2 Ruff, Vol. 1 — Chase & Status
Drum’n’bass duo Chase & Status, who have by now surpassed legendary status within the genre, have put influencing pop on the shelf and returned to what they do best with the release of 2 RUFF, marking their seventh album (which the duo actually view more of as a mixtape). The majority of the duo’s listeners naturally reside in the UK but this winter they are making several first-time appearances all over Europe as well as popping over to Toronto, Canada for a pre-New Year’s Eve gig. Nearly 15 years after their debut the duo is still loved in the club scene, still loved on the charts, and still influencing great music. Just when you think they can’t do it any better, they surprise you with yet another brain mongling release which functions as their reminder to us: don’t forget that no one does drum’n’bass like we do.
The mixtape in its entirety features some of d’n’b present and future pioneers such as Flowdan, Hedex and Manchester’s beloved Bou. The listener is introduced to 2 RUFF by the first track Selecta (featuring Stefflon Don) which showcases an interdisciplinary parallel universe where the best of d’n’b is a synth that could also be used on any one of Green Day’s records pre-21st Century Breakdown. Perhaps the relationship between genres like rock and d’n’b that have in past years spent so much time apart can look forward to a marriage in the coming years, but we at FTOP hope that the relationship isn’t too far away. In fact, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard how good a heavier electric guitar on a d’n’b track can sound – earlier this year Gentlemen’s Dub Club featured Blazer Boccle on “Bitter,” a track that could unite the backyards of any Northern working class neighbourhood.
The following track, Liquor & Cigarettes (featuring ArrDee), is all in all a track about letting the night control your next move without any real thought of repercussions. ArrDee essentially simultaneously expresses the worst and best night out over a beat which sends little shockwaves through your internal organs. The track also produces one of the most satisfying drops of the record which is probably why it has spent 18 weeks in the UK top 40 charts, 10 weeks of which were spent in the top 10. Speaking of charts, four Chase & Status tracks reside on the UK top 100 charts, three of which derived from this album.
There are several features throughout the album, in fact they haven’t had this many features since Tribe (2017). Fan-favourite IRAH who has worked with Chase & Status significantly over the years is featured more than once, and we thank God for that because IRAH’s vocals is meshed with the dirtiest of synths in next track Baddadan (featuring IRAH, Flowdan, Bou and Trigga) which has taken the UK and its club scene by storm. We are then reunited with a complex but teenaged bassline in Massive & Crew which uses elements of breakbeats and techno. Say The Word (featuring Clementine Douglas) is the album’s poppiest track with a more high pitched bass and rather than wanting to listen to it in an illegally packed and mysteriously smelly basement, it’s the type of track you listen to when you’re on the way home after seeing your crush make out with your primary school bully. Clementine’s honey-like vocals are perfect for this track which is probably needed, because the energy level of this entire record is probably enough to fuel an entire postgraduate year.
On the Block (featuring Mozey, Sav’o and Horrid1) wakes you up with what is arguably the most chaotic track of the album, slapping you, sitting you up and repeating the process for the entire three minutes and thirty seconds that it’s on. By the end you’re all bruised up and instantly fall to your knees but not out of fear, you’re actually begging for more. If Stockholm Syndrome is anything at all, it is this track.
2Ruff (featuring Takura) and the subsequent Get Got are two tracks which highlights Chase & Status’ talents for a rhythmic bassline, albeit slightly monotonous. Chase & Status follow up with Tough Talk (featuring Kwengface) which is a track which exemplifies collaboration at its finest, marrying Chase & Status’ sound with Kwengface’s love for choppy breaks. The record gives the listener a nod with final track 20 Man Down (featuring MIST and IRAH) which is probably the most stand-alone track of the album as one of the more vocal-heavy tracks of the record which, along with paying tribute to the ever so insightful… siren, goes beautifully thanks to the high and low contrast of MIST and IRAH’s voices.
If Robyn has taught us anything, it is that the second volume is always better. We can’t say this is true for 2 RUFF, but we sure are satisfied with Vol. 1. If you’re looking for an album with basslines that will cut you in half, you need not look any further.
The beginning and end of 2 RUFF leaves you in awe of being able to estimate exactly what you need when you want to listen to a good d’n’b record. The middle may not fulfill the expectations made after the first six tracks, but still hold their spots on the record well. In all its right, this is indeed a mixtape, and it functions best when treated as a bag of pick-and-mix. It is quintessentially English and truly is the duo’s way of saying consistent delivery is how you make club banger after club banger. In summary, Chase & Status review their work on 2 RUFF best themselves in Baddadan with “Nobody badder than we,” yelled over and over again, which is exactly how we want to listen to a lot of the tracks on this record; over and over again.
Most liked track: On the Block
Most unexpected track: Selecta
2RUFF, Vol. 1 - Released by EMI.
