Roots Manuva Meets Wrongtom - Duppy Writer

Although strictly speaking, this 'new' album from British hip-hop mainstay Rodney 'Roots Manuva' Smith classifies as a remix album, it never feels like one. Founded on the considerable production nous of collaborator Wrongtom — Hard-Fi's in-house DJ and some time remixer for the likes of Jay Bharadia and Odd Nosdam — choice cuts from Manuva's catalogue are given a fresh lease of life as traditional dub, reggae and dancehall tracks. Ironically, it might just be one of Manuva's most consistent releases to date.

Under Wrongtom's guidance, the brooding Chin High from 2005's Awfully Deep becomes the jaunty, digi-dub of Chin Up, while 1999's Big Tings Gwidarn becomes the highly skankable Big Tings Redone. A new track, Jah Warriors with Ricky Ranking, bolsters the overall freshness of the release, with Mr. Manuva being ever salient on the mic; rhyming with the 'boisterous exuberance' you'd expect from a bonafide legend of the contemporary UK hip-hop scene.