UK Cup Clash 2006
Publication date : Wednesday, April 19th 2006 - 12 922 views UK Cup Clash 2006
8 April 2006,
Stratford Rex, London, UK.
The sound system event of the year in Europe, the UK Cup Clash offered, for its 5th edition, a wide-open competition with some of the best sounds on the planet. On the bill at the Stratford Rex, seven challengers ready to fight it out for a trophy and an unmissable date for clash fans.
 The night opens with two rather sad pieces of news. First, Mighty Crown will not be coming, following the death of Simon and Sammy's father. The 2005 winner, the Japanese sound has not only won the English trophy twice but is also the most assiduous participant in the UK Cup, present since the creation of the event in 2002. The absence of the Japanese will therefore be sorely felt.
The other big absentee of the night will be Squingy, the regular MC of Bass Odyssey. Also absent from the World Clash, his return to the stage had nevertheless been announced, while rumours were circulating about his health. That is why the organisers dispelled all doubts by announcing that Squingy has throat cancer and is currently undergoing treatment.
The sounds in competition:
LP INTERNATIONAL: Back in the clash business, the veteran Brooklyn sound is determined to restore its reputation. Winners of the Riddim clash, the sound led by Puma and Terror on the mike still has to prove itself after several years away from the highest level.
KING TUBBY'S HI FI: The selection of the English representative was particularly tight this year. King Tubby's, a veteran London sound formed in Brixton in the 1970s, narrowly won its ticket to the clash. A judicious choice that will certainly please an English audience that had long been asking for the presence of a big name.
BASS ODYSSEY: After their relative fiascos the previous year, at the UK Cup and the World Clash, the St Ann sound fully intends to make a splash this year. In the absence of Squingy, Worm will be in charge, as at the World Clash, of animating the Bass Odyssey selection.
TROOPER SOUND: Through defeats and victories, Ricky Trooper, the former selector of Killamanjaro, has built up a small solo track record and well-filled boxes that earned him his participation. His main objective will be to establish himself as the official representative of Jamaica in an inevitable duel with Bass Odyssey.
SENTINEL: Winner of the World Clash 2005, the Stuttgart sound is eagerly awaited in England, the English public wanting to see in their turn what the German phenomenon is worth.
X-TA-C 4 X 4: The second English sound qualified for the cup, 4x4 XTAC, after Klassique and Immortal, will perpetuate the tradition of Birmingham sounds involved in the battle. The young crew nevertheless won the "Winner takes it all", thus securing their ticket to the UK Cup. They are expected to come and tickle their elders from Brixton.
After the draw, an unmissable duo steps on stage to host the battle: the twins of Twins of Twins will thus be the official presenters of this clash.
Report written by Benoit Georges
Tags : UK (52), Soundclash (89), Sound system (191)
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Round 1
Publication date : 04-19-2006 
ROUND 1 (dubplates - 10 minutes)
Bass Odyssey
DJ Mark and Worm take their places on stage. The latter sets the tone by paying tribute to his mentor, Squingy, whose outfit he has even borrowed: black suit and white shirt. He climbs onto the tallest speaker, harangues the crowd and launches the selection with an a cappella by Anthony B that sets the hall on fire. The sound first bets on "one drop" classics in clash versions that work well for them: Gyptian Serious time, Warrior King, then a regular juggling on the Season with Fantan Mojah, Natural Black, Wayne Wonder and again Gyptian, Fantan Mojah or Capleton. The pressure goes up a notch with the famous juggling on the Fresh riddim with Sizzla Nah apologize and Vybz Kartel. Bass Odyssey finally ventures into the clash with a speech aimed at Ricky Trooper and a Richie Spice Youths a so cold. The round closes on the Sweat riddim with Bounty Killer and Capleton's hit Toppa ting. The crowd reacted very well to this opening round and to Worm's Squingy-style animation.
