Ruff Sqwad
| Ruff Sqwad | |
|---|---|
| Genres | Grime |
| Instruments |
Digital Audio Workstation Sampler Turntables Keyboard Synthesizer Drum machine Rapping |
| Years active | 2001–2013, 2015– |
| Labels |
Takeover Entertainment Limited Ruff Sqwad Recordings |
| Associated acts | Wiley, Trim, XTC |
| Members | Prince Rapid Fuda Guy Roachee |
| Past members |
Tinchy Stryder Slix Dirty Danger Mad Max Shifty Rydos DJ Scholar Fuda Guy DJ Begg XTC Sir Spyro |
Ruff Sqwad are an English grime crew. The group was formed in 2001 in Bow, East London, various members and affiliates of the crew are considered key figures in the early development of grime music.
Ruff Sqwad first became known in the early days of grime for the distinctive production style of the crews producers. Early Ruff Sqwad instrumentals released on white label are rare and fetch high prices on the second hand market, notable early Ruff Sqwad instrumentals include Pied Piper,Functions on the Low and Misty Cold.Functions on the Low, produced by Ruff Sqwad affiliate XTC has been described as one of the greatest tracks in the history of British electronic music. The crew has released two mixtapes Guns and Roses Volume. 1 and Guns and Roses Volume. 2 as well as an instrumental compilation album White Label Classics.
Ruff Sqwad was formed by a group of teenage school friends in East London in 2001 or 2002. Many of the groups best known instrumentals were made by Rapid and Dirty Danger on cheap home PCs as 14 and 15 year olds. The group would regularly bunk school to record songs and to press up vinyl at Music House. The crew was active on the London pirate radio scene and at various times during the early 2000s had shows on Rinse FM, Heat, Flava, Mystic, and Deja Vu FM. During this period the group regularly released singles on white label vinyl on an imprint called Ruff Sqwad Recordings following a template laid out by Wiley's Wiley Kat Recordings.
"Grime from the "golden days" of 2003-5 is very close to my heart. Even within this ultra-niche, ultra-creative genre full of variety, few crews had the unique magic of Ruff Sqwad. It was something about the colour and dizzying emotion in their melodies, the raw DIY aesthetic of their productions – many made on computes in their college music lab – the unusual penchant for ’80s stadium rock drum fills and guitar synths… The MCs had their individual styles dripping with charisma but as a team could sound so honed."
In 2005, Ruff Sqwad's first mixtape, Guns and Roses Volume. 1, was released. It was released in March 2005 on the independent record label Ruff Sqwad Recordings, and was very well received by the grime scene. It has been ranked amongst the best full-length studio albums of all time to come from the grime scene. The album was the first of a three-part album series.
...
Wikipedia