Boy In Da Corner

Very impressive start for a kid, but a tad too long.

He's just a rascal, dizzzzzyyyyy rascallllll. Enjoyed fix up look sharp and jus a rascal. The rest not so much. The rest wasnt really my bag it was just OK. Its albums like this i wish we had a 10 star rating.

Can’t listen to garbage like this

Nine songs in his voice is grating on my ears.

Was just Sittin’ Here listening to this and thought, you would have to be Jus’ a Rascal to not listen to this.

It's nearly impossible to hear Dizzee Rascal rapping over the music; it's so poorly mixed. A lot of it is painful to listen to. The refrains are bad. Like, really bad. The verses are fine, but the refrains should be a rest from the verses. But when they're this bad, they aren't a rest, and I'm just exhausted trying to listen to this. At least it's recognizable as music. Favorite Song(s): Jus' a Rascal

Liked it, some features not so much

Nostalgic

Troep

Like Bert Janch yesterday, I respect Dizzee Rascal for the pioneering influence I’m told he had over his genre. In truth I’m more likely to stick Bert’s debut on for enjoyment in future, but I’d say I was engaged by Dizzee’s roughly half the time. The tracks with more tentative, icy production (Sittin’ Here, Brand New Day, Jezebel etc) grabbed my attention the most, and provided space for his more reflective lyrics to shine.

Mixed bag of an album. The electronic music is very apparent and also very UK. The tracks where the production is taking a front seat are my favorites. I typically prefer US hip hop to UK, so it's no shock to me that some of these tracks didn't work for me. There's enough interesting ideas on this album to make me glad I checked it out, though.

I had fun. Wasn’t great, but good enough. Best songs were “Jus’ a Rascal” and “Do It!”. Worst was “Live O”. Don’t believe I’ll be listening again. The production was great, but lacked a low end that would have made this album really shine. The lyrics could have used some work as well as the flow. The lack of any sort of chorus made the album as a whole feel forgettable. If “Do It!” just had a simple looped R&B sample or old one of an old doo-wop hit, I genuinely believe people would recognize this artist. Overall, choices weren’t bad, but they could have been better. 3/5

Not my jam.

Before Dizzee and the whole Grime thing it’s easy to forget that the even though the UK hip hop scene was a thing … it wasn’t truly our thing. It was an imitation of the US. There were some great UK acts doing their own thing in the late 90s that paved the way - Roots Manuva comes to mind - but the Grime sound took it to another level. A hodge podge of underground sounds from the UK rave, sound system and club scenes that came before it. Something that properly represented UK inner city youth. Anyway. This is quite an authentic representation of that. I actually prefer some his later, more mainstream stuff, but this is a great album that captures the spirit of the time.

It was okay.

No thank you.

Another one I couldn’t finish. Sorry rap

Listened to the first song which was fine but it’s not my music

Being given shit like this makes me wonder if it’s worth carrying on

I'm not usually into the UK rap/grime scene, but I have to say, this rules. The production especially stands out with only a few questionable beats. Dizzee's flows and lyrics hold up very well for the most part. It can get pretty misogynistic at times though.

not for me

My sweet cuppin’ cakes - I haven’t even finished the album and I’m already giving it 5 stars. The sheer pace of rhyming makes me want to bounce around the room like a lotto ball. And then the world-weary lyrics make me wonder where Eminem was when he first heard it. It’s like his spiritual UK brother.

Ok this was terrible my first pass through admittedly but it grew on me. I don't think I'll ever have true hip hop fandom especially grime/drill, but I can appreciate it's recognition and importance in the development of this genre.

Scent rap album but rap is just not my thing

It made me appreciate music more and I'm not even being sarcastic. Listen to a few songs and then put one you really like. The difference is like burnt food and good food. Not my thing for sure.

Some good UK-specific drill beats, but Dizzee's flows and bars are average at best on this. It's prob not fair to compare the two, but US rap in the 90's was already more imaginative than this.

mais ou menos

I liked it a lot at first, but I got bored after a few songs. 3/5

Rap, 2003, sehr nervig -> 1

Hmmmm

not my taste

There's a great 40 minute album in there. Unfortunately it's overgenerous, and feels like a slog interrupted by amazing tunes!!! It's still ace, but some editing would have saved everyone some time!!! X

Glad I stuck with it, but the first few tracks didn't draw me in at all. I don't think I'll listen to it again though. Far too much EDM influence for my tastes.

Pretty fun album. Creative use of rhythm and electronic elements.

It appears to me that Dizzee Rascal hasn't much to say. The raps seem juvenile and undeveloped.

I liked it, but I was also ready for it to be over.

I really struggled with this one, had to skip about 1/2 the songs, I guess I could see the appeal in a few tracks but overall this pretty bad.

Bits and pieces of some of the tracks are interesting to listen to. More than that is asking for a migraine.

On the one hand, i was completely uninformed about this artist and this larger genre. It was interesting to be exposed to it. On the other hand, this wasn't really for me. It was quite long and while the production was good I wasn't interested in the lyrics at all.

