Cut La Roc is super cool, but we always knew that. Although he’s one of Skint’s uber-artists from their early noughties heyday, it’s been seven years since his seminal album La Roc Rocs was released to great acclaim. Emerging from the shadows where he’s been hiding while building his own record label Rocstra Recordings, Roc now brings us Nemesis – an album that heralds a new sound for a sentimental favourite.

This album marks the triumphant return of the original broken-beat bad boy and he picks up right where he left off, with a fine blend of funk, breaks, electro, house and hip-hop vibes. It’s less clanging than the big-beat sound that slammed our ears towards the end of the 90s and altogether smoother and cooler than ever, with moments of pure bliss giving way to eerie, dark soundscapes.

From the mid-tempo chugger I Like Disco which has no connection to disco in any way, to the blissfully beautiful Music, The Future (Beautiful Thing) via the rip-kicking tracks like Funk It Up, Nemesis and The Kia Scream, but not forgetting the deep dark moments of Chasing Time featuring the vocal talents of MC Det & Alison David, this album gives the listener a true insight into what Cut La Roc is all about. His tastes are more eclectic and far-reaching than most, and he has a curious and innovative way of pasting things together.

Putting his world-class scratch techniques into practice, Cut La Roc is a champion DJ and DMC world record holder and is even featured in the Guinness Book Of Records for mixing on nine decks at once – he swings from blunt beats to tootling horns and RnB grooves with ease. A blend of dark and light, quick-step and slow, funk and frenzy, this album deserves many a listen and proves that Roc could still knock any pretenders off their perches. And if this is the calibre of work emerging from RocStar recordings, it’s certainly worth exploring his bedfellows on the label!