Review
Genre and Mood
Urban Species made Destructive out of British hip-hop and the jazz that ran through 1990s London. It sits between hip-hop, acid jazz and trip-hop, soulful and groovy, and the one review that describes it hears it grow from something small into something very big.
Song Summary
Destructive is the second track of Blanket, the group’s second album. The writing is credited to Peter Akinrinlola, known as Mintos, who leads the group, and the production to Raw Deal and Urban Species. Its most memorable detail, in the words of a 2009 review on the blog Useless Randomness, is its shape: the track “starts of small but swells to a wall-of-sound” by the chorus, which a female and male pair sing together. No source we found describes the lyric, so this page leaves it to your ears.
Musical Breakdown
Intro
The reviewer heard “a jazzy beat with some light guitar backing”. That is how it begins, small and uncluttered.
Build-up
From there it fills out. No source times the swell or names the order in which parts arrive.
Chorus
The chorus is sung by Elisabeth Troy and Jeffrey Darnell, credited on chorus vocals. The credits also name MJ Cole on piano and strings arranged by Everton Nelson, played by members of the Reggae Philharmonic Orchestra, but no source says where in the track each one is heard.
Concepts in Focus
A build-up raises tension by adding layers until something has to give. Destructive builds this way without a dance-music drop: it starts with beat and guitar and keeps adding until the chorus arrives as a wall of sound. Compare the chorus with the opening and try to name what has joined in.
A <a href=“https://korczis.github.io/sonic-playground/concept/featured-artist/” class=“concept-link font-medium text-primary-700 underline decoration-dotted underline-offset-4 hover:decoration-solid dark:text-primary-400” data-concept=“featured-artist” title=“A guest performer credited on another artist’s track, usually as “feat.”: a rapper’s verse, a singer’s hook or a second voice. Features bring together different styles and audiences and are central to hip-hop, R&B and dance music.“>featured artist is a guest on someone else’s track. Here the guests carry the hook: Elisabeth Troy and Jeffrey Darnell sing the chorus, MJ Cole plays the piano and members of the Reggae Philharmonic Orchestra play the strings. With singers, a pianist and an orchestra beside it, a hip-hop group sounds bigger than one voice could make it. Compare how Smoke City – Underwater Love sets a voice over similarly jazzy production.
Artistic Context
Urban Species came from Tottenham in North London. Mintos and DJ Renegade started writing together in 1988, and Talkin’ Loud, a Phonogram label, signed them in 1992. Their debut Listen reached number 43 in the UK in 1994, and the group was often linked with acid jazz, mixing hip-hop with reggae, funk, dub and jazz. Blanket came out in continental Europe in late 1998 and in the UK a year later, with guests including Terry Callier, Imogen Heap, Blak Twang and MC Mell’O’. Its copyright line names Mercury Records.
Impact and Reception
The 2009 review gave Blanket 2.5 out of 5 and found its vocals at times drab, yet called Destructive “amazing” and said it “works really well all the way through”. No other review of the song was found. It is here because it was among the owner’s most played songs of 2020. Put it on loud and wait for the chorus.