Not a fan. A genre I'm not inclined to write, with annoying production, and a voice I can't understand, partially because of accent, partially because of sayings, and partially because I just don't think it's that good. Might deserve a spot on the list as an example of a rap subgenre, but I didn't need to hear it.

Goes hard af, not necessarily my cuppa tea but can't deny he's got style

I liked this a lot more than I expected, as someone who doesn’t often enjoy hip hop. Maybe it’s the Britishness of it that presents some novelty.

The British have a mixed record with interpreting American forms of music. Rhythm and blues? Imperfect, but pretty great. Jazz? Not much to talk about, but inoffensive. Rap? An assault on the ears. Best song: Fix Up, Look Sharp

This was good, nothing mind blowing, I liked some of the beats but after a while really could not concentrate on what I was coding while he was screaming. Reminds me of Danny Brown.

0/15 honestly. Couldn’t get into it and it was just all over the place tbh. Not a good one.

People really like listening to this? Why? Which part? Goddamn this is really unpleasant in absolutely every way.

How times change. What appeared confrontational and scary twenty years later is a hoot and a straightforward listen. Solid three stars, though three tracks too long.

Sucks balls. 0 stars if I could.

Low 2or1

21 years how did thay happen? I don't hear the repetitiveness others complain of. It's full of invention and ideas. I like how a lot of the tracks consist of only a few elements but seem fuller than that. A shame he curdled into a partner bashing middle aged man.

Borderline 4

Grime: es una especie de hip-hop mezclado con ritmos arrítmicos electrónicos. Bastante insufrible. Un 2.

Imposible escucharlo.

Surprised I had never heard of this. Really enjoyed.

First time listening - dig it

Couldn't quite get into this...

Rap

Cool production. Love the English. Just shy of 5 I think (relatively)

This was not what I was expecting. Thought it was country artist. May not last long on this. Eh this first song is alright. I get it. Not my style.

Grime is to the 2000s what dubstep is to the 2010s. Quite polarising music that sounds quite different from what it is being compared to (in this case American hip hop). I quite like this album, it does get a bit samey but the attitude and style still feels fresh.

Quit after track 3🤢

The closest I've come to liking uk grime

That is not how I remember Fix Up, Look Sharp sounding. It's like a weirdo happy clappy indie rock beat.

Er so å høre på en 5åring spille på et piano for første gang

british rap roadman

C'est insupportable, je peux comprend l'appeal mais ça fait juste m'étourdir de les entendre me rapper à 25 dans les oreilles

3.5 Solid game changing album.

p892. 2003. 1 star. Rap/grime, so wrong audience. It's tedious beyond belief, and the Cockney accent makes this almost unbearable. Difficult to give any stars to someone who thinks it's OK to assault women.

Ja fucking tak!! Elsker rigtig mange af sangene her på. Nogle af dem er knap så gode dog hehe. De gode sange trækker det MEGET op synes jeg. Har hørt det virkelig meget i gym og sabbatårene - på grund af det 3.5-4/5

I like hiphop that doesnt sound like everything else but this is just not good and to appear in the list like noo

Crap rap

This is my 423rd album, and I feel like the best days are behind me. The entire week I've been served with albums I did not like, in genres I do not enjoy. Add Dizzee Rascal to the list, who made me feel dizzy indeed. Incomprehensible lyrics, annoying and repetitive beats, ugh. I can at least appreciate hip hop when it's good, but this was NOT. I could not wait for it to be over

Not my thing

I was won over by this. Very inventive and charmingly witty in places. I appreciate the work that's gone into this, but it's not a genre I'm going to turn to often, so only 3 stars. Favourite tracks: 2 Far, Fix up, Look Sharp, Cut 'em off.

He goes hard. I might appreciate this more with a few more close listenings but the first blush didn't grab me.

This one was out there. I had to do some digging to find out this genre is "Grime" which is an appropriate name. Realizing he was 16ish when he produced this album is super impressive. Overall, not something I'm going to likely want to listen to again, but super original blend of rap/EDM/dance music.

3.5

Boy in da Corner might be one of the most different albums here! Grime is not a genre I've even heard of, but it appears to be mostly a combination of hip hop and electronic music. The beats, as the kids say, were sick. I did hear a lot of creativity, but sometimes it came across as plain weird. Some of the additional vocalists rubbed me the wrong way, but Dizzee Rascal's voice was fine to me. 2.5, rounding up for creativity.

I learned a new term today, regarding genres: grime. It's essentially a fusion of hip-hop and EDM, with emphasis on very heavy, "dirty" beats on the EDM part. Hence, grime. I think it's a combination of the grime genre and the fact that this is UK hip hop, but in any case, this is unlike any other hip-hop on this album, hands down. Still, this album and genre didn't really resonate with me much.

Gonna be honest, listened to one song and was like... yeah nah... skipped. not my thing

Not for me 2/5

not special

Maybe the quintessential British rap album? Dizzee is on another level here, the beats are ridiculously hard, and it’s kind of mind blowing to find out he was only 17 - 18 when recording this. This album is 21 years old now and still sounds incredibly fresh and exciting

It might seem a little off brand, but I quite liked Dizzee Rascal as a teen. I heard Stand Up Tall (not on this album) on a soundtrack somewhere and I loved it. Listening to this album today, I did quite enjoy the storytelling, but the inflections in the rapping definitely sound odd. I think that American hiphop has jaded me too much and made UK hiphop confuse me. Anyway, I did still like this but I’m not sure I’ll be coming back for seconds.

