A sticker on the ultra-fashionable pink neon CD case waxes lyrical. “*Dizzee Rascal’s* third album, Maths + English, is the most complete, intense and thrilling British hip-hop record ever made. Bar none.” Flip the case over and a rear view of the Raskit extends a middle finger skyward. Cocky he may be, but Dylan Mills (aka Dizzee Rascal) has every right to be. The Mercury Music Prize for Best Album fell into his 19 year-old lap for debut Boy In Da Corner in a year when competition was fierce – Radiohead, The Darkness, Coldplay… Where do you go from there? He designed his own shoe for Nike in 2005 and collaborated with Basement Jaxx on the single that launched a thousand imitators, Lucky Star from their Kish Kash album. Not a bad bio for a 22 year-old who grew up in a council flat in the East London suburb of Bow.

Rascal has come a long way from the minimal kick-drum and ‘Woo!’ backing that lined his grime-rhyme on Fix Up, Look Sharp. He wised up and learned a few things along the way at the institute of hard knocks. We ease into this bigged-up offering via the oozing sci-fi soundscape of World Outside. Percussive knife-sharpening and a distant siren supplies a sinister undertone as Rascal’s distinctive, vital delivery ponders, “I’m young, black, rich and ruthless, I swear some… There’s gotta be somethin’ other than this, man!” Maths + English + Philosophy.

You can run but you can’t escape down the PussyOle. A Public Enemy Fight The Power vibe is created by sampling Think (performed by Lyn Collins, written by James Brown). Old skool breakdancing meets crunking. PussyOle thankfully describes a try-hard, has-been gangsta – “My brother used to say he was a pussy undercover” – Phew! What a relief! No rest for the wicked as out blasts first single Sirens. Dirty, distorted metal guitars battle to be heard over sirens that edge ever closer. I’m starting to believe the promo’s hype! A tirade of language that would offend a sailor sprays forth and, just as I’m about to make like Missy and “Run for cover, Muthafucka!” in flows a healthy dose of stoner-backed American gangsta rap on Where’s Da G’s. The legendary Bun B and Pimp C lend their authentic flow and Rascal’s heavily-accented Souff Lunden accent, strangely, doesn’t sound out of place.

Track to track switches are as random as entering different classrooms, but all retain that unmistakably Rascal flavour. Course language doesn’t cut it when defining Suk My Dick, so perhaps don’t play it on a public sound system during the school holidays. There’s a psychedelic touch to grinding belter Flex, which begs to be remixed – “I love it when you flex like that slow, fast, up, down!” Sticking to the dancey trip, UK drum & bass maestro Shy FX lends a hand to inspire involuntary movement that would have you believe you’re in the Chemical Brother’s Do It Again video. Lyrical content in Hardback spits out industry secrets. Pay attention, peeps, Master Rascal is in session sharing tips that will take you from da garage to da stadium.

Kanye West may have got it wrong third time round by collaborating with John Mayer and Chris Martin, but Rascal only has friends with cred. His collaboration with Alex Turner, Temptation, is the highlight of an album that features no lowlights. Turner’s commentary (“Temptation greets you like your naughty mate, the one that used to get you in bother, but one you could never bring yourself to hate”) is lifted from the Arctic Monkeys’ track Temptation Greets You Like Your Naughty Friend, which features Dizzee Rascal and is the B-side for Brianstorm. Confused? All you need to know is that it’s a mutual admiration society and the beats could be lifted from Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation. Originally I thought *Lily Allen*… huh? Why not Lady Sovereign? But for Wanna B Allen is perfect – fluffy, conversational dissing is her thang and she provides a sweet contrast to Rascal’s aggressive arrogance. In this instance, Allen is more flapper than slapper and instrumentation possesses the same nursery-rhyme chime as her own material.

A bit too much blatant self-promotion of Dizzee Rascal’s own Dirtee Stank label is scattered throughout this release after continuous exposure. If that’s all the shit I can fling, you clearly must own this disc. Rascal has turned negatives into positives then multiplied and square rooted them – “…the most complete, intense and thrilling British hip-hop record ever made. Bar none.”