Rushden & Diamonds

“We Want Rushden” is the first single off of Volunteer Media’s highly anticipated double concept album Rushden & Diamonds : “2010″, which hits store shelves tomorrow August 10th 2010. The album is being released via Threshold Recordings / Volunteer Media and www.getmusic.ca which is Canadas version of Universal Music Group.

Get Music was who released Drakes album “Thank Me Later” back in June. ”2010″ borrows a similiar format to Prince Pauls – “Prince Among Thieves” placing a humerous storyline inbetween over 30 tracks on 2 CD’s.

A 3rd CD entitled William White – “White Out” which is a Rushden & Diamonds side project is also being released on the same day. Artists who make an appearance on “2010″ are Kutmasta Kurt, Moka Only, MC Paul Barman, Lord T & Eloise and a cameo from yours truly. A great listen! - Diary Of A Hollywood Street King

"As impressive as they come. Rushden & Diamonds have mastered their craft as original, skillful and humorous MC's who are nothing short of 100% entertainment." – Georgia Straight - The Georgia Straight

Platinum Games has gathered one hell of a talent pool, but their in-house composer (Naoto Tanaka) stands out more and more each time I hear his work. The man has the ability to tackle a bunch of different styles, but he’s at his best when he’s just allowed to be as over the top and energetic as he can. His work for the Anarchy Reigns soundtrack is easily his masterwork so far, taking a basic rap style and really going all out with the possibilities of the genre. It’s far more varied than I was originally expecting from the MadWorld score’s uniform style. It’s rough around the edges at times, but also endlessly addictive. Where it works and doesn’t work depends on the rappers being used. See, Tanaka worked on sampling the incredible backtracks and giving directions to the artists contacted, leaving them to breathe in their own personal touch, to a wide range of results.


Sick YG (returning from MadWorld) sends out his rhymes with incredible speed, and the lyrics themselves never feel stale. It’s amazing how much he manage to pack in with each of his three tracks, but he doesn’t quite manage to stand out among the rest of the artists. Tre-Dot fares better with a slightly slower style and much deeper and powerful vocals. Ruthless makes for a great introduction track, while Laughing at U and Rock On make for really upbeat and punchy tracks. The gloating in them is just flat out fun. Skitz the Samurida uses a style more in the middle ground of the two, much faster than both but at the cost of some lyrical punch. All of his tracks are solid, with Unlimited Resources sticking out as the highlight, followed close by My Town, My City. Unlimited Resources benefits greatly from the synth gluing the backtrack together, but the gloating lyrics themselves are so blunt that they work better than they should. Ox, the main artists for MadWorld, get three great tracks this go. Lights Out and Sound the Alarm stick close to MadWorld‘s jazzy sound, with Sound the Alarm acting as the stronger one by sticking closer to this style. Kill ‘Em All, sadly, gets outshined by Merciless from Theory Hazit. They each use the exact same backtrack, but Merciless has far more creative rhymes, while Ox just repeat “Kill them all” for most of their version. Theory Hazit’s other track, Here We Go, just sort of blends in with the rest of the soundtrack, despite sporting equally strong rhymes. Speaking of blending in, Wonder Brown’s two tracks manage to be solid but uninteresting on their own.

Bandy Leggz handles two tracks for some of the female members of the cast, and each are wildly different from one another and the rest of the soundtrack. I Know U Want Me is a fast paced explosion of energy with electric guitar samples, while the song itself is a strange confession of love from someone who appears to be a sado-masochist and sadist. It’s creative, while It’s All About Me goes with an extreme narcissist angle and a more poppy, distorted style. Rushden & Diamonds steal her thunder, however, when it comes to comedic music. Fast Lane is a solid fast moving track, but They Came From Underground easily takes a spot as one of the strongest tracks in the score. The song takes the view of two random researchers who mock and kill mutant creatures, throwing out a lot of clever wordplay. It helps one of them sounds like a mad German scientist and the other sounds like a white wannabe rapper, mixing perfectly with backtrack fitting a more sci-fi funk thing. Doujah Raze might have the oddest quality ratio on the soundtrack. Testin’ Me, the theme for the heroic Leo, is notable for being the most original track in the score in terms of themes and speed, but the lyrics leave a lot to be desired. They can’t seem to decide if the subject is a hardened and tired warrior or one who’s just as insane as everyone else. Plus, “Battlin’ my enemies/ till I reach my destiny” is just weak. Gotta Get The Cash somewhat makes up for this, while We Play makes a stronger case for Doujah Raze’s skill with a great use of lyrical hooks and perfect flow with the backtrack. But then you get to Find You, the final boss track, which they just blow out of the water. The lyrics and rhymes are some of the best here, while Tanaka outdoes himself by sampling oppressive choirs and tons of other oppressive sounds. I am still not sick of this song, and I have had to have listened to it a few hundred times.

