RUP - Rup On Zebra - 2007 - Album review

RUP - Rup On Zebra - 2007 - LP Review
HIGHLIGHTS: Brace Yourself/ Step/ King Cnut (remix)/ Rollin'/ Angels and Devils
SOUNDBITE: Guess what? I can split space with a piss-take/ And when I'm shit-faced I paint pictures with the mist mate!
RATING: 5/5
The title of this initially conjured up visions of either inter-species love or of South London rapper Rup (pronounced Roop) being addicted to an interestingly named new street drug - though disappointingly it actually turns out to be a reference to his record label. Nevertheless with this man's perverted sense of humour I doubt he'd shy away from making either claim just for the hell of it and indeed the notion of Rup literally on a Zebra is the subject of a diverting skit on the LP. This was originally meant to be a very late review of the 4 track vinyl LP taster of the same name but guess what? I liked it so much I bought the album. On CD. It's rudely not available on vinyl and therefore a sad indictment of the hip-hop times we live in. ("CD? Yo - Monkeyboxing you caveman - we're all on mp3 now". " Don't give me any crap about mp3 you cheeky young fool - I convert all my vinyl to mp3s - I'm not a luddite.") But I digress - initially it was Rollin's tale of urban misbehaviour over a full-on funk groove and furious scratching that caught my attention, but there's a real range of styles on here. Basically Rup's been around for a while now and he's thrown together a load of cuts - some old, most new - on an LP for the first time. There's the horns, wind instruments and a more ponderous break which slow things down for the heavier remix of King Cnut with Rup rhyming (as the title suggests) about how he's the don with help from homies Koaste, Dr Syntax and DJ Manipulate. There's the moody Alice Coltrane sampling Do You Know? and the staccato beats of Rampage plus more phat and funky shit - like Brace Yourself's minimal piano and killer b-line. Some tracks like Timequake and Where Are You? are less immediately accessible but there's at least enough hooks to shake a stick at on this LP and you may even, as I did, find yourself joining in with the "Angels in heaven and devils in hell" loop on Angels and Devils in a camp pantomime dame falsetto. Step has the best lyrics I've heard in ages on it and it's synth washes suit Rup reflecting on the perils of stoned philosophy "I've got the key to life's meaning but I've lost my fucking keyring/ I think I left it in Len's car along with about ten bar". Admittedly Rup's themes are not entirely unexplored in hip-hop and you may not immediately warm to his 'cheeky young London chancer's' voice but those shortcomings (if indeed that's what they are) are easily compensated for by the pluses. Overall - wicked production, humourous delivery of some ultra sharp lyrical science and the man packs the beats to back it. I'm in. "South Bank! The South, South Bank!.."
Out now.
Listen to Rup - Rup On Zebra
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