Dizzee Rascal - Maths & English

Maths + English = mixed ideas

2003’s Boy In Da Corner was the intro, Showtime the following year’s gloriously self-obsessed fulfilment of promise. From its title down, Maths & English says playtime’s over, it’s time to get wise. Dizzee (just 21) seems to have spent the last three years learning about life, now he’s ready to teach it.

Mostly, it works. World Outside’s airy backdrop frames the promise that he’s “seen the bigger picture, it’s all good”, essentially urging people to see it with him. In a London where three teenagers get shot within a fortnight, it’s something to note. As is Where’s Da Gs: not a call to arms, more a reminder that most of these kids aren’t the hard men they think they are. They’ll no doubt think he’s speaking for them, not to them, though.,/p>

From the Straight Outta Compton-meets-Run-DMC rockrap of Sirens, to sampling Arctic Monkeys, enlisting Lily Allen for vocals and expanding his sound to old school hip-hop, guitar rock, and Krautrockian touches, it’s Dizzee’s most accessible-sounding release. A dip in the middle (overly self-obsessed and plain pedestrian material) is also his worst. Still, it’s probably the UK’s most complete, ‘traditional’ hip-hop album, if not Dizzee’s individual best.

XL | XLCD 273

Reviewed by Jason Draper
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