Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ

So you can imagine my excitement on discovering that someone has devoted an entire song to this strange condition, a song which may also contain some clue as to what may cause it, and - be still, my beating heart - a cure. Let's listen together, shall we?

Bah! Fat lot of use THAT was, apart from something about his fly.

Still, what the song lacks in proper medical advice it more than makes up for in creating a miniature history of hip hop to date, from early '80s New York block parties to LA G-funk and on to hyphee and beyond. And the way it does this is that every time Mims mentions a part of America, West Coast, East Coast, Frisco, there's a little musical motif underneath, just to show you that he knows what he's on about.

And what he is REALLY on about is how brilliant this rapper called Mims is, and how amazing he is at this hip hop thing he was just talking about there. It's almost as if the entire genre of music was created and developed and nurtured for nearly 30 years, just so we could all enjoy the singular talent of this particular artist, just as soon as he was ready to put mouth to microphone. And now - AT LAST - the moment is here, the time is right, it's...it's...MIMS O'CLOCK!

Which, by hip hop standards, is quite a modest way of putting things.

I mean, he's not setting himself up as a cure for terminal illness, is he? Or even heat-related uncomfortableness. Compared to some rap boasts, that's practically SHY...

Download: Out now
CD Released: May 28th

(Fraser McAlpine)