Not a fan. Shouldn’t be on this list.

I like quite a lot of oldschool rap and hip-hop but this was almost unbearable to listen to, especially the first half. Perhaps the lyrics are great, I don't know, I don't listen to such fast rapping carefully as a non native speaker, but musically this album was repetititve, boring and annoying at times. Once I would someone to sit down with me and explain why this album has such great critical acclaim and why was it so successful....I don't get it now.

Really not for me. Can’t stand the accents.

Starting off, I didn’t think I would like this based on my taste in music, but it had good complexity to it and didn’t seem to drag on

Well blow me away. I remember this coming out and hating it. Never really got on with grime in general. Listening back now, I'm pleasantly surprised. Some of the backing tracks are great, almost sound Aphex Twin-esque. When he calms down a bit with the rapping it actually sounds really great. Tracks like Cut em off, Jezebel and Do It are very enjoyable. This is offset somewhat by the OTT ones, like stop dat, just a rascal etc. Mixed bag, the lows are low but the highs are high. Will listen to some of these again for sure.

Good music, not a fan of the lyrics

Some of the beats go pretty damn hard, but "grime" isn't really my thing and production on these earlier albums feel somewhat dated to my ears. Overall sound doesn't hold up as well to modern hip hop with the somewhat thinner sounding instrumentation, but that's just my 2 cents. "Fix Up, Look Sharp" is a bop, check out the live version off the deluxe version of Tongue n' Cheek.

Absolute dogshit

nigdy nie kumalem jego fenomenu, mial jeden hit ktory robila muzyka a nie jego seplenienie

What in the 2003? This was unlistenable at times. The aggressiveness of this man’s accent comes through so frighteningly strong. I couldn’t understand what he was so angry about for 90% of what was said. Combined with the…interesting choices in the backing tracks and I just really didn’t connect with this album. I wanted it to end multiple times. But it was an hour long. So it felt like it was never going to. This might be a masterpiece and I’m a fool. But I really don’t think so. I just didn’t enjoy it. 1 star.

He certainly is one dizzy rascal, that's for sure. So, this is grime. I have never been fully exposed to grime and only heard a track here and there, though I had heard of Dizzee Rascal. I don't think this is my type of music, as it may be too busy for me. The sound and beats are original, so points for that. If this book is going to cover all forms of music, then grime needs to be included and this album is a good example of that genre. I really do not have anything bad to say about this album. It's not my kind of music.

Grime: es una especie de hip-hop mezclado con ritmos arrítmicos electrónicos. Bastante insufrible. Un 2.

Has its moments

I remember hearing Diz absolutely destroy some mumble rappers on an American radio show a few years back: his flow was like some crazy future gear by comparison. I find this record a challenge to sit through as a whole though, works better in smaller doses imo.

A bunch of pointless noise. Didn't like it at all.

3.5 Pressed play expecting hip hop, per the generator, and got aggressive dance music. Got a little more hip hop in the middle, but I liked the beats and flow on the dance-y tracks more. Adding Sittin' Here, I Luv U, and Jus' a Rascal to the rotation.

Certainly wasn’t feeling this in the beginning but by the end I kinda understood why it was well received. 2.5/5

"When Dizzee thinks very deeply—worrying about growing up, about those around him who won't grow up, about dying before he grows up—he sounds like, what else can we call it, the real thing". Where in the hell did this village voice reviewer get this from? He must have been listening to a different album.

With Boy In Da Corner Dizzee Rascal defined a whole new music genre: Grime. Great songs with deep bass instrumentation, all lot of variation. Amazing!

Liked it much more than I thought I would. Nice Billy Squier sample. Tempted to give it 4 stars.

First time hearing. 1.5x.

3.2 - There are portions that I think are really great, and I think it would be higher rated for me if they cut some of the filler

I couldn't stand the vast majority of this. Somehow I've never been able to get into grime, but I expected something more here - more than half of the tracks are basically unlistenable for me. I couldn't tell if the spoken word intro to "Seems 2 Be" was a joke or unintentionally cringey. The radio hits are way more palletable, and I enjoyed "Brand New Day" and "Do It!" (which sounds like a precursor to cloud rap), but that was about it. Fave Tracks: Brand New Day, Fix Up Look Sharp 1.7/5

I quite like Dizzee Rascal's more well known singles (Holiday, Bonkers etc), but this does nothing for me. He seems to have solid flow, but the whole thing feels very repetitive, and doesn't do anything for me.

I liked this album a lot when it first come out, but it doesn't hit the same now

Not my cup of tea I get the cultural context of rap, but I still don't really like how the lyrics are all about "I am so great" and "fuck X", or "pussy" in some cases. Specially since I feel the lyrics are the point of them

I'd consider this more of a Punk album than Hip Hop, not even to mention Grime to which this album codified that entire genre. However it's very "howl of disaffected youth" with it's abrasive style much more in line with Punk just with an urban slant. Certain tunes( "I luv u") haven't aged that well but Dizzee's vocals are so powerful and speak directly to the days of mobile credit and downloadable ringtones. Overall a great listen and important album at the time, still stands up compared to the overproduced sterile tunes.

