Chase and Status - Tribe

The Guardian 60

(MTA/Universal)

London duo Chase and Status have long been a paradox. They thrash out meat-and-two-veg drum’n’bass and brostep for North Face-wearing teens, and have written for the likes of Rihanna, but also have enough cachet on the dance music scene to attract a variety of cross-genre collaborations on this fourth album. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it feels like at least three projects haphazardly packaged as a single unit.

There’s lots of good stuff: the dancehall-flecked Big Man Skank and the contributions from grime heavyweight Kano, rising soul singer Tom Grennan and rap crew Section Boyz, to name but a few. And then there’s the clunky: Craig David’s by-the-numbers garage on Reload, and extremely bland features from the likes of Blossoms and Slaves, offering a poundstore Prodigy impression on Control. Plus, Emeli Sandé-featuring Love Me More, which, minus the breakbeats, is pure Radio 2.

The Guardian 40

(Virgin EMI)

Subtlety and nuance rarely appear on dance producers Saul Milton and Will Kennard’s mood board. Their chief aim here appears to be to bludgeon the listener into submission, by awkwardly welding dated drum’n’bass backdrops on to songs; aping the Prodigy, as on the truly abysmal Slaves collaboration Control; or lazily rehashing their former glories on the bland Emeli Sandé single, Love Me More. Things improve considerably when the production and guest coalesce, typically when rappers are involved. The pair create the perfect soundbed for Section Boyz’s manic energy on Know About We, while the furious NRG is matched by Novelist’s head-spinning delivery. Overall, though, a missed opportunity.