It was never going to be easy following up the original, Mercury Prize winning, live drum and bass concept. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that Roni Size has opted for a fairly radical departure from the groundbreaking 'New Forms', steering Reprazent into more uncompromising waters.
All this whilst still keeping the suits round the table at Mercury happy by dangling the "we could break America" carrot with star turns from Method Man, Zack De La Rocha and Rahzel.
The change is clear from the outset with 'In The Mode' sounding like an album made by an act that no longer feels the need to pamper its audience. Gone are the gently loping double bass grooves and feathery vocals, replaced by a feverishly paced percussive assault that challenges both vocalists and live instruments alike to keep up.
It's little surprise, then, that the motor-mouthed MC Dynamite emerges from this album as the Reprazent front man, giving character to the performance both live and on record, when Method Man et al aren't on the cut. Whether or not this is a good thing depends entirely on your take on his unique delivery, though first single 'Who Told You' shouldn't be used as a gauge on this count. This strange brew of stutteringly syncopated vocals and a thin drum and bass backing is something of an anomaly amongst the album as a whole.
The album's best tracks 'Out Of The Game', 'Heavy Rotation', 'Dirty Beats', 'Balanced Chaos' all share a tighter studio produced approach to drum programming - Reprazent have always had a tendency to pile on the messy drum patterns - and a brutal clarity that's reminiscent of the unique sound of Roni Size and Krust's label, Full Cycle.
'Ghetto Celebrity', the hyped collaboration with Method Man sounds like Roni's done his best with the DAT but with the beats clattering at a breakneck speed, Meth's rhymes never sounded so funk-less. Dynamite understands better how to flow on these beats and the end result of the collaboration with the Wu-Tang genius sounds little more than the average drum and bass hip-hop remix. 'In Tune With The Sound' on which the Roots' human beatbox Rahzel performs drum and bass rhythms, on the other hand, is one of best tracks on the album and shows just how much some elements of the US hip hop scene have embraced the genre as a kindred spirit.
'Dirty Beats' takes the sort of classical string arrangement that would give hip hop fans nightmares in the hands of Puff Daddy and turns it into an unlikely, but nonetheless, killer drum and bass tune. 'Out Of The Game' is surely the album's highlight, the frenzied hypnosis of Onnalee's vocal building and building to release the kind of drum and bass that makes an entire dance floor jump up in unison. Only try it at home if your stereo can handle the sub-bass otherwise you'll just be disappointed. Similarly, 'Centre Of The Storm', on which Rage Against The Machine's Zack De La Rocha contributes vocals ought to be a massive hit on the open-minded d&b dance floors, with or without the vocal.
The problem is that, like its predecessor, this album is too long - it should have been half the length with quality control much higher. But, nonetheless, it more than adequately answers those who thought that there was no life left in drum and bass.
