True Stepping

Remember when drum ‘n’ bass was going to be the new pop? When Roni Size and Reprazent won the Mercury Prize and pundits declared that it was time to usher in a brand-new era?

Thought not.

There have always been grand predictions made for the future of popular music. The sad truth, though, is that the inexorable trend is towards tunes which are flimsier and more one-dimensional than ever. These days, pop groups spend more time promoting their albums than they do creating them. If they have a hand at all in that process, of course.

So, when a genuine ‘from garage to riches’ success story arrives in the shape of True Steppers, it seems churlish to deny them their kudos. The press release accompanying the album insists that they are not pop. They just happen to make brilliant underground music. Just like Roni Size then? Well, not exactly.

While every track admittedly has the ‘credible’ two-step underpinning, the album is bursting at the seams with guest appearances by pop stars such as Victoria Beckham, Brian Harvey, Kele le Roc and Another Level’s Dane Bowers. This is hardly the sort of stuff Goldie dreams about when he nods off at night.

That said, there should be no shame in making good pop music. Although I doubt they hired Victoria Beckham on the strength of her voice, ‘Out of Your Mind’ is a strong track and the digitally stretched vocals certainly suit her.

Likewise, both Harvey and Bowers sound better in True Steppers than on anything either have previously done. Both singers have gentle voices which perfectly complement ‘True Step Tonight’ and ‘Buggin’s pulsating two-step and layered effects.

The problems begin after the first three singles have been fired from the starting blocks like bullets, leaving the rest of the album to stretch out like one vast featureless desert.

The closing track ‘Cabman’ redeems True Stepping somewhat. The soundscapes that accompany its spoken word narrative are spacey, deep-throated growls that brilliantly imitate the feeling of rolling out of a club and attempting to logically negotiate your way home.

When their guest stars are schmaltzy (Alan Chan), obnoxiously bad (The Enforcer) or just plain boring (Kele le Roc), the tunes go down the toilet faster than dead goldfish.

At their best, True Steppers blend garage and pop in a manner that is skilful, innovative and quirky, but this is a mixed bag.