Live

Dizzee Rascal @ Roadmender, Northampton, Nov 24, 2004

Natasha crawls the urban landscape of Northampton and above all else, looks sharp.
02/12/2004

I used to think that being stuck at a garage/hip hop concert would feel like being stuck between my usual comforting rock and a hard (core) place (ho ho). But dodgy metaphors aside, I’m not often right, and I was wrong again. Zane Lowe’s “equal rights in music” motto has not only taken him across the country but across polar opposites of music – from the baggy bottomed quick-tongued tirade of beats that is Dizzee Rascal, to the skinny-legged whiteboy rock of Razorlight. Amazingly, it works, which probably says something about the current diversity of the British music scene and the ever-increasing enlightenment of music fans. So let’s experiment.

Fix up, look sharp.

Stick a celebrity DJ and an ‘On Air’ sign in front of a Roadmender crowd and it’s amazing what it does for the atmosphere – Zane Lowe is getting his rocks off to some seriously dirty beats mixed in with Franz Ferdinand and Greenday for the less urban-initiated, and the crowd are looking sharp.

Urban music and its stars (like the irascible Dizzee or common lad Mike Skinner, who made a surprise appearance on decks tonight) are a community – instead of a wall of guitars and amps it’s just you, the guy in the hoodie and his voice. Confrontational to the ill-informed, it’s actually an exhilarating experience. Dizzee crouches at the back of the stage for first track ‘Sittin’ Here’ and you know straight away he was the smart kid teachers labelled stupid. He articulates his experiences as an East end teenager with the fierce yet frank good humour of someone who knows he deserves better. And the minor interruption of a fire evacuation (false alarm, thank goodness) isn’t enough to stop him – Dizzee’s back on for a blistering final five songs, including the huge hit ‘Fix Up, Look Sharp’ and current single ‘Dream’ with it’s sneaky ‘Happy Talk’ sample, which sums up the night. Happy, happy, happy, happy talk – from people who walk the walk. Genius.

Relevant sites:
http://www.dizzeerascal.co.uk

Natasha House for Crud Magazine 2004©

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