When you reach the end of your tether with clichés in rap, when you’re done with absurd lyricists and the insular studio millionaires who offer ear bruising continuity. If you’ve switched off commercial radio more times than you searched ‘Underground UK Hip hop’ on Google, when you doubt that rappers from these shores have any credibility or meaning for real people, look up at the sky and be sure there is a saviour, so simple was one man's ambition for uk hip hop, that his name would be Asaviour.
He surfaced on the groundbreaking Premonitions, Jehst's debut EP, putting in a spellbinding verse on ‘Fist of the North Star’, and as coal comes before diamonds, there was a startling verse anointed by the energy of youth and the delivery of a Huddersfield downpour, with a style that resembled little I had heard before. Although later it would seem that Usmaan was borne of the same mettle. Reaching through the speakers he depicts an upbringing where the "Ghetto is only a stone's throw from the meadow", and proffers flows that present a conversational and thoughtful writer, whose rapping has grown from strength to strength.
Asaviour isn’t so much drawn to the ethics or principles of good music, but bound by the spirit of creativity that underlines it. The Savoir Faire EP which included the classic ‘Money in the Bank’ (and it’s following remix), combined with his solo venture on Louis SLipperz mix 'A song called it', proved he was capable of putting together real high points during the decade.
Asaviour would continue to produce music at a prolific rate, releasing two albums (The Borrowed Ladder and The A Loop Theory, a couple of vinyl EP's (Savoir Faire and The Borrowed Ladder) and mixtapes a-plenty. His output over the last few years has really nailed his colours to the mast, showing us what producer/rapper and label boss (Saving Grace Music) can do with a concept album, no less than a theory of music. In partnership with budding DJ IQ they presented 'The A-Loop Theory'. Listening to this outstanding release I was struck by the solid fact that it was high quality product, pure and simple. Track after track of well-constructed music in and of the genre, yet somehow rising above to lay new standards. The A Loop Theory being made in the Uk, by people innovating and building on a ten year legacy is a remarkable achievement. The extensive remixes uncover the directions that hip hop has taken that needed exposure. Not a moment wasted, including an obscure David Byrne reference on the blistering track with Double Edge, perhaps twisted but still relevant.
Asaviour's music is a tour de force of positive lyricism, with wit, charisma and panache, he develops themes and portrays a lifestyle that on inspection is unique to him and far from generic, his register is significantly different to his peers despite his smooth and cool laid back style. It makes him stand out on any of his tracks as he reveals a character that is outspoken and forthright, his verse isn't twisted around what hip hop expects, but what he wants to say. This man has rhythms that aren't yet mainstream in uk hip hop, (in some places reminiscent of O.C.) Just one (re)listen to the classic ‘People under the Weather’ and you'll find prime examples of his distinctive sound.
Coming from Huddersfield there is one evident feature of his 'sound', rapping with a northern accent, he is keeping it real to the shores and with a word play standard of a different order, he juggles the minutiae to the magnificent in the space of a bar. “From the macabre to picturesque”…”with a whole load of beautiful bollocks”. Asaviour’s latest release “The A Loop Theory” is a proven concept, lock, stock and barrel.
Reviewed by J-Bodes
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