King Tubbys
The Brixton sound presents itself with an a cappella by Twins of Twins, then launches a good dub by Beres Hammond on the Engine 45 riddim before moving on to a few "one drop" novelties such as Chuck Fender Dash dem and light dem or Bounty Killer Ganster love on the Istanbul riddim. King Tubbys takes a while to warm up: the speeches on the mike are a little hesitant and the sound even allows itself a few pull-ups without any real support from the crowd, as on a Buju Banton dub Hey bwoy on the 85 riddim. They continue with dancehall novelties with Beenie Man We set the trend, Buju Banton Over me on the Nukie riddim and Beenie Man again for Heart attack on the Global to finish the round.
Sentinel
The full Stuttgart crew steps on stage. Elmar, the MC, first pays tribute to Mighty Crown, regretting their absence, then announces that Sentinel will play "tunes fi money". The selection starts very strong with Jah Cure True reflection, which gets a very big forward, Wayne Wonder for Love and affection on the Istanbul riddim and Jah Cure again with a special version of Love is, turned into "war is". The crowd reacts very well and the sound therefore continues with "one drop" hits, with Marlon Asher Ganja farmer and Fantan Mojah with Mr Flash "Ruler of the dance". Elmar then addresses Trooper in particular with Nanko Lucky you. Sentinel finishes its round on bashment with their celebrated dub of Baby Cham Ghetto story, Beenie Man Come again and finally Damian Marley's Khaki suit, which puts heavy pressure on the dance. At the end of the first round, Sentinel therefore clearly takes the upper hand over the previous performances.
Sound Trooper
Ricky Trooper on the mike replies directly to Sentinel but is booed immediately. He launches an a cappella, then replies with Nanko (unfortunately name-checking David Rodigan), Richie Spice Earth a run red, then Wayne Wonder and Bounty, without managing to get the crowd up. Having dismissed his selector, Trooper carries on alone, but even a furious Bounty Killer dub on the Cuss Cuss, in the Killamanjaro style, has no effect. Without losing his composure, Trooper launches a segment of new tunes name-checking people, with Daville New friend. He finishes with what he announces as a counteraction to Ghetto story, still to the boos of part of the audience. Although this first round is non-elimination, the least one can say is that it was laborious for Trooper!
 LP
The Brooklyn sound launches Robert Lee Bang bang by way of introduction. The name-checking version does not forget Mighty Crown, incidentally. Puma and Terror continue with a juggling of classic dubs on the Far East riddim: the Cocoa Tea and Buju Banton combination, which earns a forward, then Luciano "LP sound a come from Brooklyn", Chuck Fender Haffi win and Singer J. LP also go for "one drop" with a slightly dated juggling on the Hard Time (I-Wayne then Capleton). Terror, the MC, decides to kick a man when he's down and goes for Trooper with Jah Mason Princess gwann. The sound finally returns to a classic selection with Half Pint Crazy, Garnett Silk Complain and Bounty Killer, all on the Stalag. They finish their round with a name-checking bashment selection.
X-Ta-C 4x4
The Birmingham crew is by far the youngest of the clash. If we are surprised to see them so early, their selection quickly dispels any doubts. Strong on the mike, they start with a custom a cappella to the tune of God save the Queen and then continue with a "badman" selection with Nitty Kutchie, Terror Fabulous and Utan Green. Dubs one is more used to hearing in New York than in Birmingham. The sound nevertheless gets "badman forwards" and continues with a juggling on the Taxi riddim with Marcia Griffiths, Sanchez and Frisco Kid. At this stage, having already done better than the veterans of King Tubbys, the MC can claim to be the only representative of the United Kingdom. They reply to Bass Odyssey with a juggling on the Punany with Hawkeye, Buju Banton Boom bye bye and Top a di top. They finish their round with dancehall, with a novelty on the Galore riddim.
The first round, even if it is never very revealing since it is non-elimination, was largely dominated by Sentinel and then by Bass Odyssey. The other sounds are more or less level, though with Sound Trooper lagging behind. Twins of Twins, visibly surprised to see a woman in the ranks of the fighters, cannot help inviting her to say a word on the mike. After a few jokes, they launch the second round.
