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Hardcore
Dancehall Volume 2 (Victory World, 2003)
The sequel no one wanted is finally here!
One "hardcore" collection was OK, but do we really need another
(particularly since these tracks are all recycled and 3+ year old)? Frankly, I find this one even more useless than the
first one (cover art not withstanding),
which was decent if you didn't already have the songs on it.
Once
again, the purpose of this compilation is to pound you with hard-hitting,
slackness-strewn dancehall music, and to this end, Volume 2 is successful.
As with the first, none of these songs are really bad -- and I
didn’t even find the lyrics terribly off-putting (perhaps my sensibilities
have calloused over after being rubbed raw so many times), the most annoying
probably being Delly Ranks' ardent stance against cunnilingus in "Wha Mi
Hear" (way to take a stand on the vital issues facing today's youth). However, it's all so terribly average, and more so
it's all so old. Again as with
the first volume, this one basically culls tunes from the vaults of bawdy
dancehall specialists JamDown Records and slaps them together in a haphazard
mix. Now, JamDown isn't exactly
Trojan, with hordes of music that's long been out of print or unreleased; as
such, you can easily find these tracks on compilations released between 1998 to
2000, such as Dancehall Vibes, Ghetto Slam,
Strictly Reggae, Ruff Neck, Dancehall
Daze, Dancehall Hits, and Dancehall
Xplosion '99 (and you can actually find Cutty
Ranks' "Wuk Dem Hard" on Hardcore Dancehall!)
The best of
this bunch include Bounty Killer's "Last Night,"
Lexxus' "Who," and "14 Shooter" by Don Diego & Polly Famous.
I suppose you could consider the Hardcore Dancehall series as The
Best of JamDown Records, but who the hell wants that? Note: The track order is a big ol' cluster fuck, with cuts
2 through 8 mixed up randomly and 11 and 12 reversed from what is listed on the
album. Note Note: Zoom T is in fact
Zumjay, if you care.
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