Reviewed by David Ashley

CSOS is a pleasant surprise, offering a wide range of artists from the Midlands urban gospel scene including Dublit, Solar Angelics, Owen Uriah, Spanna and DJ Zorro. Whether deliberate or not the compilation hits pretty much every sub-division of UK urban sounds. There's the more hard-hitting hip-hop - "Galatians 2:20" from TrebleZ is old style reggae; "Were You There?" by Owen Uriah is raga and the more R&B, soulful side is represented by "Laid It Down" performed by The Projects. Overall the beats are catchy and cleverly thought out and the standard of lyrics is generally very high - both intelligent and innovative. It's not perfect - "Bling Bling Crown" by DJ Zorro is a lapse into slight idiocy. Still, clichés about "representin. . ." aside it is genuinely a pleasure when UK artists, against the odds and on a fraction of the budget the American scene works with, turn out urban gospel of such quality as this. There are certainly many artists here worth keeping an eye on.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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