Report written by Benoit Georges
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Round 2
Publication date : 04-19-2006
ROUND 2 (dubplates - 10 minutes)
Bass Odyssey
The Jamaicans set off at a gallop again with an already well-known acoustic version by Tanya Stephens. The rest is very classic, with Bounty Killer on the Real Rock and a juggling of Sizzla on the Heavenless riddim (Clean up your heart and Holding firm). DJ Mark logically follows with an old-school Bounty Killer selection, a real speciality of the sound: on the Duck or the Punany, they fire off four or five different lyrics, then move on to more recent lyrics from the Warlord, on the Mud Up, which marks the end of their round. A low-risk but good-quality selection that was nonetheless more than enough for the crowd to qualify them.
King Tubby's
King Tubby's MC announces that he will not talk much but will let the others do it. He then launches Garnet Silk Keep dem talking on the Promise Land riddim, a tune that suits his argument perfectly and lifts the Stratford Rex. They then follow with a combination "you've never heard no sound like dis" or Barrington Levy for Sound killer. The second half of the round is characterised more by bashment, with Bounty Killer on the Sick followed by a rather old combination of Bling Dawg and Beenie Man. They continue on the Duck with two other Bounty Killer dubs, including A killer is a killer. The Brixton duo ends its set on the Sweat riddim, notably with a name-checking dub of Twins of Twins.
Sentinel
Elmar's first speech is aimed at Trooper, whom he takes on rather nastily. The sound starts its selection with YT Wicked act then Luciano Serve Jah. That will be all for the reggae segment. The rest is indeed "strictly dancehall": a name-checking Vybz Kartel, which gets a few forwards, and Bounty Killer Mad and psycho, all on the 85 riddim. Elmar then asks whether the crowd wants to hear Busy Signal. The answer being fairly favourable, he drops a cut by the artist. To show that it is not outdone by Bass Odyssey and X-Ta-C, the sound also sends out a "special battyman" selection with Shabba Ranks and Admiral Bailey, followed by Bounty Killer then Beenie Man. They close their rather mixed session on the Galore riddim with Capleton and two other Busy Signal tunes.
 Trooper
A little irritated, Trooper replies promptly to Sentinel: "dem no play no music", he says. He therefore launches Daville In heaven in a clash version for a good forward. He then goes into more classic dubs with Courtney Melody Dangerous, then a very good dub of the all-too-rare Robert Ffrench No ruff like we, which sets the hall alight. On the Skank I Sheck riddim, he sends out a classic Killamanjaro dub, Johnny Clarke "Trooper can fear no one". Replying to Bass Odyssey, who had said they had a big family to feed, Trooper plays Half Pint Two to one, then another dub on the Tempo and an excellent Sizzla. All these tunes get good reactions from the crowd. The round then ends on Vybz Kartel.
LP
Puma and Terror pull out good dubs in this round without managing to turn the tide. They start with Carl Meeks, name-checking, then Horace Andy before playing Keith and Tex, Stop that train in a clash version that they follow with Vybz Kartel. On the Punany riddim, where they are particularly well stocked, they offer Burro Banton, then two Wayne Wonder and Buju Banton combinations, including Story of a sound. Still in bashment, they continue with Capleton, Bounty, Bascom X Just one to finish on another Buju Banton.
X-Ta-C 4x4
The English sound quickly follows on from LP, staying very present on the mike thanks to Yardie K the MC. They begin their set on Buju Banton and then with a selection of Bounty Killer on the Sleng Teng, Beenie Man and Baby Cham on the Duck. The round is not very exciting otherwise, but the sound is still fairly well received.
It is time for the vote. The two Twins of Twins take the mikes again to ask the crowd to eliminate a sound. From our point of view, the choice seemed fairly tight, but the crowd decides to knock out LP. The English public is said to be very fond of fine voices, so this one did not give a chance to a sound that was rather well equipped for this style of round.