I found this thoroughly unenjoyable and often entirely unintelligible. I am willing to admit that it is perhaps that I just don't "get it" but nonetheless I won't be listening again.

Was decent. I don’t know how much British hip-hop really resonates with me though.

STREET FIGHTER DIZZEE RASCAL YEAH. It's weird that I've been getting a lot of patterns with this site lately of albums I've just recently been listening too. I listened to street fighter first which is so punchy and fun with the 16 bit sample. The album as a whole is quite a bit darker but not in a bad way. I hear a lot of igloosghost style instumentation and i'm sure this was influential to the scene as a whole. Fix up, look sharp is a such a hype song. Brand New Day and Sittin' Here have some great hooks/flows. Jezebel is an interesting string plucked focused instrumental but fits with this louder dark beat. My only issue with this album is that it's a little bloated. A lot of tracks and some feel more filler while the killer songs are killer.

Buf! Cansadoto ya de rap. El rap es una expresión artística, no lo dudo. Pero no es música...

Highly recommend this of you like mindless noise.

Great production and beats. Highly listenable!

Surprisingly good

Literally the most obnoxious rapping I have ever heard in my life. He sounded like he's turning up the "American gangster rapper" stereotype to 11. The overly angry delivery combined with the British accent and his nasal voice is painful to listen to. Top all of that with bland drum-and-bass beats that sounded like aneurysm in some places.

As an American, this felt so fresh when it dropped. I listened to this and lady sovereign a ton for a while there. It's aged okay I guess. But it's a little like being in the club with the lights on at this point. It was fun to hear this again.

Grime might get a bad wrap on this website (also: Skepta, The Streets), but it’s not my favourite thing in the world, either. It took until “Jus’ a Rascal” for me to admit, y’know, I might be enjoying this erratic, headache-inducing album. Rascal’s energy is infectious even if his verses kinda blend together after an hour, but I think his production is the real winner here. Yesterday’s Tangerine Dream made me think of video game music, and so does this (albeit a much different game); the bouncy synths in “Sittin’ Here”, “Brand New Day”, “2 Far”, and “Do It” are chock-full of personality. — Aha, I knew it! in the deluxe version he samples the game Street Fighter 👾 HL: “Sittin’ Here”, “Stop Dat”, “Brand New Day”, “Fix Up, Look Sharp”, “Jus a Rascal” April 19, 2024

Listened Before? N What the hell? No. Just no. Awful. Songs added to playlist: Fix Up, Look Sharp

So tacky and derivative. Not too fan of this :(

поначалу это не вкатывает жестко, но это старый грайм. хорошо помню как подростком слушал грайм саундклауд реперов, был еще MC NO LIMIT, который даже на версусе тусовался альбом непростой, как любой другой альбом зарождающегося жанра, но я кайфанул

Это очень необычная штука и меня ломало от бита. В том плане что я не понимал когда качнуть головой чтобы влиться и сбивался. Но это не отменяет шарма альбома, жанр грайм я не сильно слушал, поэтому прикольно Алкоальбом: томатный гозе

Nope, not British rap please

Giving this 5 because I love it, but it's mainly fun to piss off boomers and yanks

could i write poetry to this? n

Today I learned that Dizzee Rascal's brand of Progressive Rap is called "Grime". I think I like Grime.

More like a 3.5. Sittin' Here, I Luv U, Fix Up, Look Sharp, and Jezebel are all time favorite songs for me, but the entire album is a bit long and it feels like 2-4 songs could have been cut.

I sometimes get Dizee Rascal confused with Rascal Flatts.

Ok, now I like a fair amount of rap, from across 5 decades. I would not include this album among the most influential or best 200. Half of those are likely Wu related. But I digress. The beats are not unique, the lyrics lack originaly. This album is not awful, but for me, it's lacking. Maybe hearing Run DMC in the last couple of days has skewed my estimation? I don't think so, but I'll pass on Dizzee.

I was looking forward to this. I remember this album coming out and how much praise it was getting. And I really like Bonkers (not on this album though). This didn’t really hit for me though. Listenable, but not for me.

Starts off strong but the grime beats wear you down after a while.

I hated this yesterday morning and then I put the remainder of the album on when I was a bit drunk in the evening and was feeling it. So, context dependent I guess. It was interesting to listen to, anyway.

Didn't finish, I found the rhymes and beats to just be grating

Tää brittiräppi on vähän liian taustoiltaan aggressiivista mulle, mutta flow on Dizzeella hyvin ilahduttava. Ei jätä mulavaa oloa muttei negatiivisia tunteitakaan. Hyvää kävelyyn ja ehdottomasti kuuntelemisen arvoinen, sanoisin

Biitit on käännetty niin kovalle että tekee aika tiukkaa vastaanottaa tämä aistimellisesti. Ja miksi grime on aina niin Hi-Fi:ä? Harmi - pidän pohjavireestä.

