Bad Bwoy Riddim – Misik Muzik

2021 was still a year when producers were keeping the modern roots-and-dancehall exchange alive, and Misik Muzik’s Bad Bwoy Riddim sits right in that pocket with a lean, steppy groove and a tough, streetwise edge. The voicings are kept fairly tight: Jah Izrehl’s “Sleeping Lion” leans conscious and meditative, Zamunda’s “Marijuana” brings the ganja talk front and center, and Sukuward’s title cut sharpens the whole thing with its rougher attitude. The arrangement doesn’t crowd the singers, so the bassline and skanking guitar do most of the heavy lifting, which gives each tune room to breathe. Ending on “Bad Bwoy” leaves the riddim where it belongs, with the instrumental still hanging in the air after the last vocal fades.