2.0 out of 5 stars
The epitome of 1998 speed garage, September 27, 2011
This review is from: 187 Lockdown (Audio CD)
I'll be the first to admit, when I lived in London in 1996-1997 I completely fell for the speed garage sound. I thought it was the coolest thing since sliced bread. I just couldn't get enough of it. The difference was at the time, bassline speed garage tunes were only played as floor fillers/anthems and it wasn't overdone. Over the course of the next year the bassline sound completely began to sweep away the bumpy and skippy vocals of nearly all other underground garage. Oddly enough you can see the same thing happening today with modern bassline and dubstep. In 1998 however all you had to do was mention 187 Lockdown's "Gunman" or R.I.P.'s "RIP Groove" and everyone know it was speed garage. The sound became so overplayed it cannibalized itself and died a pretty quick death thankfully. 187 Lockdown was probably the guiltiest of driving this sound into the ground sadly and despite all they did for the underground scene ultimately helped destroy it. This album is a perfect example of that. Here are my thoughts and track ratings on 187's self-titled album;
1. Gunman (Original Mix 7/10 (187's big hit but now dated. Rewinds, gunshots, ragga vocals, time stretching, it's all here.
2. Southside (Original 6/10 (Standard 4x4 speed garage with time stretched vocals and basslines.
3. It's Real 6/10 (Mellow and funky 4x4 with vocals and a little bassline.
4. Young Son Of Kung-Fu 5/10 (Downtempo track with kung-fu samples.
5. Kung-Fu (Original 187 Mix) 3/10 (Super cheesy standard speed garage with kung-fu samples.
6. The Wah 9/10 Brilliant 4x4 dub. Very reminiscent of much of Jeremy Sylvester's work.
7. Nightmare On 187th Street 3/10 (More super cheesy standard speed garage complete with horror movie & Nintendo samples.
8. It's In Your Eyes 7/10 (Generic bassline 2-Step.
9. All 'N' All 6/10 (Bland vocal garage.
10. Room 1116 6/10 (Jazzy and mellow house.
11. Southside (C-Ken Remix 7/10 (Not much different than the original.
12. The Don 3/10 (More lame speed garage with mob sounding vocals.)
Thinking back, I'm slightly ashamed that I DJed some of this music. I was never completely comfortable dropping one bassline speed garage tune after another but people in the U.S. really only seemed to enjoy that sound, unlike people in the U.K.. Tracks such as The Don, Kung Fu and Nightmare are just painful to listen to on this album. They're terribly repetitive, cheesy, uncreative and laden with ridiculous samples. Apart from "The Wah" track and "Gunman" (for nostalgia's sake) this album is pretty much a wash. I have more than enough respect for 187's talent (especially under their alias of Nu-Birth and C-Ken) but this album for the most part is pretty shameful. Shameful for me as a listener and shameful for 187 as artists.
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