Run Come Save Me

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
Given Roots Manuva's higher profile this time around, it was always on the cards that a new album might be a more commercial affair. But while Run Come Save Me is more accessible, it manages to retain the rawness that made its predecessor so addictive. When his self-produced, leftfield hip-hop debut Brand New Second Hand appeared in 1998, it was a clarion call for UK MCs to give up emulating US styles and focus on home-grown vibes. Three years and several collaborations later the renegade rapper is back with another adventure into wayward lyricism and maverick beat-work. "Witness (One Hope)" is a perfect example: an undoubtedly energetic and catchy tune, it also features plenty of sci-fi bleeps and quirky Manuva-style subject matter. Likewise, tracks such as "Bashment Boogie", "Join the Dots" (featuring West Coast MC Charlie 2na), "Kicking the Cack" and "Swords in the Dirt" all combine plenty of Roots-Fireggae! boom-bap with idiosyncratic production. There's some grittier, darker, dubbed-out business here too, and some totally off-the-hook rhyming on tracks like "Ital", "Hol' It Up" and "Stone the Crows". For those who thought Roots would never top his debut, welcome to an album that's bigger, brasher and badder all round. --Paul Sullivan

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Customer reviews

review by: date: 2008-01-10 rating:
-------swe~_S
As far as I'm concerned, "Witness" is THE British hip hop anthem; a razor blade-ripped cyclone of a track, ideal for Roots Manuva to rap about beans on toast over (yes, it's that lyrical reference again). The rest varies from quite good to good. "Ital Visions" and "Evil Rabbit" predate Burial by a good five years when it comes to transferring the atmosphere of a rain-soaked London night into sound; in fact, save for the intro, the whole 60 minutes is loaded with heaviness, with mechanical clicks, robosynths and even the occasional sample (there's like 2 on the whole record...), with a sound not unlike Cannibal Ox's The Cold Vein. Like that album, of course, this also should've been condensed, but I applaud Manuva for choosing such a threatening and distinctive style of production. Run Come Save Me avoids the biggest pitfalls of British rap in that it isn't trying to sound like it's from The States nor is it making a point of how British it is, it's just its own entity. Not the statement it could've been, but, if you want to venture past the American big-hitters and the usual underground suspects in the pursuit of a deeper hip hop experience, this thing's a must.

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review by: Yeah, its me! date: 2007-09-14 rating:
WOW - An English Mos Def - this guy is brilliant
"RCSM" is the first album by Roots Manuva that i have bought, and I thought it was just superb. Totally unique and incredibly daring in a time when rapping is stereotyped as just being about "guns n' pussy". Manuva disregards this with a simple wave of his hand and produces a rare and monumental masterpiece. If you havent heard him, you're missing out, trust me. Try this out and you will not be dissapointed.

Stand out tracks are "Join The Dots" with the wonderful Chali 2na, "Ital Visions" and "Witness (1 Hope)".

Buy it!

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review by: SMOKIN THE HIGHGRADE date: 2006-06-05 rating:
DUB HEADS DELIGHT
WOW WHAT MORE CAN I SAY ABOUT THIS ALBUM.RODNEY SMITH THE MAN IS A GENIUS!IF YOU LIKE YOUR MUSIC ON A DUB TIP THEN YOU WILL LOVE THIS.I GOT THIS WHEN IT FIRST COME OUT,BUT A FRIEND OF MINE LIKED IT SO MUCH HE BOUGHT IT OFF ME. THE SONG WITNESS THE FITNESS IS MY FAVOURITE SONG ON THE ALBUM.BUT THE WHOLE ALBUM IS JUST BRILLIANT PURE SMOKIN'SPACED OUT DUB AT IT'S BEST!THE MAN FROM BRIXTON THE RODNEY SMITH KEEP UP THE WORK MY GENIUS OF A BROTHER!

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review by: yodaman_x date: 2005-04-25 rating:
this is a must buy!
If you want ho's, guns and gold chains then this is not for you. However if you want to listen to good HipHop and more generally good music then any one of Roots Manuva's three albums are a must buy! Funky, fresh, intelligent HipHop, and its British too!


review by: date: 2004-09-19 rating:
i bought this album blindly..
..what happened was i went into a well-known record shop and saw this on sale and thought: well, i've got nothing to lose. and i was very pleasantly surprised. roots manuva is one classy homegrown rapper!

the magnificently haunting intro 'no strings' made me sit up and take notice and 'witness(1 hope) was brilliant (have u seen the video? hilarious!), with roots 'seein' clearer than most/sittin' contemplating this cheese on toast'. 'join the dots' is my favourite..i love the thumping marching bass that makes me nod my head like a headless chicken!! charlie 2na is wicked on that & compliments roots v. well.

my other favourites are 'stone the crows'(brilliant!); 'sinny sin sins' is absolutely amazing with the way roots doesn't pull any punches over his strict childhood. also, 'ital visions' is a great tune that, once again, will have your head nodding to the judding beat.

overall, considering that i perceived most hip-hop 2b predictable, this is one guy who goes against the grain and does his own thang. and blimey..he does it well!

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Similar categories

Music . Styles . Dance & Electronic . Bestsellers
Music . Styles . Hip-Hop & Rap . Bestsellers
Music . Styles . Hip-Hop & Rap . UK Hip-Hop & Rap
Music . Styles . Hip-Hop & Rap . General AAS
Music . Refinements . Format (binding_browse-bin) . CD . CD Album

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