School Break Riddim – Show Di Vybz Records

Brik Tearz kicks this one off with “Gyal Come Bubble, ” and that opener tells you plenty: School Break Riddim is a sharp, up-tempo dancehall cut with enough room for swagger, street talk and girl-track energy to sit side by side. Show Di Vybz Records lines up a compact nine-track juggling in 2012, pairing Brik Tearz and Chilando’s raw-edged, dancefloor-minded tunes with Darrio’s breezier “Time To Smile, ” Gaza Maxwell’s “The Books, ” and Lateesha’s more uplift-heavy “I Rise. ” Quata Blann, Hyporak and Shampagne And Dolla keep the pressure on with tough, youth-centred lyrics, while the version at the end leaves the rhythm exposed and tidy. It sits right in that early-2010s dancehall moment when compact riddims were still carrying a whole little world of voices.