Tottenham MC Wretch 32 didn’t endear himself to the indie classicists with ‘Unorthodox’, his second single, which sampled the holy cow that is The Stone Roses’ ‘Fools Gold’. It was a cheeky move, sure, but the result was a whip-smart pop single with a nagging chorus and a healthy degree of swagger.
Sadly, such pop bluster is largely missing from this debut album, which is over-long and obsessed with pained R&B choruses – precisely the reasons we all went off American rap in the first place. It’s a shame because Wretch is clearly a talented MC who should have had more confidence in his own unorthodox abilities.
Ben Cardew
Order a copy of Wretch 32’s ‘Black And White’ from Amazon
