showing off their impressive rap tekkers.
Unfortunately when Wiley heads into chart-friendly territory, things often get a bit, well, rubbish. That’s not to say Wiley can’t pull it off; he can. ‘Heatwave’ is a perfect example of precisely how to do chart friendly music well. Uplifting strings and hand claps accompany a catchy vocal hook, which then drops into an outrageously bouncy bassline. It’s fun, unique and enjoyable, the kind of song that makes Park End more than just bearable.
However this is in stark contrast with ‘Lights On’. Generic, boring and extremely forgettable, it’s everything that’s wrong with current chart dance music. I’m talking sub-Guetta levels of quality here. Listening to it, I can almost feel the carpet, sticky from spilt VKs. I can almost smell the mix of sweat, farts and Lynx Africa. It’s not just this song. ‘Reload’ is a similarly uninteresting drum and bass tune. ‘Hands In The Air’ has some slightly more interesting production elements, but the main chorus is still pretty dull.
Wiley is known as one of grime’s greatest MCs, and while his skill and technique is as impressive as ever on the album, the lyrical content falls flat. There isn’t enough of his trademark wit and wordplay, and a bit too much of “let’s go out, drink, find some girls, and have a good time”.
It’s not all so bad though. ‘My Heart’ is a reasonably enjoyable pop tune with a shuffling beat and melodic piano, featuring the omnipresent Emeli Sande and US rapper French Montana. On ‘Humble Pie’, Wiley is at his most personal and reflective, a downbeat and absorbing end to the album.
Overall, ‘The Ascent’ is a fairly average album, but Wiley is capable of so much better. His recent Step Freestyles 1-20, released as two free mixtapes, show Wiley at his brilliant best — funny, engaging, exhilarating and hooking up with the most innovative producers around. In the main, the attempts at mainstream appeal on ‘The Ascent’ smack of desperation. Call me a purist but I can’t help feeling that he could find more lasting success by bringing classic grime back to the forefront.
