"hype hype" picked up by smoove / MOS

hint

party record with a siren
was surprised to find this out this morning. well - not surprised that it's been picked up, cos it's clearly a strong track with crossover potential, but it seems like it's been around for a very long time and readily available.

do you think it's a good thing that these tracks float around on the underground circuit for months before being released by a mainstream label? I wonder if perhaps it's detrimental, cos the buzz may well have come and gone by the time it hits the shelves.

or do you think the purists / underground heads would generally turn their noses up at a track if it were released straight away on a major without being built up on a white label / indie level first? perhaps this is the best method to ensure that the scene stays healthy on all levels - the pirates and raves get stuff upfront and stay fresh, then the majors step in and the artists get a chance to push the big tracks to a wider audience later on.

would be nice to think that the majors are looking to develop these artists into internationally successful album acts, rather than just cherry-picking the big "anthems" for one-off single deals.
 

ambrose

Well-known member
its detrimental in the sense that the market for grime is generally those who are also tuned into the underground, so the people who would buy it have hard it for years before it ever comes out as a proper release
 

mms

sometimes
i think its good, that record is brilliant and it might attract more people to the rest of it, those that want more will look for it .
i pointed some out of towners to uptown the other day when they were checking out the measley garage section in hmv, they loved it ..
 

hint

party record with a siren
mms said:
i think its good, that record is brilliant and it might attract more people to the rest of it, those that want more will look for it .
i pointed some out of towners to uptown the other day when they were checking out the measley garage section in hmv, they loved it ..

yeah - that's what it's all about.

there seems to be a definite mindset in the garage / grime community nowadays that holds aspirations of achieving real long term success. I suppose it's the legacy of 90's hip hop - most of these young grime MCs and producers will have watched it take over the industry, the charts, the radio, the world...

you hear MCs namecheck jay z a lot - someone who got knocked back from the majors but ended up setting up on his own and taking over without compromising his music.

makes you wonder what stage we'd be at now with the uk underground if so solid could have held it down long enough to really make the most of the platform they were given. I imagine crews like roll deep could step up and go down the wu tang route if they have enough motivation and dedication - signing collectively whilst retaining the rights for future solo releases by various crew members.
 

Logan Sama

BestThereIsAtWhatIDo
Remember that with Pow and Hype Hype, they were only available for sale on vinyl. And most of the listening crowd in London aren't actually DJ's.

I thought as well for a moment that maybe everyone in London had had enough of Pow by the time it came out, but it got to number 11 in the national charts and 51% of sales came from inside London.

Hype Hype will break the top ten spot with the level of mainstream support it is getting.
 

cooper

Well-known member
those of you who have been tuned in since the 2-step days may remember Locked On - under Andy Lewis they made a practice of signing tunes that were big on white (monsta boy - "sorry" springs to mind) and re-releasing them with extra remixes. did quite well for themselves and had their big coup when they signed The Streets.

there's to be a Wonder rmx. on the MOS release, i'm told. real half-time menace like you'd never hear from Sticky. edit: it's on the page with the video link above.
 
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hint

party record with a siren
Logan Sama said:
Remember that with Pow and Hype Hype, they were only available for sale on vinyl. And most of the listening crowd in London aren't actually DJ's.

I thought as well for a moment that maybe everyone in London had had enough of Pow by the time it came out, but it got to number 11 in the national charts and 51% of sales came from inside London.

a good point (about CDs) and an interesting fact (sales of pow in london) - cheers for that.

you read things like plasticman saying that pulse x probably sold about 10,000 and you wonder whether hitting that level of sales for the big tracks on an underground level means that there's not much more that the majors could bring to the table...

but then I think of the international market, videos, ringtones, proper publishing deals... this is the stuff that's beyond the reach of your average producer or MC starting out and they're the things that established labels can provide I guess.
 

Logan Sama

BestThereIsAtWhatIDo
Pulse X and Eskimo were instrumentals, and I can't remember the last time an INstrumental track charted highly from any genre in the UK.
 

Diggedy Derek

Stray Dog
I love this tune- it's great it's getting a proper release. I think it'll do well, as Logan says most people don't buy 12s at 7 quid a shot, and it's good value to get a CD with the original and that great remix on.

If the tunes are this good, I don't think it matters too much if they're released a few months late.
 

ambrose

Well-known member
hey maybe it sounded like i was saying that the release of "hype hype" was detrimental to the scene, i dindt mean that! i was syaing that the long delys between the appearance of a tune on white/on radio etc and its eventual release etc is detrimental.
 

Logan Sama

BestThereIsAtWhatIDo
The long delays between the tune being on the underground and them being commercially released are because tunes are on radio about 6 months before they even get signed, let alone have a release date announced.

Hype Hype was finished last June.

Pow was finished last February.

Wot Do U Call It was made in 2002
 

hint

party record with a siren
Logan Sama said:
Pulse X and Eskimo were instrumentals, and I can't remember the last time an INstrumental track charted highly from any genre in the UK.

yeah - sorry... don't think I clarified enough.

my point was if pretty stripped-down hardcore tracks like pulse x are selling 10,000... surely the big vocal tracks are topping that on the underground level at the moment?

I was just thinking out loud really... cos you see drum and bass tracks hit the top 40 still - the big underground releases on labels like ram, I mean. all they need is a barcode, perhaps some artwork, decent distribution (to HMVs around the country and the like) and some of these unsigned / independent grime 12"s could do the same, I'm sure. would be good to see it happen for those who aren't lucky enbough to get picked up by majors.
 

Logan Sama

BestThereIsAtWhatIDo
Pulse X and Eskimo was 3 years ago.

The biggest tunes are lucky to sell 2,000 units on the underground nowadays.
 

mpc

wasteman
people say pulse x sold 10 000 but that was over a period of about a year or more. i know it's still loads, but that still wouldn't be enough to trouble the charts.
 
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