Music Reviews
Artist:
Ric BransonTitle:
No Pressure (The Final Chapter)Label:
Grand Vision EntWebsite:
http://www.myspace.com/ricbranson
Meeting new people is always a daunting experience, saying your final farewell is often even more emotionally draining. For one former Universal Soldier the best option was to combine the both.
After a short siesta away from the game, and flying solo, Ric Branson AKA Ricochet, brings us his first and final serving entitled ‘No Pressure (The Final Chapter)’, mixed and cut by Kiss FM’s DJ MK.
In what sounds to be an evolution of the style that Ric came with on the Unisols classic album ‘Slanguage’, he improves on and maintains the braggadocios and to the point essence that made his style palatable to almost anyone that listened to his work.
Kicking off the album is a live track recorded when Branson appeared on the Broke’N’English 1Xtra show. The cipher is classic Ric Branson from his Ricochet days, his now defunct moniker, his trademark liquid flows and self love. Further such specials break up the studio tracks nicely, with Hoodz Underground and DJ Gone. Production credits go out to, amongst others, Evil Ed AH Fly, Braintax, and French unknown DJ Diaze.
The further 26 tracks show both a playful side, and the serious side of Ric, the title track ‘No Pressure’ forming little more than a homage to his Universal Soldier stuff with some nifty sounding DJ MK produced cuts, before morphing into the latest instalment of the 1990/2000 track ‘Ghetto Rose’, an extra verse of fiery lyrics about Ric’s love for the fairer sex, then on to the trademark bragging by the time the ‘DJ Gone Special’ kicks in, boasting from the off and stamping his mark into a position he rightfully deserves.
With the few guest appearances that occur throughout this mixtape, and Vague and Smut McNasty’s features on ‘Grand Vision’ in particular, and the combination of beats from variant eras and influences, Branson has created a 68 minute exhibition of versatility and lyrical scholarship. If it were possible to blueprint the perfect introduction and exit, Branson would be missing just an Allen key to complete the Ikea flatpack.
Signing out with ‘Evolution’ was a poignant post-script, ‘The Final Chapter’ is all about such an event, enabling long time fans to follow the life of Ric Branson from the ‘Street Veterans’ to his last word, showing ever increasing presence.
Ric Branson’s ‘No Pressure (The Final Chapter)’ is out June 4th on Grand Vision Entertainment, and coincides nicely with Tongue Tied Record’s reissuing of the entire Universal Soldiers back catalogue…June is going to be an expensive month.
Rating:
5/5
Useful links:
http://www.myspace.com/ricbranson
http://www.myspace.com/deejaymk
Words By: Andrew Milner
