Tunda Klap: It’s a dance. It’s a song. It’s a force of nature. And now, thanks to the digital wizards in the Renaissance Crew, it’s a brand new rhythm album in Greensleeves unbeatable line of single-beat compilations.
As a rhythm, the “Tunda Klap” is a lot like other beats saturating the Dancehall market today, only better. It’s got the synthesized hand-claps, of course – a requirement in post-”Diwali” Dancehall music. It’s also racing towards the 120 bpm barrier that has this new wave of beats sounding more like soca than Dancehall. And it goes without saying that nothing in the “Tunda Klap” even vaguely resembles an actual instrument – it’s all a bunch of blips, beeps and synthesizer magic.
Still, it’s pretty damn catchy.
The staccato drum track and keyboard stabs make the “Tunda Klap” a fun, if uncomplicated, dance rhythm. When newcomers Kenny and Busy Signal urge you to “Shake It Fast,” it’s not hard to obey.
The star of Tunda Klap is Vybz Kartel’s unstoppable “Tekk [Buddy],” another funny tour-de-force about slackness. If you don’t know the lyrics to “Tekk” by now, you need to get out more often. Following closely on Kartel’s theme of repaying debts, favours and obligations is Cobra’s “Don’t Waste Me Time.” Just like Vybz, Cobra thinks that the man who buys the jersey and the Gucci is the man who deserves a lady’s – ahem – affections.
Bounty Killa and Assassin team up for “Dem Ting Deh” a badman duet that’s tuff, but should be tougher than it is. The two artists trade lyrics and verses with ease, but sometimes it seems too easy, like Bounty is on auto pilot with lyrics that we’ve heard before.
Kid Kurrupt, Spragga Benz, Capleton and Elephant Man all turn in solid efforts on Tunda Klap that will keep the rhythm bubbling for a while. However, other established artists like Ce’Cile, Wayne Marshall, Bling Dawg and Vegas are less than average on their tracks. With the exception of Kenny and Busy Signal, none of Delano’s up-n-coming artists justify their place on Tunda Klap.
THE VERDICT: What can we say? It’s another too-fast, overproduced, computer-generated, video-game rhythm, complete with its own ridiculous dance. You either like this new Dancehall trend or you don’t. However, love it or hate it, very few people are making catchier rhythms than Delano and the Renaissance Crew, and the “Tunda Klap” is no exception. If you are a rhythm collector, you need to buy Tunda Klap; and Kartel, Cobra, Spragga, Bounty and Assassin make the album worth the purchase price.
|