Man, it was really weird to find this album on the list. Like, it’s fine, but more a goofy distraction than anything influential or must-hear

some catchy songs but most of the time I have no idea what he's saying. just sounds like a bunch of mumbling.

Not doing it for me. Sorry Dizzee.

I didn't give it a fair and complete listen but have low hopes that the later songs were a lot different than the earlier ones. Didn't hate it...

Me and me Uncle Jamal blast Dizzee before we battle with the EastStaines Massif.

2.5. I can appreciate its unique sound, but I just feel like it's not really my thing.

Assertive and energetic sound, with a dizzying flow and idiosyncratic vibe I like. Uncomfortably dark and misanthropic lyrics, particularly rough when he speaks about women. Ultimately, it's a lot to take and way too long. Fave Songs: Sittin' Here, Do It!, Stop Dat, Brand New Day, Fix Up

Not really my thing. I do like some rap/hip hop but it needs to be more tuneful. More catchy. I don’t get that from this

Not my thing for sure.

As with the other grime album that popped up, I can’t say I’m a fan of this. Still kind of interesting, though.

Listen the brits did a lot of things. Great rock and roll hell, we owe you big time. Stay away from rap, please.

Goes alright. Fix Up, an absolute slapper.

I just can’t enjoy UK rap. Always just sounds funny to me

Meh.

4.3/5 This is great? Best Track: Sittin' Here

- beats were honestly fire - the rest of this was not my thing tbh, tough to finish

- it was solid at first - but it quickly felt cheesy - I just don’t love British rap

Jezebel is Panini for Millennials Best Song: Brand New Day Worst Song: Wot U On?, Live O

A bit rough and messy, but enjoyed some beats

Dizzee Rascal has his own particular sound, which I enjoyed in the first half, but there are so many tracks that are somewhat chaotic though similar. 3.3 stars rounded down.

Not a fan. I like hip hop but Dizzee Rascal isn't my style. The song Bonkers by Dizzee, which is not on this album, is good and fun to listen to. Too bad that this album didn't deliver like that song.

0.5 no one with this thick a British accent should be allowed to rap

There is something worse than gangsta rap. Gangsta rap with a cockney accent. This was hilariously cliched and stunningly bad.

No, thanks.

The British accent sounds more musical than an American accent to me. I like it for a while, and then about half-way in, it becomes annoying. Favorite song: fix up look sharp

I mean its ok, but not the best rap/hiphop artist/album

If I made a list a list of 2001 albums I needed to hear before I died, this wouldn’t be on the list.

19/03/2024 - 21/11/2024

Unique with a nice flow. Not as obnoxious as a lot of US rap gets.

I think this is a fun pallet cleanser. 4s.

rap.

Not really into this album. Nothing about this was pleasing to listen to. Could barely get through it.

Just really not my kind of music

not capable of listening to british rap

Nobody puts Dizzee Rascal in the corner...oh, wait.

Fire. I do feel that grime as a genre is somewhat unique in that it started at the high point, rather than building to it. When this came out, it really was a breath of fresh air. There was nothing out there that sounded like it and it wasn't merely aping the American sound.

Schrecklich. Das war kaum zum Aushalten. Das mag ich mir nicht noch einmal anhören.

Ugh!

Dizzy has a lot of skill. It was great to hear this album and get the perspective

Legendary

I am not a fan of rap/hip hop, and I am sure this is influential for grime, but this is not for me. The overall production sounds good, but I found a lot of the beats really annoying and I did have to skip a few tracks. I also found this to be really distracting and hard to focus on work while it was playing. There are some good moments here are there, but this is my least favorite rap/hip hop album I've gotten yet. I am sure if you like this type of music it is really good, but it is not for me. 1.5/5

The production on this borders on corny/annoying at points, but I thought it was largely fun and inventive with good energy, and the jittery breakbeats and primitive growls absolutely paved the way for Skrillex and others to popularize dubstep like... seven whole years later. I also enjoyed Dizzee's rap performances, and enjoyed the contrast between the dark/anxious lyrics and the crazy production. 4 stars.

Solid little drill album. UK rap is always fun.

I’m not well versed in the Grime time scene, but I enjoyed this a ton. Nasty productions, and killer lyrics. Good shit.

The first grime record I ever listened to. Historically interesting.

I never got into Dizzee.

Grime Rap? EDM mixed with British Hip-Hop. Repetitive and brings nothing to the table.

Nope

Hadn't listened to this before - good fun - my favourite I Luv U 'Oh well'!

Ew

Not for me.

this is hot fire, burns up into a crisp after the 1st track. nothing else is worth mentioning.

Didn’t love it didn’t hate it

Rocking Meh

Too British for me

Interesting beats and flow, though a bit repetitive at times and grows abrasive after awhile.

Raw and unpolished, but remarkably creative for someone who produced when he was 17-19 years old. Not for everyone, and not totally for me, but Dizzee was pushing boundaries and shaping culture here. Could do with dropping a few tracks to make it a bit tighter, but like it or not, it's a British classic.

