dubstep might be less exciting in some ways, but the basic quality control seems a lot higher, and where grime really wants to count - vocal tunes- it still doesnt have much quality control. it reminds me of what someone once wrote about why they preferred the stooges to so much punk, cos punk had more ambition and energy than actual ability, sometimes i think something similar about grime. .
Skream tried to tell me the same thing once when he was in Toronto last, and I don't agree. The quality of vocal tracks coming out are still fairly high -- in my experience as a DJ I've never had a period where I felt there weren't any good grime tracks out. Listen to any grime show on Rinse FM or to Logan's show, and the quality is still there.
Skream was talking to me about dubstep having higher production values than grime, which may have its merits to people who are concerned with the techy-aspects of music, but still I would still rather skank out at a grime rave than a dubstep rave any day of the week.
I like dubstep. A lot of it is pants though, high production levels and all. The reason dubstep is bigger than grime right now is because it was able to reach out to middle-class, white 20somethings, i.e. the ones that will nerd out and get really into following the scene closely, and hearing every track. No disrespect to this massive at all, this demographic has typically been the sureshot for making any genre successful. I am, after all, one of these people on the grime side of the coin.
So I like, and don't like Semtex's mixtape. It's good because he rounded up a lot of the tracks that make the genre endearing, and though they are old, it doesn't so much matter because the mainstream public doesn't know what's old or what's new. I don't like it, because like many others, he's only perpetuating the idea that there are no good tunes out right now.