Ancient Astronauts - Into Bass and Time

Hip hop, in recent years, has brought us grime, crunk, hyphy and footwork. Producers like Missy Elliot, Timbaland, Kanye, Jay-Z, The Neptunes, Wiley and Tinie Tempah have launched the genre into thrilling new directions. Auto-tune, rave synths, crossovers and collabs, pop choruses, pirate stations and life-changing levels of bass have made it the most exciting and diverse style of music of the last decade. But in a corner of Germany, it’s still the ’90s, and hip hop is all about straight-up boom-bap beats, scratchy choruses, funk samples, reggae and soul bits and time-worn lyrics. The 15 tracks on the duo’s second album trudge a path well travelled by DJ Shadow, Mr Scruff, Herbaliser and anything on the Grand Central or Fat City labels; nothing here is assertive enough to ever be offensive, but neither, unfortunately, is it in any way memorable or relevant. [Euan Ferguson]