Mystically British album 1/5, I'll give it a 2 because I think if I wasn't thrown off by the accent I might be able to get behind this Sounds like a parody of rap music

Boy knows how to do it

Disjointed and disorienting like the first time I heard it 15 years ago

Outro disco de hiphop, né? Até tenta soar como trip-hop, mas fica cansativo.

I started on one. Skipped through seven more. Then cleaned my ears and brain out with Boston and Deep Purple. 1 star.

Rap with the British accent doesn't quite hit as hard. Almost sounds a little comical. Can't tell if its my crappy work headphones, but the mixing of the album seems out of whack, music is too loud and is distracting. Also not crazy about the heavy electronic sounding backing music.

It’s okay.

Nope.

Honestly, not my vibe to begin with but a little dull.

Garbage

This sort of rapping I can handle.

This album gave me so much as a teenager. I loved hip hop and rap, but was only really exposed to American artists. Suddenly I Luv U started being played on the radio and it blew my mind. It's not that the life it was describing was mine - I was from a small village more akin to Ambridge than London - but the sounds and the slang. Really fun, raw beats - so stark that not even any Americans on this website have managed to describe it as Brit Pop. The whole thing is just a pleasure to listen to again.

My first thought was that this feel like a generic 2010 album and then i saw that was 2003. maybe i'm not not that in touch with hip hop production but it feels ahead of it times. I barely register lyrics so i judge more on the melodic flow of the rap combined with the beat. I actually like the timbre British rap has. one thing that kinda sticks out to me is, if you wanna appear tough why stutter and rap like you are a middle schooler in a argument. Enjoyed it more than i expected but maybe it is because i'm more used to american hip hop and this feels fresh because i'm not that exposed to UK grime and Drill.

0 completely a shit album

"Boy in Da Corner" is the debut album by English rapper and producer Dizzee Rascal. The music on this album is categorized as grime which is a sub-genre of electronic music with elements of hip hop, jungle and dancehall. Yeah, that fits as well as hip hop. The producers on the album were Dizzee, Chubby Dread, Moulders, Mr. Cage, Taz and Vanguard. The album had widespread critical acclaim including winning the Mercury Prize. Commercially, it hit #23 in the UK. Electronic beats and oriental-sounding synth keys open "Sittin' Here." Dizzee is rapping watching things happen in his neighborhood around him (East London) as gunshot and siren noises ring out in the background. We get the picture. "I Luv U" has a robotic female voice repeating I Luv U in the intro. More electronic beats and hypnotic synth sounds. Dizzee rapping about guys and girls going out with everyone. I think a comment on youth culture. It's been awhile since I came across the name Billy Squier. On "Fix Up, Look Sharp," the drum beat and vocals sample Squire's "The Big Beat." A good old fashion rap braggadocio song. "Jus' a Rascal" starts with a musical intro with the group of people singing "he's just a rascal." It continues as a chorus. It's pepped up. It's fun. Some more rap braggadocio. Things slow down on "Jezebal." Piano keys and what sounds like an actual drum. Dizzee tells the story of neighborhhod teenager Jezebal who sleeps around and had two girl babies whom he expects to repeat the cycle. The album comes full circle ending with some more oriental-sounding synth keys in "Do It!" At 18, Dizzee feels trapped as he'll never get out of his neighborhood but offers hope in "sleep tight and everything will be alright." This is a unique and very good album. It's both in the hip hop and electronic music genres. It's busy; there's multiple voices and sounds. The beats are varied. The synths are hypnotic at times. Overall, it's both a fun and a serious album. The underlying theme is being stuck in his East London neighborhood and all its issues. A solid recommendation.

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First time through I never get rap lyrics, but the mix is great

My god. This needs to stop. It was such a chore to listen to this drivel.

Nope

This one isn't for me but I respect it and the style. Might grow on me with more listens.

This was… interesting, to say the least. Oftentimes you can pinpoint when a record dropped through the production alone but that is definitely not the case here. The beats are so weird, toeing the line between incredibly amateur, simple boom bap type beats and futuristic, experimental stuff that wouldn’t be out of place on a modern Danny Brown or JPEGMAFIA record. I wouldn’t say it’s my favorite rap album, and im definitely not a huge fan of grime considering I barely understood the lyrics on most of this, but I can definitely see how this might have influenced a lot of artists in the rap / grime scene. The beats and flows were definitely the highlight here for me, and this is one I’ll definitely be thinking about for a while.

Grime does not really interest me, but there is definite talent and skill here. Not something I would actively seek out, but I wouldn't turn it off either.

Not my thing

couldn't find anywhere to stream this in full. something to it, very impressive for a teenager, I can't get into it at all because London accents sound so silly

This is just Too British For Me.

I FF’d/listened to about 8 of the 15 tracks. A couple of the songs were better than I expected… especially the one with… Billy Squier!… but still, not very listenable to me. Most of the tracks are just repetitive rap. Don’t think I’ll listen to this one through. I will never fully get nor appreciate this genre. But that’s on me. 🤷🏻‍♂️

I just don't think this would be on the list of an American wrote this list. I feel there are better rappers in America. I know I'm probably biased though. Probably a cultural thing...

