J-Live

Historically, nothing has ever come easy for artist J-Live, and you quickly get the sense from the opening few cuts of Then What Happened? that this fantastically under-celebrated MC is running out of patience. Live breaks down all the trials and tribulations he’s seen though three previous discs with a slight hint of bitterness on opener "One to 31” before eloquently wishing damnation on the music industry via the scratchy beat and bass combo of "Be No Slave.” The intensely clever lyricist and master storyteller shows zero slow-down as he attempts to take a step back to his classic All Of The Above disc, wrapping up one of that record’s centrepieces with "The Last Third” and reuniting with perfect mate DJ Spinna for the soulful crunch of "We Are!” Posdanous, Oddisee and Jazzy Jeff complete the soul quotient and add further weight to yet another solid release from a man that should have blown up a long time ago.