Search - Roni Size :: Return to V

Big, big tings from Mr. Size.

Big Bell End | San Andreas, CA | 11/04/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have to say I was losing some faith in Roni Size after the dissapointing "Touching Down" release. That album was full of raw, simplistic, all-instrumental beats, with hardly any of the qualities (save a couple dancefloor burners like Snapshots or Sound Advice) that made me love Roni in the first place. Roni put himself on the map by adding extrememly well done vocals, and an extremely well done, bonafied live show to drum and bass/electronic music. In fact, I would be hard pressed to say anyone has been as successful in adding these tradtional elements to electronic music since.



"Return to V" has Roni Size re-incorporating all of these elements that made him so great in the first place. The vocalists on the album are well chosen, with a range of hip hop and dancehall MC's mixed up with some very lovely soul vocalists. Tracks like "Groove On/Come and Play" kick off with huge basslines, and sing-along choruses. The dancehallflavored "Rise Up" is another full force favorite of mine, with it's ragga call to arms. Then, the more soulful cuts like "Sing" and "No More" really round out the album. You'll find hints of R&B in these songs, but don't let that scare you if you usually don't like soul/R&B, as all of these tracks are done with the kind of quality that has universal appeal. In fact, that's always been the great thing about Roni- he does make credible drum & bass that all the headz can feel, but his music appeals to music lovers across the board as well.



Without a doubt, "Return to V" is a massive return to form."

Roni Size is pushing the boundries again

TalkMusic | Tallinn, Estonia | 12/19/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The fresh Roni Size album "Return To V" is something I was expecting for a long time. The Reprazent album "New Forms" and later "In The Mode" were all highlights of their time and the latest album is no way weaker. The Bristol drum&bass king is back with a slammer.

"Return To V" features collaborations with Sweetpea, Die, Hollie G, Wilks, Viktor Duplaix, Faye, Dynamite MC, Tali, Blaze, Sweet Irie, Darrison, Joe Roberts, Rodney P, Beverly Knight, Stamina MC, Jocelyn Brown, Razhel, Fallacy and MC Navigator. What a list and they all play their part well.

"Return To V" is a mix-album, yet it stands way aove all the other mix albums. It's pure energy all they way and it has Roni Size written all over it.

There are storming tracks here but also some more downbeat, yet full of breaks works like Time and Problems.



There are total of 18 tracks on the CD which kinda tells about the seriousness of the album - it never get's boring and even the more "laid-back" tunes are not that easy going.

Top tunes for me:

Pull Up (with Viktor Duplaix)

No More (with Beverly Knight and Dynamite MC)

Bump'n'Grind (with Sweetpea)

Out of Breath (with Razhel)

Give Me A Reason (with MC Navigator)



Defenetly 5 out of 5."

Drum and bass 2005

alexander laurence | Los Angeles, CA | 02/07/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Roni Size is the man who brought drum and bass to the fore. New Forms was a classic album. But Roni Size is the product of the early 1990s hiphop scene in Bristol. The Full Cycle records started coming out at that time and it was underground club music, pretty much ignored by the press. The explosion of drum and bass in 1996-97 into clubs was a small revolution. Even though Roni Size Reprazent was one of the top live acts of the late 1990s, drum and bass disappeared from the popular sphere. Reprazent came together in 2001 for the In The Mode album, which some people think was even better. Many side projects took over in the past five years. In that time, new music by The Streets and Dizzee Rascal took over. All the while Roni Size was still creating. Return To V is much like the early white label stuff. It's free and updates us on what he has been doing the past few years. Drum and bass is due for a comeback. We can start with this record.



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