Rap is not my thing.

Very weird. Kinda like it.

Beats sounded like a kid on an ipad made them. Most was unlistenable.

Not for me. Got about 1/2-way through.

Hardcore Rap

Dizzee has always been a rapper that I appreciate the talent, but not for me. The rhyme scheme and cadence of his lyrics is disjointed and I don’t enjoy it. The off-beat backing tracks are interesting but don’t make me want to dance. He’s a talented musician but still a 3/5 for me.

Worst

Crazy that this was his first album. It is a fully formed, british rap album. The lyrics are poetic, angry, and imaginative. I saved the parts of this album I would listen to again.

Would not listen again.

This album didn’t really stand out to me particularly it’s not that but it’s not that great.

British rapper. Kind of hard to understand, but fun enough.

Couldn't finish this. Maybe it's my own deficiency but I've yet to hear a grime song I genuinely enjoy

Ah, grime. Britain’s questionable contribution to hip hop. Can’t say I enjoyed this much - hard to understand and whack beats. Kind of funny.

I know little to no rap outside of America but I thought this was pretty good. Some creative and dark beats on here

Not very good, but not my genre

It’s just hard for me to take British rap seriously with the accents. I know that’s unfair but it sounds so corny to me. Some absolutely fire beats though.

Oh man. I now understand that Dizzee Rascal is quite well respected as a pioneer of grime. But I'm not sure I like or get grime that much.. I could appreciate it on some level and I get it tells stories of a more gritty side of the UK. But I did overall find the music irritating. Soz. Fix up look sharp is a great throw back though

I feel very old saying this but, what is this Dizzee Rascal saying? For me you need to be able to hear and understand rap like this, surely that's the whole point, the lyrics need to be really good and say something, but with this I just can't follow it so I just lose interest very quickly. People always say that grime is all about the gritty UK and whatnot, and I want to listen to that but I just can't follow it. I guess grime just isn't a genre for me but I'm glad that I've been made to give it a good go here. Sometimes you just need to accept something is for the kids and the important bit is to be able to look across to them and think 'I'm glad they're having a good time'

It was fine

pretty cool, interesting beats. 3.6.

Oooooh my god, I hated every second I could handle. Did not finish.

Was this really 2003? Clearly sets up Dizzee as a musical force, and while I much prefer both Tounge N Cheek and The Fifth, this is where it began. Dizzee is an incredible artist, and this is an incredible album, establishing grime as a genre. Given fact that the music industry was stuffed to the gills with bomboclaat execs more worried about the imaginary trillions they were losing from than they were about finding and promoting new talent, I'm genuinely surprised they picked him up. But I'm very glad someone in the music industry was doing their job.

Bäm 💯

Yes i did like this when i was 16-19. Revisiting this was tough. I enjoyed some songs but it ran too long and the album is so sharp and piercing to the ears it hurts sometimes. That being said. İt's much better than Moby.

I like the raw energy and the DIY sound of this album. Dizzee is so young and hyped up, I don't think he can ever recapture that. Great artwork, too.

a hard listen but i get the vision. it’s kinda like the garden but painfully british. loses a star for the accent.

I liked this less than I expected to. The two big singles and Hold Ya Mouf are good fun songs and stand out from the rest, but otherwise, the lack of light and shade just got a bit abrasive. He's clearly a master at what he does, but it feels like this was the album that he made before he realised that you're also allowed to have a bit of fun.

Not my usual style. Didn’t do much for me.

This wasn't really my style. I could listen to it but I would never listen again.

Not for me

I can't say I expected to get 2 rap albums in a row, but I'll take it I guess. Anyway, Boy In Da Corner is a weird album. It was one of the first big albums of the Grime genre, and I can't say I'm the biggest fan of it. It's not bad or anything. I just don't really get it myself. The rapping is decent enough. I don't really know if the accent works for rapping though. The beats aren't bad. They're well made. The writing isn't the best, but it's good at times. Surprisingly enough, I did somewhat start to warm up to it a bit by the end. That took a while though, as this album does drag quite a bit. Overall, I kind of understand why this was put on the list, but I wouldn't really recommend it myself. It just isn't my thing. High 2/5.

There is a track called Hold Ya Mouf, which I assume means Hold Your Mouth. Should’ve taken his own advice.

I have seen Mr Rascal on the BBC version of Never Mind the Buzzcocks, and been very impressed. And the fact that I have just listened to the whole of this album goes a long way to demonstrate just how much I wanted to find something positive to say about it. And like a toothless parrot I did succeed. There were some interesting sounds used in some of these tracks, unfortunately on the whole it just epitomised the whole of this genre that is the only word I know of that begins with a silent 'c'. Yes this was definitely crap. Would give it 0 if I could.

Dreadful init

I should hate this. Its Grime apparently. I have no idea what he is saying. Its probably a blessing. I like the arythmic beats and the sample arrangements going on in some of these songs such as ' I Luv U' and '2 Far'. The beats on 'Fix Up' are great too. I've heard far worse than this, I wonder if it is because he is British that I don't find it alienating/ irritating? My take out from this is the drum machine and bass patterns going on underneath the rest, which I like and can appreciate. If this is an introduction to Grime, then it isn't a bad one. A mid 2.