Report written by Benoit Georges
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Round 3
Publication date : 04-19-2006
ROUND 3 (Dubplates "Strictly vocal" - 10 minutes)
Bass Odyssey
Bass Odyssey therefore opens this round, specially dedicated to male and female singers. The selection is very classic, with no particular effort on the animation. Many anthems are played and receive a good welcome: Cocoa Tea "We kill dem know" then Time will tell, Sanchez on the Far East for Here I am, Cocoa Tea again for We do the killing then Bushman with Fire bun a weak heart. Still among the classics, DJ Mark and Worm play Gregory Isaacs, Beres Hammond twice, Barrington Levy Here I come, a Beres Hammond and Marcia Griffiths combination, to finish with a sumptuous Bob Andy dub. A selection that certainly holds up but is low-risk. The crowd therefore follows, no problem...
King Tubby's
King Tubby's have a good card to play in this vocal round and that is what they do with Junior Tucker, then two very good Beres Hammond tunes and finally Marcia Griffiths in combination with Bob Andy. The crowd follows fairly well on these big tunes, which encourages the sound to continue in this direction. A magnificent dub of the Abyssinians' Satta follows, then Michael Rose Shine eye girl. Finally the resident sound launches Freddy McGregor, Key to the city, a dub that is not lacking in aptness. Two Jah Cure tunes follow, including Rastaman chant, before finishing on Garnett Silk with Vex.
 Sentinel
After mocking King Tubbys and his "Queen Elizabeth round", the Germans launch an a cappella by Cocoa Tea, which they follow with the dub Israel king. They mix the tunes quickly without worrying too much about building an argument on the mike. We thus hear Samy Dread M-16, Luciano where Elmar accuses Trooper of begging for his dubplates, Sanchez twice, Little Hero Inna the ghetto and Maxi Priest for a substantial forward. They continue with four Beres Hammond tunes, including Putting up resistance and the all-too-rare Love from a distance, mixed with Sugar Minott or Marcia Griffiths "killing a sound is so easy to me" and with Dennis Walks for the original Drifter. They finish this successful round with Third World 96° "in the dance".
Trooper
Ricky Trooper almost apologises in advance, saying he is the youngest sound remaining in the competition. He nevertheless delivers a good performance, starting with a Paddy Roots dub "You try to conquer Sound Trooper", then Leroy Sibbles Fight to the top, dubs much appreciated by the crowd. But that is not all that awaits: Trooper launches two incredible Melodians dubs back to back, You don't need me and Queen Majesty. While he announces Don Carlos, he plays another dub on the Billie Jean and then John Holt: "Pick up your dubs and throw it away!" He does not forget Cocoa Tea either, so as not to be left behind, and follows with Willie Williams, then Junior Byles for a nicely cut Fade away, before finishing on a legendary King Jammy's dub, Brian & Tony Gold Pass me a dubplate, to answer Sentinel.
X-Ta-C 4x4
The young sound launches into the battle of the vocals with Beres Hammond for Sentinel, Cocoa Tea, then Morgan Heritage, Beres Hammond Come down father, Dawn Penn No, no, no and once again Cocoa Tea for Eighteen and over. The MC is rather aggressive and gives voice, sometimes to excess. The crowd follows the selection well even if the tunes played are classics already recorded by many sounds, like Gregory Isaacs My number one, John Holt Stealing, then a custom on Police in helicopter or Anthony Johnson Sound clash. A little originality finally arrives with Mighty Diamonds I need a roof, then Bob Andy for My time and an Errol Dunkley dub with Ok Fred. Their set concludes with an Ethiopians classic, Everything crush.
At the end of this 3rd round, we already imagine a fairly tight vote because all the sounds got some reaction from the crowd. The twin presenters hardly make the vote easier, asking the crowd to make noise for the sounds that should stay. It is hard to judge the result depending on whether you look at the pit, the balcony or the noisiest supporters, who boo or cheer. A show of hands with the lights on would have been welcome. The duel comes down to XTC and King Tubby's.
