Big Div - The Individualist Review
Scottish Hip Hop mainstay Big Div has finally released his album, "The Individualist". It is hard to see how anybody could be disappointed by this release. Those unfamiliar will be converted, as those who've followed the man's steps over the years will be elated that he has lived up to his potential. While Div may not be the most formidable emcee in the UK it is the whole package that counts. His personality, charisma and incredible production lend the whole album an epic feel. One that - at eighteen tracks - never feels excessive or overlong.
The album kicks off with "Principles", a banger that sees Div sharing mic responsibilities with a Welcome to the 9th World era Loki, signalling right away that the album has been a long time coming. "U Know Who U R" is a straight up, neck snapping classic. It's the sort of track you want to hear bumping out of jeeps with ridiculously loud sound systems. "Nobody Knows" combines a laid back beat with hypnotic sample, while the nostalgic "Way Back" indulges in an appropriate Beatles jacking that is pulled off far more successfully than the Shaolin bunch.
Every track deserves a mention, the Bee Jay featured "Hawners", the sheer dopeness and ridiculousness of the jazz laced "The Original Pt. II" or the lyrically phenomenal Respek BA assisted "Lung Damage".
The real gem for this writer, however is the Gil Scott Heron sampling "Soul on the Line". A beautiful and melancholic beat serves as the perfect back drop for Div's meditations on past struggles and dreams. "Look at me; a man broken, at war with his own mind, a virtual recluse, scared to mix with his own kind", spit's a downbeat and downtrodden Div. It is the most disturbing and vulnerable image that is painted on the canvas of the album. Growing from boy to responsible adult, observing a world that offers little in the way of opportunity or hope. The track is more of a sombre, internal meditation, however as Div ponders, "I excel to live my life to the fullest. But my brain has a restraint that stops me from doing this". Before one has the chance to sink too deep inside themselves the excellent "United Underworld" featuring Mac G, and the aforementioned Respek BA and Loki begins to creep through the speakers. It is dark, sinister and an instant classic. The painstaking attention to detail on each individual introduction not only relates perfectly to each emcee but is indicative of Div's tireless workmanship. This facet of his personality only serves to make this slow cooked album all the more worthwhile when it finally reaches it's hungry audience.
The album ends with a sample that is both lush and haunting, putting a perfect cap on the project as a whole. But in my experience as soon as the album ends it gets played right from the start again.
Review by John Reed Spiers
