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The cumulative effect--somewhere around being lifted into the heavens by sunrays--is at odds with the continuous black clouds that come before. Yet it’s a necessary chink of light to conclude a journey so oppressive you may just forget to breathe through its duration.
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Considering the host of absolutely killer tracks, London Zoo might just be Kevin Martin's finest album, which is astounding considering the man has been making music for two decades.
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London Zoo provides the perfect showcase for its colourful menagerie of MCs and singers. And the Bug's no-nonsense clank and grind production fosters a rare intensity of focus on this album's higher purpose, which is to take the eloquence of Linton Kwesi Johnson and Michael Smith's Eighties dub-poetry, and blast it into digital hyperspace.
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It's angry and ferocious, but always triumphant.
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The vastly competent array of MCs each have their own distinct flow and pace, but very little--from Flowdan’s lightning-fast verbal gymnastics, to Rick Ranking’s slow-cooked esophageal rumblings, to Roger Robinson’s soulful melancholy--clashes in a way that dulls or vitiates the album’s impact.
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That an album can match enjoyment with artistic merit in a year that has largely seen albums go one way or another is a joy in itself.
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Moreover, as apocalyptic as his vision can be, the thrill as he pushes his sounds further outwards proves to be as seductive as it is forbidding.
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As an album, London Zoo is simply more engaging. Kevin’s production is intense but club-ready, and the lyrics are righteous and relevant.
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The lyrical presence and content of guests is what sets London Zoo apart from other dubstep producers.
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Q MagazineThis broadens his musical palette, with digi-dub, moody techno and deranged dubstep adding weight to Martin's winning sonic menagerie. [Aug 2008, p.132]
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 48 out of 84
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Mixed: 12 out of 84
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Negative: 24 out of 84
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OllieHMar 11, 2009
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May 2, 2011
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michaelRAug 1, 2009The songs on this album have an amazing abilty to pump me up. It helps me in the gym.