DPF – It’ll Never Catch On LP [Son Records]

Anyone who compares DPF to Eminem is lazy, has ears of cloth and no concept of world geography. Now that's off my chest I'll continue. 'It'll Never Catch On' has the sort of self deprecating title that is actually just realism although this should receive a superb reaction in the Hip Hop world. You'd better just open up your mind and not write it off immediately because it's from East Anglia, UK.

DPF is a master of quotables, after a couple of listens lines such as "Rumour has it if you don't masturbate once a day / Over pages of naked ladies you'll become gay" will leave you itching for the relevant social occasion to drop them into conversation. If there was such a thing, DPF would probably have an MA in hook writing too. Nearly every track has a chorus that penetrates – "I wish I had one of those faces / Y'know the type of faces that goes places" or "Rap this up, move on, move out / get a better view, get ahead of you, what you gotta do…". Song structure is a strong point; the refrains are obvious yet not out of place; it never sounds like a yawn-inducing rap-a-thon.

Mr. Law and Tommy Tempa do a good range of flavoursome beats; it's nice to hear producers dip into French accordion music, Ragtime Blues, rainforest Samba (with zoo noises) and Flamenco when they get creative. A lot of the beats have a comical, light hearted feel that match DPF's innately amusing way of saying things. Law and Tempa prove that there's more to producing that sampling old soul and funk records.

DPF uses 'Rumours' and 'What If' to play with words and sentences in order to say the abnormal, which makes for fresh listening. He experiments with flows on 'So Sophisticated', 'Hoo Rockers' and 'Bigg 'Un' whereas tracks like 'What Can I Say' and 'Keith' are examples of originality within classic rap templates. All tracks have DPF's own brand of humour as a stamp of uniqueness, whether it's delivered through a story or a put down, it's there and to be honest Hip Hop needs jokes, it's meant to be fun. Without voicing it, DPF says 'lighten up' to all those too serious rappers out there.

Certified Bangers: 'What Can I Say', 'Move On, Move Out', 'Rumours' & 'So Sophisticated' (hard to choose a few though!)
Top Lyrics: 'I'd still be rapping if I knew that I was whack at it" (DPF, without actually saying "I'm dope" says "I'm dope" – it's the "if" that does it!).

By: Aidan Severs | http://certifiedbanger.blogspot.com

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