Rapid “Pounded Yam”

“Ting In Boots”“Pied Piper” and “Together” are just three of grime’s most loved instrumental artefacts. They all have one thing in common: Rapid has his production credits etched on them.

As the chief beatsmith behind East London’s Ruff Sqwad – one of the genre’s seminal collectives – he perfected an earthy, DIY aesthetic which permeated the mid to late 2000s. Much of it was pumped out of his Dell PC speakers without mixing and mastering, but his output is engulfed in the emotion and colour a lot of other producers fail to cook up.

He’s not been resting on his laurels, mind. A stretch of appearances have been dotted around the noughties – and the White Label Classics compilation from 2012 did wonders to shed light on the Ruff Sqwad catalogue.

Fast forward to 2015 and grime is brimming with a rekindled vibrancy – internet radio sets are plentiful, compelling sub-genres have emerged and the US are taking note. A couple of months ago, you may have heard Chip spitting over Rapid’s Pepper Riddim instrumental at a recent Lord of the Mics session. That old school energy runs throughout Rapid Fire Vol. 2, the follow up to 2014’s Turning Point EP.

Our pick is “Pounded Yam” – a fine tutorial on how to cram Tower Hamlets-fuelled brashness into a bedrock for the best of MCs.

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

← BACK TO BOILER ROOM