Ruff Sqwad

Woebot · May 9, 2005

Two Ruff Sqwad threads! I know, I know, but this lot are RED hot at the moment.

I was really disappointed by Guns and Roses Volume One, besides the stand-outs Move and Jam Pie (which has now been put out as a twelve) there was far too much mid-tempo hip-hop-ish stuff. About a couple of years ago I thought that was where Grime should go, well I was wrong....very wrong.

But since that time they've just put out a brace of complete classics: Bring It Down, Underground, Dont Trust. Loads of lovely sonic touches, the sawing sound of Dont Trust etc. Militant rapping. They're really delivering the goods now.

I see Ruff Sqwad as the Ying to Roll Deeps Yang. Theyre incredibly laid back, frosty cool compared to Roll Deep's atmosphere of total over-excitement (not dissing that obviously!).

originaldrum · May 9, 2005

i wanna hear more or find out more about their producers, it seems like you have to be columbo to find info

mpc · May 9, 2005

it's crazy how much good stuff ruff sqwad have released recently.

i've bought underground and anna.

i also need to get jam and pie for the wiley and jammer remixes.

i'm not going to buy 'don't trust' because i've already got 'ur love feels' on the pied piper 12"

Diggedy Derek · May 9, 2005

How many producers do they have- three or something? Rapid, Dirty Danger, someone else.

ryan17 · May 9, 2005

as someone who keeps a rather loose eye on the scene, i have to say (apart from guns and roses 1) their production crushes everyone elses. am looking forward to checking out those (recent) tracks ya'll just mentioned.

Noah Baby Food · May 9, 2005

Does anyone know who produced "Underground"? That beat is amazing, really really creative.

Yeah, loving Ruff Sqwad. I think they're production's kinda basic but ambitious, if you know what I mean, simple but orchestral.

hint · May 9, 2005

what's the vocal track on the flip of that "Jam Pie" 12" called? am I right in thinking it's a wiley remix?

Blackdown · May 9, 2005

there are obvious exceptions, but to me Ruff Sqwad, Dizzee, Target, Wonder, Danny Weed and some Wiley productions collectively make up a very coherant sonic direction in grime...

owen · May 9, 2005

the start of 'anna' is so fucking awesome, that onslaught of clatter....has anyone got any idea why its called 'anna' though? i thought it might have been an acrostic for a while but realised this was pretty tenuous.

simon silverdollar · May 9, 2005

just downloaded the anna/down video from prancehall and it's great: they look a lot cooler and more comfortable in front of cameras than other grime people. you can tell they've been hanging round with dizzee on video shoots.

Tactics · May 9, 2005

I used to loathe these guys (I still say 'Tings 'n' Boots is one of the worst songs I've ever heard - all straight FruityLoops presets) but even my cold, hard heart is starting to warm to them....

I used to say "they don't even mix down their vocals or tracks properly...." but im starting to think that they do this on purpose cos as soon as you hear some of their music you know its them immediately....

I do think they should quit the gun talk cos im almost certain them mans ain't holdin' no heat.....

p.s that Wiley remix (the tune with the tempo change) on that 'Jam Pie' vinyl is next level especially for garage....

Pearsall · May 9, 2005

Noah Baby Food said:
Does anyone know who produced "Underground"? That beat is amazing, really really creative.

That was Rapid. I love it. It sounds like a re-imagining of like '93 darkside ardkore in grime.

Diggedy Derek said:
How many producers do they have- three or something? Rapid, Dirty Danger, someone else.

I think Slicks has done a few of the tunes, but Dirty and Rapid do most of them.

h-crimm · May 10, 2005

rapid is really loving it in that anna video... i still think the scene could do with some more distinct visual style (i'm not saying its all_that_important

) i liked the videos but theres still too much of that fish eye lense rubbish.... not enough motorbike wheelies....

ruff sqwad always give the best interviews on DVDs too. i love the way tinchie can never make it...
the lord of the decks one with that free style is classic

they definitely approach things more cooly than roll deep but that lets them build up to something more intense when roll deep sometimes seem to just be bouncing around all over the place shakin a leg in the middle of the dance floor... which is fine of course
also glad they didnt get too over powered by the demands of fullfilling the promise of thier 16yr old offerings - misty cold and all that

did anyone ever work out who or what the relation is to xtc?

Woebot · May 10, 2005

mpc said:
it's crazy how much good stuff ruff sqwad have released recently.

i've bought underground and anna.

i also need to get jam and pie for the wiley and jammer remixes.

i'm not going to buy 'don't trust' because i've already got 'ur love feels' on the pied piper 12"

yeah it does hack me off a bit the way they're ALWAYS putting older tracks on the b-side. i think it must be intended as a generous gesture, padding out what would otherwise be a one-sided dubplate with an older track. they probably ought to sling them out without these older tracks. i suppose the temptation must be to wait untill they have another tune for the b-side, but that's what is putting them ahead of the pack at the moment, they're PUTTING OUT THE RECORDS.

was chatting to my colleague troy the other evening, and apparently wiley has 5 cds worth of material he's not putting out because he cant be arsed. you know, where is creeper volume 1????

Blackdown · May 10, 2005

if i was Relentless i would have said "look wiley, please dont flood your street audience with 5 underground mix CDs while we're trying to sell your overground album..."

bruno · May 18, 2005

thank you rhythm division!

these arrived in the mail yesterday: anna/down, underground/wide awake, jam pie +2 and don't trust +2. these tracks traveled 11649 kms over land and sea, defying gravity and turbulent weather (the part about the weather i'm making up).

the revelation for me is wide awake, a typically epic tune constructed out of almost nothing. with vocals it becomes coliseum-sized! [on a side note, i think a neat case could be made for antiquity being channeled through ruff sqwad, what with the stoicism, roman imagery, etc]

WOEBOT said:
yeah it does hack me off a bit the way they're ALWAYS putting older tracks on the b-side.

to me this is not a bad thing, the older releases are impossible to find. i'm listening to ur love feels for the first time on vinyl now, thanks to this policy of including older tunes. and i'm levitating.

bassnation · May 18, 2005

bruno said:
these arrived in the mail yesterday: anna/down, underground/wide awake, jam pie +2 and don't trust +2. these tracks traveled 11649 kms over land and sea, defying gravity and turbulent weather (the part about the weather i'm making up).

i listened to a clip of underground the other day, awesome. gutted that i don't have any cash to buy new music at the moment. its got the kind of flow and buzz that fly bi had.

originaldrum · Jun 16, 2005

i was diggin about some old recv'd files the other day and unearthed two old ruff squad gems "Ragga Muffins" & "These days", now i have questions though

who produced ragga muffins and who is the other crew (infamous crew" maybe...?

and these days is raw, who produced this, did it ever get released, i am diggin the vibe, pure vibes , furthest thing from overproduced i can think of, back on the top ten for now

any one know?

gumdrops · Jun 19, 2005

all i can say is that underground is WOW. my fave thing ive heard ruff sqwad do. that beat is just amazing.

Tha Megatron · Jun 21, 2005

Im a big fan of the Ruff Squad crew no doubt. Are they the youngest group in the scene who have things on lock down with al their tunes and stuff? I agree that "Underground" is a instant classic thats going to be around for a long time and remixed a few 100 times.
Glad i got the heads up on Gunz n Roses though...i was thinking of buying that mix cd but I was hoping to hear alot of their Grime tunes on there that are now out on vinyl and/or on dubplate.

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