For those that don’t know, Dazzle is an upcoming MC who has came together with numerous other MC’s to create the ‘Unity’ mixtape, the name being linked with the large amount of features on the release. It is sixteen songs in length, including an intro which Dazzle uses to explain his reasons behind the project.

‘Unity’ beings with the song “Why can’t you?” featuring Skitzo and is the main relationship track on the mixtape. However, it does differ from the usual stuff as the pair pitch both the male and female side to the argument. It’s quite inventive and is much better than the usual ‘I love you business’ which can get tiresome. Think along the lines of Dizzee Rascal’s “I luv u” song where both boy and girl interact. The instrumental is about as grimy as they come too, which is loaded with claps and high-pitched vocals.

Secondly is “Go hard” with Tashan Moss who sings the chorus with some force and a verse too. For any grime fan the first thing to notice is the Dot Rotten instrumental so expect a moody beat. Dazzle uses this to express his desires for success in life and gets a bit conscious too in talking about escaping from his grey dwellings with friends who are potential ‘snakes’. It’s a big change of scenery after “Why can’t you?” and early on proves Dazzle’s diverse content.

Moving on to “Rumours”, Dazzle teams up with G-Fam, which includes the likes of Styler, Random Impulse and Dimples. The four build upon the themes of “Go hard” in wanting to improve on their lives and it is once again a kind of ‘F*** you’ to any potential haters listening. Already into the mixtape it’s clear Dazzle has kept it grimy on productions which will please the most staunch of grime fans.

“Skill” is next and is the first real ‘anthem’ of the release featuring Terrorsum and Harry Shotta. Here the three declare their lyrical skill over a beat with brass, electric guitars and piano keys. Instrumental wise, this shows the talent of Silvz but by in terms of vocal – Dazzle keeps his usual flow, which is basic but very effective. It seems simplicity is the best option for Dazzle who doesn’t try to over-complicate his words with stacks of metaphors or speed. With this said, it’s a bit of a nostalgia trip.

Song seven, “Tired” is another change in content where Dazzle denounces the street life and says he is ‘tired’ of being “Trapped in the system, all they do is enslave us” and also goes on to claim that “One in three girls turns out to be a slag”. In story-telling terms, it is a typical critique of UK poverty and the social problems this can go on to create. Acen also chips in with a verse and touches on similar grounds.

The following song, “Winter snow” develops this pessimistic view of Dazzles surroundings this time with Big Narstie sharing a few bars. However, Dazzle does seek some hope in using his music to live a better life. It is the perfect settings for Big Narstie to bring in his lyrics of ‘Pain!’ and he does just that. This is possibly the most serious tune on the release and after a listen you can only feel for Dazzle and hope he does make it in life.

“Legacies” further develops these thoughts and DThrills claims “We need to jam with all this hype, too many brothers going down over knife crime”. It is a long way away from any hype lyrics or aggressive shouting and instead will be appreciated by those looking for more content based lyrics in grime. This can apply to the overall mixtape this far as well.

Straight up next is “Mama don’t cry” and here the title is a clue for the tone of the song. This time Dazzle efforts his emotions into praising his mother, for her hard work, love and strength. It’s very honest for an MC to do and once more shows Dazzle has many different subjects to talk about.

Soon kicks in “Hometown” where producer Etsu samples Adelle’s smash hook from the original Hometown song. It’s been done many times before but is a great sample. Once again Dazzle chooses to look at his local problems, damning the government cuts, which he partly blames for youths joining local gangs and turning to crime. As said before, he clearly favours this style over any form of hype.

Song fifteen, “Found myself” features Roro. On this song Dazzle ponders the meaning of life and further delves into philosophical thoughts, talking about our eventual deaths which forever loom over humanity. With this, he draws strength and uses it as a positive, claiming you must find yourself to enjoy and succeed in life. This song acts has a positive outlook, which somewhat goes against the negatives Dazzle often talks about on the release.

After Dazzle brings another song based on positivity. Here teaming up with Illamadi, Tazzle and Big Narstie is the mixtapes proper anthem based on pride, success and honour. After all the problems Dazzle looks upon throughout the release, it’s good to end on a high with this and “Found myself” which give a message of hope.

Final Thoughts: ‘Unity’ is a suitable name for a mixtape with features on every song and is the perfect size, avoiding either being too long or short. After a few listens, it’s clear Dazzle favours stories and concepts over energy so comparisons with Tempa T can stop now. However, Dazzle is still grime and uses grimy instrumentals throughout. The only real problem is that, with the constant outbursts of feelings and emotion, perhaps some songs would be best suited towards an album. This is based on Dazzle’s stories and for the most part, his social observations on society and his closer neighbourhood. Comparisons can be held with Dizzee Rascal’s bleak early work, in terms of Dazzle’s pessimism he often expresses. However, as noted the mixtape ends with hope. Overall ‘Unity’ is a strong release and will get Dazzle’s name out there. If you like Grime then this is for you, just don’t expect much shouting or gun lyrics.

Score: 8

Best Song: Winter Snow

Best Line: “Imagine all the grief going through my mothers head standing there as her son walked through the door with blood on his clothes, cuts on his body and more. The only reason why I think I survived was the Lord”