I actually love the beats and aggression, however the rapping and length of the album hinders.

Initially I started listening to this on laptop speakers, then I thought better of it, assuming "it'll sound much better in headphones". I am here to tell you it sounds the same. There seems to be exactly nothing beneath the surface here. I'll admit there's some cool stuff rhythmically here and there. I did listen to the whole thing, but by halfway through I couldn't wait for this album to be over.

Just couldn't get into it.

Don't love most rap/hip-hop, but this was good stuff.

Those were definitely some sounds.

Rap and EDM fusion should have been enough to sell this to me but it turned out it took two parts of both genres that I am not a fan of

Sorry I don't know if it was my mood or what but I could not stand this mans voice. Didn't make it past the second song

Imposible escucharlo. 1

Ok, I suspect this was a seminal album with nothing ever like it being heard before but it's really not my music. Whilst I appreciate the vocal talent Dizzee has (had?), I didn't find the music that surrounded his voice to be particularly well produced or inspiring. I guess this is all about the tempo, the 'bristishness', and the particular street/urban/alienated community experience. I get it, I understand why it woudl be so ground breaking and popular, but it's not my music.

Det är galet dåligt men samtidigt hittade jag någon form av musik i några låtar. Tack vare det så kravlar skivan upp till 2.

Not really my cup of tea. Since it's my birthday I'm going to skip over this one and play yesterday's album again instead.

This is just not my bag

Listened to 2.3 songs. Couldn’t do more.

I like the creative rhythms and the way some of their words rhyme differently, but the lyrics and style, not totally my thing

One of my all time favourite album

It was a bit refreshing to hear British rap. It's not something I have ever listened to before. However, the Grime music genre isn't for me.

I've gotten a bunch of British rappers this far only about 50 in. I have been enjoying this one the most. It's funkier and more fun. I'm not devaluing Lil Simz because her music is purposefully aggressive to get her message across. I thought that was great too. But for everyday listening - this was fun.

Couldnt really hear what he was saying but the beats were intriguing

Ew. Random beats with random sounds, creating a random cacophony of sounds that go on for the entire songs without changing. I try to keep an open mind, but I can't imagine ever listening to this again.

Well now I have a few less brain cells and i'm nearly an hour closer to death. I will always look back and regret this time I spent listening to this drivel.

The people who give this album 1 star reviews don’t understand how impressive an accomplishment it is, especially since he released it as his debut at only 18 years old. The album is unique and he sets himself out as a name in grime, with a sound and voice that can’t be replicated.

its not bad but towards the 2nd half I was just waiting for it to end

Just a Rascal is alright, but possibly just for nostalgia reasons. The rest is very dated and Jezebel just made me angry.

Total banger. What a massive sound for 2003.

Still slaps

An hour before this generated, I used "Fix Up Look Sharp" in an Instagram story about sharpening my knives for Thanksgiving prep. Absolutely a wild coincidence! Excited to listen to this one now. Banger after banger! I love the drippy, trippy electronic beats and the real driving intensity of his rapping. It's wild that he self produced this between the ages of 16 and 19, it's sounds fantastic and the beats still feel very fresh.

The kind of music that someone with a lobotomy couldn't even have liked. I cannot stress enough the utter garbage this album was. And what's more insulting, yes... insulting, is that this made the 1001 list but not other 90s hip hop classics. I'm seriously thinking that this is the worst album I've heard yet, and I'm 700+ albums deep at the time of writing. 0/10.

I'm sorry I cannot take British rap / grime music seriously

Not a fan of this type of rap

Couldn't finish it. Not for me

By all accounts. I feel like I should like this quite a lot. But. It's not really doing it for me. DRs later stuff is much more up my alley. This carnival ride is still quite a lot of fun though

Absolute nostalgia trip for Goof, less so for Dork. Should be acknowledged as a hugely pioneering album from grime and full of absolute bops, especially Fix Up Look Sharp.

34/100

Good skills from Dizzee here. 3.5 stars

Maybe could have been 3 stars as I was nodding my head a lot but all the misogyny put me off

not really into this

Is this music?

I was expecting to hate this a lot more than I thought. Maybe it's the novelty of the British accents that adds a bit of charm and makes it seem more amusing than anything. Maybe it's a nice respite from the other rap on this album that hasn't aged as well. I mean I feel like some of this hasn't aged well either but the British accents make it seem less offensive?

nope

Decent for what it is, I enjoyed the bits where I couldn't make out what he was saying, didn't really hold my attention though

Apparently and according to Wikipedia, the genre for this album is Grime, but to me it could be Hip-Hop or Rap. Not too bad.

not my kind of grime

This was an interesting one. I'm not too familiar with UK rap, so this was basically my first exposure to it. The beats remind me of some nine inch nails-inspired stuff. Very gritty and borderline abrasive. Not typical of a rap record. I can see how this album influenced a lot of the newer sounds we hear today in UK rap and even spilling over into NY rap. I wasn't really a huge fan of this sound tho. That being said, I'm glad I listened to this.