Macca, Winners Only - album review

His debut EP - Winners Only - has its heart on its sleeve. Full of odes to hard work, the music scene and the wider society he sees on a daily basis it is a brutally and personally honest account to the life he has lived.

Big beats, machine gun percussion and fast-paced vocals are the order of the day. Macca is passionate about grime and he wants everyone to feel the same.

He knows about dedication to his craft. This EP, as well as the accompanying music videos, press releases and promotional materials, are all his own work. He funds it all, promotes it himself and relies on the local scene to help it grow through downloads, streams and word of mouth.

There's a lot of balls-out swagger below the music. We Love Grime uses repeated refrains to slam its message home, one man's story sounds like it's being reverberated by dozens as fractured bass slips in and out underneath like a stowaway at a house party.

Playtime's Over also utilises the bass beats to build the angtsy feeling of the track. Softer-accompanied verses give listeners a break from the deep cauldron of noise before it slaps back in during the chorus to hit the eardrums hard.

Booming spine-punchers poke through Make It Look Easy too - a collaborative effort with Don Menna, Casper and J1. Here, the vocalists attack their sections with differing speeds, changing the tempo of the track from one to next. It keeps it fresh and keeps you guessing.

There's softer moments too. Tattoo Love, featuring the plush Lily Allen-esque guest vocals of Maddie, swoons around with clinking keys leading us on a merry dance. It's one of the more uplifting tracks on the EP and both vocalists work well with each other.

The whole thing is put together by Birmingham's Swifta Beater who takes the kudos for the slick, professional sound captured throughout.

Macca could have a successful solo career ahead of him based on this.

Rating: 7/10

Winners Only is available to hear on Macca's Spotify page