A thoughtful, detailed comeback reflecting on the past, but never sounding stuck in it.
Bashy never got his full flowers for his contribution to the UK rap scene before concentrating on acting. He had a solid mixtape run – I remember rinsing The Chupa Chups tape on my old mp3 player. A few great freestyles on 1Xtra, some classic clashes. As shown in iconic tunes such as “Black Boys” and “Kidulthood 2 Adulthood”, he was always good at walking the line between conscious and commercial, able to make his message tracks radio-friendly and relatable. And he keeps that socially aware spirit alive on his latest album, Being Poor Is Expensive.
The opener “London Borough of Brent” sets a cinematic tone, with ethereal choirs layered over grimey bass notes. Bashy hits a melodic flow, reflecting on how chasing money affected him, and a lack of it affected others in his area, with smart, relative wordplay – “Living round here’s taxing, won’t end on the 5th of April”.
“Sweet Boys Turned Sour” continues the vivid storytelling, recounting childhood experiences, where innocent imagery of playground games, cartoons and comics contrast with weapons and hostility. He does little to glorify these things, more pointing out how normalized these experiences were, and how lucky he was to escape a few situations gone awry.
The title track feels like a very British affair, mixing reggae with UK Rap, giving a stream-of-consciousness verse with relentless rhymes and punchlines referencing Malorie Blackman, Guy Ritchie, and other homegrown dramatic talent like Damson Idris and Dan Kaluuya. There’s a poignant reference, “Could be a John Boyega or a Damilola, even if you’re not involved the zones involve ya”, comparing the fate of the two Peckham classmates; the former becoming Bashy’s peer as an internationally known actor, the latter a tragic casualty of youth violence, showing that while some can make it out of a harsh environment, the person sat next to them with the same intentions can just as easily fall victim to it.
“Blessed” is the closest thing here to a hooky radio hit, with a brooding dancehall drumbeat and a high-pitched hook from Haile. Bashy keeps a steady cadence, looking back on how far he’s come “from Harlesden to Hollywood Hills”, even shouting out his days as a busman – “Used to drive the 114 to Mill Hill”. The track uses a slowed, echoey sample of UK dancefloor classic “Crazy Love” by MJ Cole.
Sampling is used to the strength of this record – from audio clips of church sermons, elders, DJ sirens and tube stops, and even his heated clash with Ghetts, to recreating 90’s hip hop and garage classics on “Lost in Dreams” and “Sticky”, giving a similar vibe to his old mixtapes when he was rapping on other people’s beats. These musical extracts accent events that shape his identity and help to paint the backdrop he navigates through his detailed stories.
There are a couple moments like “On the Rise” where the production gets a little to lost in its own cold atmosphere, and his off-kilter, rapid-fire delivery and wordy lyrics don’t make for much catchiness, but that’s not the goal here. This feels like a carefully thought-out collection of contemplative artsy pieces rather than a strive for any big singles or viral singalongs.
Closing track “Midnight In Balans” leads us out with long introspective verse and a nicely placed Soul II Soul sample, rounding up an album that’s a homage to Black British culture, a show of maturity and a meditation on his past. He may have had his pen on standby for a long while, but this is more than a return to form – an evolution from freestyle puncher to a conceptual album artist. While before he’s been “honourably mentioned” just shy of numbers in UK GOAT lists, finally he has a standout project that should place his name in the conversation.
RATING: 9/10
SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/embed/album/0jENGMvmnPYqxQ4M6qE022?utm_source=generator&theme=0