Dizraeli & The Small Gods – Moving In The Dark

Coming from a spoken word background which saw him winning the Radio 4 Slam and bringing his acclaimed 'hip-hop play' The Rebel Cell (written with Baba Brinkman) to the Edinburgh Festival, Dizraeli formed The Small Gods in 2009 to tour his hip-hop-based work. After gigs and festival performances up and down the country, the band have garnered a loyal following for their pitch-perfect blend of rap, folk and funk.

Now they deliver their debut album, Moving In The Dark, a rich and rewarding collection of songs, if a little over-long at 16 tracks. From the confessional (We Had A Song, Million Miles) to the confrontational (Strong Bright, Never Mind), Dizraeli's lyrics display a consistent wit and humour, and the way the Small Gods blend folk instruments and rhythms to the rap song structures is inventive and infectious. Folk or hip-hop, then? For Dizraeli & the Small Gods, they're seamlessly joined. The same thing. [Bram E. Gieben]