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After revisiting their roots with 2019's RTRN II JUNGLE, an accompanying Fabric mix, and tour dates surrounding them, British dance duo Chase & Status resumed the guest-heavy, multi-genre format of their highest charting albums. What Came Before, their sixth studio full-length, is a mixture of rave throwbacks, radio-friendly dance-pop, and the toughness of U.K. drill, all with drum'n'bass futurism as its guiding light. Opener "Don't Be Scared" spikes dubstep-tempo beats with rave stabs, bubbling percussion, and squelching acid, along with patient vocals by frequent collaborator Takura, who ends up sounding like Splinter, the sagely rat from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Following track "Go" leans closer to the sound of big beat-era Prodigy, with shuffling percussion and commanding synths leading the charge. The album dives into drum'n'bass with "Censor," which features Popcaan's smoother singing as well as IRAH's deep baritone ragga verses. Several tracks are basically pop songs with drum'n'bass rhythms ("Hold Your Ground" is practically an anthemic power ballad), and while they're well-produced, they're the most formulaic and least exciting parts of the album. "Run Up," on the other hand, is a visionary fusion of U.K. drill and hardcore breaks, with Unknown T's hyped-up vocals perfectly complementing the brash, booming bass. "When It Rains" is more dramatic, with BackRoad Gee delivering blunt street scenes over faint police sirens, then elevating to a heart-racing rhythm with a brassy, explosive bass tone. It seems like Chase & Status didn't want to go overboard and include too much aggressive material on their album, but their forays into drill are easily the most impressive moments on What Came Before, and more of this hybrid style would have been welcome. Aside from the aforementioned tracks, there's a handful of enjoyable instrumentals throughout the album. The perky "5am" is the most celebratory of these, while "Consciousness" is a slightly jazzy ambient rinse-out, and "Forgive Dark" opens like something from Goldie's Timeless before progressing through glimmering, minimalist synth patterns and sharp, complex breaks.
© Paul Simpson /TiVo
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Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Takura Tendayi, ComposerLyricist - Takura, Vocals, FeaturedArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Popcaan, Vocals, FeaturedArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel - Andrae Sutherland, ComposerLyricist - Rob Macfarlane, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - IRAH, Vocals, FeaturedArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Ezra Bryant, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel - Clementine Douglas, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel - Rob Macfarlane, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Pip Millett, Vocals, FeaturedArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Georgia Willacy, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel - Rob Macfarlane, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Unknown T, Vocals, FeaturedArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Rob Playford, ComposerLyricist - Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel - Sean O'Keeffe, ComposerLyricist - Simon Colebrooke, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel - IRAH, Vocals, FeaturedArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Ezra Bryant, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel - BackRoad Gee, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel - Tyrese Ryan, ComposerLyricist - Ethan Holt, Vocals, FeaturedArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel - Jem Cooke, Additional Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - IRAH, Vocals, FeaturedArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Ezra Bryant, ComposerLyricist - Jemma Victoria Cooke, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Will Kennard, Programming, AssociatedPerformer - Saul Milton, Programming, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Kennard, ComposerLyricist - Chase & Status, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2022 Chase & Status
Album review
After revisiting their roots with 2019's RTRN II JUNGLE, an accompanying Fabric mix, and tour dates surrounding them, British dance duo Chase & Status resumed the guest-heavy, multi-genre format of their highest charting albums. What Came Before, their sixth studio full-length, is a mixture of rave throwbacks, radio-friendly dance-pop, and the toughness of U.K. drill, all with drum'n'bass futurism as its guiding light. Opener "Don't Be Scared" spikes dubstep-tempo beats with rave stabs, bubbling percussion, and squelching acid, along with patient vocals by frequent collaborator Takura, who ends up sounding like Splinter, the sagely rat from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Following track "Go" leans closer to the sound of big beat-era Prodigy, with shuffling percussion and commanding synths leading the charge. The album dives into drum'n'bass with "Censor," which features Popcaan's smoother singing as well as IRAH's deep baritone ragga verses. Several tracks are basically pop songs with drum'n'bass rhythms ("Hold Your Ground" is practically an anthemic power ballad), and while they're well-produced, they're the most formulaic and least exciting parts of the album. "Run Up," on the other hand, is a visionary fusion of U.K. drill and hardcore breaks, with Unknown T's hyped-up vocals perfectly complementing the brash, booming bass. "When It Rains" is more dramatic, with BackRoad Gee delivering blunt street scenes over faint police sirens, then elevating to a heart-racing rhythm with a brassy, explosive bass tone. It seems like Chase & Status didn't want to go overboard and include too much aggressive material on their album, but their forays into drill are easily the most impressive moments on What Came Before, and more of this hybrid style would have been welcome. Aside from the aforementioned tracks, there's a handful of enjoyable instrumentals throughout the album. The perky "5am" is the most celebratory of these, while "Consciousness" is a slightly jazzy ambient rinse-out, and "Forgive Dark" opens like something from Goldie's Timeless before progressing through glimmering, minimalist synth patterns and sharp, complex breaks.
© Paul Simpson /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 13 track(s)
- Total length: 00:49:48
- Main artists: Chase & Status
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: EMI
- Genre: Electronic Dance
© 2022 Chase & Status ℗ 2022 Chase & Status
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