Plan B // iLL Manors

Plan B- iLL Manors- (Atlantic Records/679) iLL Manors is a statement. An insight into a world that's hushed away and hidden by the rest of Britain and has labels like 'ASBO's', 'hoodies' and 'broken Britain' thrown at them to justify them being ignored. A world that Ben Drew grew up in. Unapologetic, unnerving and uncomfortable, the album is a perfect representation of the gritty life of Forest Gate, one and a half miles east from the Olympic Park and one of East London's most notorious areas for drugs, prostitution, gangs and murder. Plan B makes sure he checks each one of those off in iLL Manors and includes clips from his directorial debut of the same title, to really hit the message home. Lyrically, each track tells a story; a dark, twisted, fast-paced, tragically realistic sounding story. Track 3 'Drug Dealer' tells of the hideous world of people caught up in drugs that includes a pregnant woman on heroin and kids growing up with drugs. It ends with a young boy trying to buy weed off a gang, who must "smash in" his friend in order to get it. You hear everything, even the ping and familiar distorted voices of a mobile phone recording. Happy slapping playing over classical piano. It's seriously unnerving. Plan B actually uses a lot of classical references. 'I Am The Narrator' uses a sample from The Aquarium by Camille Saint-Saens, a 126-year old piece of classical music written by a French love composer that eerily contrasts the sound of police sirens and Marshall Mathers-style aggressive rap that's played over it. 'Pity the Plight' starts with punk poet John Cooper Clarke reading a poem, written specifically for the film, 'Pity the Plight of Young Fellows' over staccato piano. It's beautifully dark and macabre. Despite being a horrific album, subject wise, it's sickeningly good. It's a charming change to listen to album that MEANS something, that cuts deep, that makes you sit up and listen. Not in a 'please help us' kind of way but in a 'fuck you, this is our life' kinda way. Think of it like The Cranberries' 'Zombie' in 1994, about the Irish easter rising and IRA conflicts but with more bite, more aggression and more anger. This album's the front line, the real deal. My only suggestion for this album is to send it to David Cameron and tell him to give it a good listen. Yes, Plan B tells him he'll c him next tuesday but I think he'd like it. 9/10 Freja Hoskins