albums and tracks

Editor's rating

Upon first listen, some dismissed Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip's'Thou Shalt Always Kill' as a new version of Baz Luhrmann's utterlywoeful 'Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)', aimed squarely atironically-coiffed Shoreditch idiots.

Repeated hearings actuallyrevealed the duo's debut single to be a lyrically dextrous celebrationof independent thinking and a hilarious condemnation of lazybandwagon-jumping. It also included arguably the greatest line of 2007:"Thou shalt not question Stephen Fry."

Although it became analt-anthem in spite of itself, 'Thou Shalt...' could have easily been thelast eager fans heard of Essex MC Pip and production ace Le Sac, wereit not for their abilities behind microphone and mixing desk.

Pip, the man with the densest, most imposing beard in pop, has a formidable set of rhymes that delight throughout Angles.On 'Development', he praises Mos Def for rhyming the alphabet, before amid-song beat switch sees him rap the periodic table to hilarious andexhilarating effect.

This smart spitting, redolent of a suburbanSkinnyman or a more long-in-the-tooth Mike Skinner, is used toeffectively elicit poignancy on 'Tommy', and most notably on'Magician's Assistant': while a moody soundscape sounds like a scarystagger away from consciousness, Pip chats about self-harm. The resultis a better anti-suicide ode than REM's 'Everybody Hurts'.

LeSac's production highlights include cutting Dizzee Rascal grime beatsinto 'Fixed', meaty trance throbs on the malevolent shoplifting taleof the title track, and his inspired use of Radiohead's 'Planet Telex'on 'Letter From God To Man'. It's to his credit there's as much deftimagination in the music as there is in Pip's lyrics.

Few couldhave expected this album to include more than a couple of passablesongs on the back of what seemed like a novelty hit. That Angles is worthy of careful, repeated listens is as pleasant a surprise as a hangover-free Saturday.

Lou Thomas