Yes We Want More!

My friends at Ninja Tune have sent me a fantastic birthday present. They didn’t know it was my birthday, but that’s not the point. I’m referring to new material by Big Dada’s Ty. 2003′s Upwards was immense, fantastic British soulful hip-hop, and now the man is back. His third album, Closer, is due out on 16th October, and I’ve got to tell you… I’m excited. Knowing how talented the man is, I really shouldn’t have been surprised by the names featured on this new record, but somehow I am.

Closer features appearances from such artists as; Speech from Arrested Development, De La Soul, and Zion I. I have promos of both the new double single, due out on 18th September, and also the full album. I’ve not listened to Closer yet, but I will do shortly and a review will follow. But for today, I’m gonna focus on the double single. It features two tracks; Don’t Watch That (Knickers, Y-Fronts and Jockstraps), and What You Want (Taylormade).

Don’t Watch That (Knickers, Y-Fronts and Jockstraps) is a funky old skool kinda tune, but with a typical fresh Ty sound. The lyrics are humorous to the max – the story being that you shouldn’t believe internet rumours about artists. It’s no secret that often I like to keep my comedy and my music separate, but it’s never as black and white as that. For me it is in the execution. People like Goldie Looking Chain focus mainly on the humour (my perception, anyway), whereas take something classic like The Beastie Boys, those guys could have a laugh whilst still knocking out some fantastic tracks – well Ty, although not being anything like the Beasties, has a firm comedic stance; the music and verse stay well intact. Ty’s flow is disciplined and catchy, the humour is there to be subtly appreciated, but it works well. The music remains, and the balance is sound.

Ty – Don’t Watch That
>> download <<
This download is a sample of the music only and must be deleted from your computer within 24 hours of downloading. This download link will expire on 24th August.

What You Want (Taylormade) features Taylor McFerrin, Joy Jones and Jason Yarde. This track is in a similar vein to those two classic Ty tracks; Groovement and Wait A Minute – real shimmying rhythm accompanied by brass and intelligent lyrics. The beats were originally beatboxed by Taylor McFerrin (who is in fact the son of Bobby “Don’t Worry Be Happy” McFerrin), Ty and his associate producer Drew then created the tune around the original beatbox. They used many layers, including a full on horn section, then Ty finally added the last piece of the puzzle; his vocals.

Ty – What You Want
>> TRACK REMOVED AT REQUEST OF TY <<
This download is a sample of the music only and must be deleted from your computer within 24 hours of downloading. This download link will expire on 24th August.

I’m pleased to see Ty come back with some new stuff. I love his angle on the UK hip-hop scene, never any pretensions of grandeur or wanting to bling it up with the gangstas. More hip-hop artists need to get back to basics and realise it should be about the music and not the glamour. Anyway, I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know! So, look out for this double single on 18th September, and also look out for my review of Closer coming very shortly.

Useful links:

• Ty MySpace page
• Big Dada website
• Download – Ty – Don’t Watch That