In the end, it is King Tubby's who must leave the clash. The London representative will therefore have lasted less long than the little brother from Birmingham!
Report written by Benoit Georges
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Round 4
Publication date : 04-19-2006
ROUND 4 (Dubplates - 10 minutes)
Bass Odyssey
The St Ann sound has been fairly steady so far, without taking too many risks. Worm steps up with a fine array of swear words, warning that he will have to be careful afterwards. They open their set with Buju Banton, Turbulence Notorious, then a counteraction of Wayne Wonder's Love and affection, turned into "Guns and ammunition" and aimed at Sentinel, all on the War riddim. Worm then goes down into the crowd to liven up the rest, which promises to be bashment, with Bounty Killer on the Mudd up and two custom dubs by Vybz Kartel on the same riddim. Bass Odyssey carries on with an a cappella by Beenie Man and finally Baby Cham on the Sick. They then aim dedicated tunes at Trooper on the brand-new Wipe out riddim: two Buju Banton cuts, the first of which boils down to a single phrase, "suck your muma", while the second simply calls him a "bomboclat". Fired up, Worm asks the crowd: "do you know what Squingy would be playing if he were here?". He then pulls up the Love punany bad riddim for a selection with General B, then Assassin Anywhere we go and, to finish, Eek a Mouse with his personalised lyrics on the Khaki suit, once again addressed to Trooper's mother.
Sentinel
Twins of twins seem particularly unhappy about the elimination of King Tubby's, and even turn on the audience, accusing it of having kept Sentinel in. The mood calms down a little and Sentinel starts its selection on an almost soca riddim, running Vybz Kartel Never, Assassin, then Sizzla and Beenie Man. They follow with a counteraction by Anthony Johnson, "You will never win the sound clash / Cause you a flex like an idiot". The sound also does not hesitate to play Biltmore artists on the same riddim, with Bounty Killer, Lieutenant Stichie on the Real Rock, then Bunny Lye Lye with "Pass me a dubplate". They continue in this vein with Courtney Melody, Pinchers Enemy, Ninjaman, Shabba Ranks Get up, stand up and rock and Pinchers again. They even play a New York anthem, by Yankee B and Red Fox on the Sick. The sound closes its round with a dub of Sugar Minott's Mr DC turned into King fish, along with John Holt's Police in helicopter, accusing Trooper of being an "informer".
Trooper
Ricky Trooper answers John Holt directly with a custom dub of Errol Dunkley. He then hits back with a combination of Buju Banton and Beres Hammond, then Sugar Minott combined with Sizzla on Never give Jah up, and finally Barrington Levy My woman, Jah Cure and Sizzla on the same riddim. He then drops a custom dub of Cugga War on the Baddis in praise of London's bad boys, and finishes with a more new-roots selection featuring Warrior King and I-Wayne, among others.
 X-Ta-C 4x4
The youngest crew give everything they have in this round. They pull up the Real rock for Gregory Isaacs, then Tristan Palmer Entertainement. With LP absent, they also allow themselves some New York juggling, with a mix on the Answer between Chronicle In the name of the Lord, Baby Wayne, then Bounty Killer Top a top. They then carry on in the same style with the Punany riddim for Junior Cat, Killin pussy and Vybz Kartel, Jersey. The end of the round sees a run on the Showtime riddim with Beenie Man Hypocrites, Bounty Killer and finally Ninjaman. The last dub played is Perfect on a dancehall riddim.
The audience votes again, more decisively this time, and fairly quickly eliminates X-Ta-C 4x4, who played a level below the originality shown notably by Bass Odyssey.
Report written by Benoit Georges
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Round 5
Publication date : 04-19-2006
ROUND 5 (45s - 10 minutes - No profanity)
 Bass Odyssey
Worm announces that this year he will not be eliminated for a bad word. Almost certain to reach the dub-fi-dub, Bass Odyssey does the essentials with a fairly consensual set on CD, opening with the Wailers' Funeral, then Peter Tosh's Legalize it, Bob Marley again with Bad card and Buffalo soldier dedicated to Squingy. They continue with a 90s badman selection, with Terry Ganzie, several Bounty Killer tunes, Terror Fabulous, Shabba Ranks, Louie Culture and Supercat. The set ends with Garnett Silk Mama Africa, Sanchez Man with the handle and Gregory Isaacs for Love is overdue.
