Ask anyone who's into grime and they'll tell you that 2014 was a great year for the genre, from both a production and MC standpoint. (The amount of examples that could illustrate this point are making my brain hurt, so let's just go with Skepta's MOBO win). But for those who keep an ear to the instrumental underground, south London's Coyote Records is becoming an increasingly important port of call, carving out their niche with each release.
Continuing what's now a tradition, December saw another end-of-year comp arrive in our laps – welcoming back some familiar faces to the label (Chemist, Spokes) but also introducing a host of newbies to the spotlight – Nomis, Rejig, Sharp Veins, T_A_M and Underclass. There's also a rework of Local Action star Yamaneko, whose 'Pixel Wave Embrace' LP is a firm office favourite.
The tracks are all intriguing constructs in their own rights. The atmospheric, melodic side of the genre (reminiscent of Dark0 and Visionist) is represented, yet there's also the icy, industrial minimalism of Mumdance or Slackk. Sharp Veins' 'Pompelmo' – an ode to the San Pellegrino grapefruit drink – revolves around a lush, tropical minimalism while 'Rinse Compressor' by Underclass was specifically designed to fuck on-air with Rinse FM's inbuilt limiter. Then you've got 'Taipan Showers' from Strict Face, which feels like a multiplayer game where you're slashing through the digitised thickets of a jungle.
It's especially exciting to see a label that's evolving, that's about moving with the times rather than trying to push one specific, greying sound. Which is the whole spirit of instrumental grime: nothing is conventional. It's hard to think of another genre that embraces the unusual, the weird, quite like it – that twists video game lasers or Eastern melodies into something from an imagined rave world. Although at nights like Boxed you can expect to hear certain tracks played out, there's also the sense that anything goes. Famous Eno's contribution is one of the more out-there tracks; 'Puzzlebox Riddim' assigns a strict marching melody to a grimy bassline. From headphone listening, it's something that seems almost inconceivable to dance to, but within the clutches of a tight set would no doubt have heads nodding furiously.
Here's to 2015, Coyote.
7/10
Words: Felicity Martin
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