Album Review: Roll Deep - X

Success, for some, is like cocaine – a little is never enough. And this seems to be the story with (ex-) grime pioneers Roll Deep. The sprawling London crew which birthed the likes of Dizzee Rascal, Wiley and Tinchy Stryder began life pushing that dirty, bassy pirate radio-tower block sound and held fast for many years, until their last album, 2010's Winner Stays On. That set included a couple of very American-sounding pop-dance-R&B experiments, Green Light and Good Times, both of which reached number one in the UK. The opening of their latest album, X, suggests the crew has changed direction again, Everybody Reach Up, an electrifying, note-perfect remake of the early '90s breakbeat/piano rave sound. Yet the second track, and every track after that brings the depressing realisation that the crew, in a effort to capitalise on their previous success, have created an album almost entirely made up of clones of those smash singles; cheesy 15-year-old trance riffs, big room 4/4s, super-slick girly hooks and (mostly) dumbed-down party rhymes. Think FloRida meets Labyrinth. Roll Deep have locked on to a new formula and as far as pop-dance goes, X is as polished as anything on the Nova playlist.

On the very rare occasions that the crew attempt to rediscover their grime roots (I Need A Second To Breathe) the moment is ruined with another Hot 30 hook; better indications of where they are now are Can't Wait For The Weekend, remaking Michael Gray's 2004 smash, and Your True Colours, which, yes, annihilates Cyndi Lauper. An all-out grab for cash, X is a perfectly-executed pop album that could well blow up. Sadly though, there's very little deep about the way this crew roll anymore.