Sentinel
Sentinel, who select vinyl, point out Bass Odyssey's use of CDs. And since they cannot swear, they let Peter Tosh do it for them with Bumboclatt. They then string together some very fast juggling, with few speeches: The Slicers Johnny too bad, Desmond Dekker, Jimmy Cliff and Prince Buster Hard man fi dead. Moving on to the 70s, they play Jacob Miller Tenament yard, Culture International herb, then Ini Kamoze World a music. They finish on Barry Brown, Barrington Levy and Burning Spear.
Trooper
Trooper, who also plays CDs, pulls up the Heavenless riddim with Half Pint and Supercat, then Garnet Silk for Splashing dashing. He then moves into more hardcore selections with a remix of Vybz Kartel or Sizzla Rise to the occasion. He goes after Bass Odyssey, claiming the trophy. Unlike Sentinel, he is rather talkative and speaks about his five children waiting for him in Jamaica. He plays an appropriate Sizzla tune, "Breed dem, feed dem", before finishing on two classics: Anthony B Raid di barn and Sizzla Holding firm. Throwing the "informer" accusation back at Sentinel, Trooper ends his set on Black Uhuru Sensimilia.
It is quite logical that the audience picks the two Jamaican sounds to face each other in the dub fi dub. Trooper in fact used a selection and speeches very well suited to the Jamaican-origin crowd, rather like Black Kat in previous years.
DUB FI DUB
1- Bass Odyssey: Admiral Tibet Serious time
1- Trooper announces that he has the counteraction and pulls out Admiral Tibet's Serious time identically!
2- Bass Odyssey: The Techniques You don't care
2- Trooper Things a come up to bump The Ethiopians
3- Bass Odyssey: Ken Boothe When I fall in love
3- Trooper: Culture Jah Jah see
4- Bass Odyssey: Garnett Silk Oh me oh my
4- Trooper: Carlton Livingston Troddin
5- Bass Odyssey: Jimmy Cliff Many rivers to cross
5- Trooper: Leroy Gibbon This magic moment
6- Bass Odyssey: Errol Dunkley Movie star
6- Trooper: Earl Sixteen "I need a sound that control me"
7- Bass Odyssey: Dennis Brown Too much informer
7- Trooper: Wailing Souls
8- Bass Odyssey: Wailing Souls Old broom
8- Trooper: Sugar Minott (booed)
9- Bass Odyssey: Jimmy Cliff The harder they come
9- Trooper congratulates Bass Odyssey on its dub and looks for a tune to play: Toots Bam bam (boos)
10- Bass Odyssey calls on Squingy one last time and plays Scion Success Don't dead already
10- Trooper: Cornell Campbell
 Worm seizes the cup while DJ Mark dedicates it to Squingy: "we made a mistake last year but we have put it right", he says.
Squingy's absence was the common thread of the night, and Worm only had to mention Squingy's name to get appreciable responses from the crowd. It is therefore hard to see this victory as anything other than a tribute win for Squingy. Trooper, after a very difficult first round, showed that he was capable of the best, even if his somewhat untidy selection cost him a dub-fi-dub that was well within his reach.
Sentinel, who finish third, made a strong impression on the English audience, who were able to judge their professionalism, despite a certain arrogance that sometimes worked against them.
One can nevertheless reproach this 5th edition of the UK Cup with a general lack of arguments during the clash and very little novelty. The absence of Mighty Crown is certainly partly to blame, but Bass Odyssey, who played first, played very classic, dragging the other sounds along in its wake.
The big surprise will ultimately remain the elimination of LP and then of King Tubby's, who, according to the comments of London spectators, paid for their lack of regular presence on the local scene.
Report written by Benoit Georges
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