Album Review: Cold Hard Steel 2 by Crease

 

Cold Hard Steel 2

By

Crease

 

Cold Hard Steel 2 is the follow up to the 2021 original and continues Crease’s instrumental look into the lifestyle of the underground graffiti writer. Crease has featured on the blog a couple of times, the last being back in October 2022 with the single Fake Friends / Hip Hop Saved My Life alongside Holly Flo (Click the link for that review).

As part of the legendary Outkastz Crew (O.K.S.T), Crease literally has spray paint and ink running through his veins, as a producer and DJ the music also runs through his body fuelling the inspiration to emblazon the walls with the freshest pieces and tags. When you bring both the love of music and the lifelong graff interest to together what happens? Well, if you are familiar with the original Cold Hard Steel, then you will have some idea, if not, then why not join me on a trip passing the pieces, tags on the walls and down into the tunnels as we watch the trains pass by…

 

The sound of vinyl record crackle accompanies what appears to be an early eighties information soundtrack about graffiti. Detailing some of the history and the progression of graffiti at the time, it is all underpinned by an often-funky musical vibe for the opening track, Caves, which obviously makes you realise that humans have been writing and putting art on walls since cave art, is that any different from now?

From the caves we move from the sounds of the city streets to Under The City, where the sound of tribal drums and piano accompanies sound bites from Style Wars. When the beat fully kicks in you get this sense of the darkness of the subway tunnels and the desire of the graff writers to create something from the drab canvases of the walls and subway train cars. You also feel that the creations of these graff writers, bombers, and artists, was a way to brighten the days and nights of a cold harsh inner-city life. The obvious drawback of being a writer is that getting your work up on the walls and subway cars was met with one thing, That’s A Crime. The atmospheric strings, over the heavy drums creates this air of the conflict between the writers and the authorities. The authorities wishing to control and assert that authority over the writers who, with no other outlet for their creativity, only seek to go bigger and better, all the while developing their style and becoming more creative with their craft. During the eighties, the time of Style Wars, it was mayor Giuliani of New York who would spearhead the drive against graffiti in the city. Toy Giuliani is a short skit that takes a comedic look at the fight against graffiti.  

Subway Symphony is this a look at who witing is truly for, and that’s the writers. The heavy drums and symphonic strings mixed with additional sonic vibes and a dash of scratches really makes you feel the belief and dedication of the writers; there is also that sense of kicking back and watching the trains go by, looking for your own artwork among the many that pass by and feeling that emotion as you see you hard work displayed for all to see. The sonic vibes of Fuk Tony looks at when the infamous skater Tony Hawk took tried to make graffiti look bad. As a famous name, and many have done this over the years, Hawk was someone youngsters would look up to and if he said it was ‘not cool’ then kids would stop. From one of the ways they tried to stop graffiti we move to More, a full on Hip Hop, head nod banger that looks at how 1989 was celebrated as the year the MTA purged graffiti from the New York subway system but, by 2018 it was back and it’s all about how much you can get up. As Cap said about being a bomber, it’s not the “biggest or the beautifulest but, more.” The John Isaacs Theme is another short little skit with a comedic edge that looks at how writers, back in the day, would get their paint by ‘racking’ aka stealing from automotive stores. They were from the poor inner-city areas and so had only one option when it came to getting paint so they could ‘get up.’

The sounds of the subway bring us into another heavy Hip Hop banger, Run Da Subway. This one looks at the difference between a writer and a graffiti artist. The main point here is that you are only a writer, a true writer, if you have hit up the subway cars. Because that’s where the name comes from, a time where it was all about writing your name on the subway cars, stations, and tunnels. When the writers ran the subway system, there was a War going on. This was pitted the writers against the buff; buffing was the acid wash that the subway cars were put through to remove the graffiti. The drums and bass here really give you that hectic energy that those writers must have had, constantly full of adrenaline as they took on the authorities in order to get their names up before they were caught, or their work was buffed. The album ends with Fallen Soldiers an emotive guitar heavy sound that seems dedicated to those writers who are no longer with us but, have inspired us over the years such as Dez, Kase 2, Dondi, Rammellzee, Iz The Wiz and Phase 2 to just a small few.

 

Cold Hard Steel 2 is firmly rooted in the Hip Hop sound but, just like the artform it reflects, it is not exclusively Hip Hop. It has been said many times that graffiti is Hip Hop but, not exclusively, you don’t have to be Hip Hop to write, and this album reflects that in bringing you a sound that draws you into the world of the writer which grew out of the same streets as the foundations of Hip Hop culture.

As you listen to what Crease has crafted here, you can feel those diverse musical influences from the tribal drums to Hip Hop, electronic vibes and more, and Crease expertly brings it all together, with these sound bites from interviews and documentaries, to encapsulate the lived experiences of the graffiti writer. The fact that the sound seems to ebb between Hip Hop, Lo-Fi and electronic, just adds to the depth of the soundscape he has created.

For me, what makes this album what it is, in being a graffiti writer inspired piece of work, is those well used sound bites; take those away and crease could take you anywhere your mind wants to go but, the desire here is to take you into the world of the graffiti writer, in particular what could be called the golden age of writing between 1975-1985, the most pivotal years of graffiti coming to the forefront as a result of it’s growth on the New York City subway system.

This is a perfectly crafted musical journey from someone who truly knows what it is to be a writer. Someone who saw the work of these graffiti pioneers and was inspired to pick up a marker and a spray can, to put his own expressive, indelible mark on the world around him; where as those tags and piece’s may fade or be gone over, the musical expression and dedication to the culture can never fade and will always be there to help others cast their minds back or to reminisce on a time when the dirt and grime of the subway was brought alive by the creative expression and vibrant colours of the writers.

The awesome cover art comes courtesy of the legendary Bristol Graff writer CHEO.

Cold Hard Steel 2, produced by Crease is available now.

On That Note,

It's time to jump the third rail and be outta here,

See Ya,

Steve.

LINKS

Get your copy of Cold Hard Steel 2 Here:

https://crease2.bandcamp.com/album/cold-hard-steel-2

Check out the original Cold Hard Steel Here:

https://crease2.bandcamp.com/album/cold-hard-steel