Werd, or Drew Devine is an Edinburgh based experimental hip-hop artist
His frame of reference is curious – The Voynich manuscript, astronauts and plenty of Edinburgh street life and his flow is competent, aspirational and engaging but it’s the music that is more frequently the problem.
With beat production by Sea Bass, backing tracks veer from horn samples and pitch shifted female vocals on ‘Hi, this is New’ to a sort of Brit-funk reminiscent of Stone Roses’ ‘Fools Gold’ elsewhere.
His state of the nation ‘City of Stone’ has something of a cosmic radio feel to it and is actually one of the prettier tracks on the record, returning to the synths and soul samples once more but it loses points for rhyming ‘heroin’ and ‘heroine’.
‘Just a Theory’ exposes the futility of those who just want the latest trainers, through a central metaphor about scientific progress, while ‘Let’s Funk This’ is a forgettable jam over The Stranglers’ ‘Peaches’.
Nonetheless, he gains some credit for an interesting recontextualization and clever use of his more aggressive flow on a track that turns into an attack on Christianity’s ability to co-opt elements from other systems of belief.
More generally there’s a fascination with history, fate and the dual between religion and science that is a long way from typical rap fare and all the more refreshing for it.
With Hector Bizerk and Young Fathers pushing the music to new heights, now is a good time to be part of the Scottish hip-hop scene and while Werd is not quite top notch just yet, he can spit lines sharply.
Sadly, the music rarely keeps up with his witty rhymes for long.
Words: Max Sefton
