Bad Artist Riddim – Kemistry Records

Bad Artist Riddim lands with a sharp little burst of 2013 dancehall energy, the kind of five-track set that keeps its focus tight and its personalities front and center. Kemistry Records lines up Boom Steppa, Bugle, Delly Ranx and Mr Vegas over the same cut, and the result leans hard into tough talk and street-ready bravado rather than any polished crossover angle. Bugle’s “Mi Nuh Frighten” and Delly Ranx’s “Road Affi Bun Up” keep the pressure on, but it’s Mr Vegas on “Busta Body” who gives the riddim its loudest pull, riding the groove with the kind of swagger that made these mid-2010s juggling sessions move. The instrumental closes it out cleanly, leaving the beat to do its own talking after the vocal versions have had their say.