Low-Life | UK Hip Hop Story | Roeg Du Casq - Instrumental Breaks 4 DJ's & MC's 12" [Fifth Rise Recordings]

Intro

Early Doors:
1979-1985

False Dawn:
1985-1990

Underground Years:
1990-1995

The Renaissance:
1995- 2000

The Future:
2000 & Beyond

Artists &
Discographies

Roeg Du Casq - Instrumental Breaks 4 DJ's & MC's 12" [Fifth Rise Recordings]

Tracklist:
1. Common Angle
2. Combinations
3. Make It Easy
4. Dynamics
5. Listen
6. Background

A couple of years ago I linked up a new head and didn't think much of it, but the young Birmingham based DJ and producer spent the time since then well, schooling himself and has now decided to drop his debut wax on us. Roeg Du Casq has put together a storming EP of well crafted instrumentals which have a timeless and classic quality. I was firstly surprised when this came though the mail as I was not expecting it and also because it is totally instrumental. Not many people these days are really just putting out beats, or at least if they are I'm not picking up on it. I guess it is so easy these days to find an MC that in a way it takes some guts to release just the music and let it stand on its own feet. Roeg has here a product which does just that. It is six tacks deep and each one of them is ready for any MC to use.

Roeg Du Casq's tracks are soulful, well recorded, engineered and produced and are injecting a breath of fresh air into the UK Hip Hop scene. On this EP there are six tracks each with a semi descriptive title. On the A Side Common Angle is a smooth groove with chords and gentle celestial keys over a simple beat with a slow supporting bass. Well orchestrated the arrangement has verses, choruses and is complex enough to not sound thin without any vocals on there. Combinations is moodier and immediately has a contrasting feel with the vocal sample and quick cuts. Again the tempo is slow and Roeg adds some strings and bass for the main music, the beat being a touch static. This track would be more aimed at having someone rap over it. For Make It Easy Roeg loos up some fantastic samples for another easy going mood piece. Roeg's style combines strings and xylophone like vibes for emotive works that really inspire.

The B side kicks off with Dynamics which this time utilises some horns ad a more prominent snare. The electric bass is live sounding and really sits well within the track. Listen has many of the same types of sounds as the previous tracks. Lots of live sounding instrumentation, coupled with a drum machine this time with a more urgent hand clap of a snare, but if I had to pick out one bad thing about Roeg's tracks it would be the beats, which are nice in their simplicity, but lack a bit of swing and this could be due to very regular quantisation. The final track Background goes some way to rectifying this and benefits by being more of a head nodder. All Roeg's tracks have a downbeat and relaxing vibe, are well finished and really need more exposure than they have received so far. He obviously has a musical ear and can caress those ivory's with some of the best of them.

The record is released totally independently on Roeg's own Fifth Rise Recordings which he tells me intends to concentrate mainly on the more musical side of Hip Hop. This is an impressive slab of wax which does just what the title says. It is ideal for DJ's to use as breaks and general mood music or mixing material, as well as being great for budding MCs to freestyle and practise over. Film companies and the like should be looking to synchronise this for backing or theme music or even commissioning Roeg Du Casq for original compositions. I'm certain that we will be hearing more of this guy shortly, especially if he has more beats like these ready to roll. He says he has plans already in the pipeline to collaborate with other producers and MC's, so this is only the beginning. The sleeve sticker says 2003, but I'm pretty sure this s a 2004 release, and that is the only problem I have with this record. Check it out.

mailto:roeg_du_casq@yahoo.co.uk
http://www.geocities.com/roeg_du_casq
Bookings: 07909 851 278