muzeONE handled Jaw and Venom, both very oppressive tracks in their own right in different ways. Jaw really sounds self-confident and has the best use of hooks in the soundtrack, stopping the track itself to create a much stronger beat. Venom is much more hectic, creating a sense of urgency. The rhymes come out much faster and the siren in the back makes for a great little touch that makes that sense of urgency flow throughout the track. Josh Clemons only gets one track, but it’s a good offering called Play My Ass Off. The track was used often during the game’s early advertising, easy to see as it’s very cocky and memorable. It’s not particularly good, but it’s fun and easy to listen to whenever. Dilated Peoples, arguably the biggest names here, handled the ending track of This Is Madness. It’s a strongly structured track, with a simple but effective backtrack that lets the crew do their stuff and do it well. One complaint is that it’s a bit too on the nose with the setting of the game. Last and certainly not least is Vstylez, taking MDK’s and Days of Old, the theme of the Black Motherfuckin’ Baron! They instantly have a much more gleeful, clownish style, matching with the Baron perfectly. MDK’s makes for a blood-pumping track itself, but Days of Old stands out big time as a surprisingly well thought out song of celebration and remembering the better days. It’s just pure enjoyment trapped in two minutes and forty seconds of sound with speedy delivery.

When the soundtrack is good, it’s really, really good. It never reaches an outright bad status, but it does have predictable lows that feel more like going through the motions than anything. The soundtrack is a tad bloated as a result, but those weaker moments are still enjoyable. Since each track is relatively short, you can easily skip onto the better stuff with little fuss. With thirty-two tracks total, it’s a damn fine set, highly recommended if you enjoy some cheesy music and love rap. Even if you don’t like rap, this is a solid entry set to the genre. - Teh Pwn Shop

It's rare to find balance between comedy and artistic integrity when it comes to music. The novelty of humor has a tendency to outweigh the legitimacy of musicality and poetry. Few have succeeded in establishing this balance, though Rushden & Diamonds are one of those few. I highly suggest you take the time to soak in 2010 front to back as this record is unique, passionate, hilarious and artisicially a brilliant listen. - The Modline

2010 is a comedic conceptual double disc album that revolves around characters Michael Rushden and Karl, Lord Edward Diamonds in a not too distant future in British Columbia. The concept follows the story of a burnt out rock ‘n roller named Michael Rushden as his life makes a turn for the worse. After borrowing money off of a shady pusher ( Played by Jacky Jasper ), Michael is set up to go work in the British Properties for a reclusive parliamentarian named Karl, Lord Edward “Diamonds”. Karl, who happens to be a major figurehead in the Rap game promises to take young Michael under his wing, but with a hidden agenda. - UGS Mag

Straight out of the gate, I Am Rich by Lord Diamonds is a whirlwind of bars about nerd-culture including magicians, wizards and strangely enough, Bentley cars. It’s his first solo album and it’s obvious he wants to share his overwhelming love of all things rap and geek. Even though the word “nerd” now defines someone who has an insatiable hunger for something (whether it be cars, comic books or Nikes) Lord Diamonds is King of the Nerds in Vancouver hip hop. He paints one hell of a picture when it comes to creating a sound that has us wanting to watch Monty Python & The Holy Grail on mute while listening to “Boisenberry Benz.” In “Drive Slow,” featuring Toronto hip hop kingpin Omari Jabari and Canada-born Grim Burton, we’re trapped inside of a Rolls Royce with a trunk full of swords and daggers, with a dwarf in the backseat and Master of Castle Rap Lord Diamonds at the wheel. Turn up your headphones and please bow as we all praise this diamond in the rough.

By Camille Vega - Beat Route

Fresh off of a 10-city tour alongside Vancouver Master Castle rapper Lord Diamonds and New York heavyweight emcee Kool Keith, Michael Rushden presents us with Easy Does It Club, an eight-track EP tailored for those of us who want to ride the line between hip hop night clubs and roadside diners. “I Score With Chicks” is the perfect soundtrack for a sunset drive with the top down to nowhere in particular, with a blue-eyed blonde riding shotgun. We take a left at the corner of Don’t Give A Shit Avenue and pull off into the parking lot of the Easy Does It Club, a place where clothing is optional, legal and illegal vices are being used in excess and the girls are ready for some company. Holy cow!

By Camille Vega - Beat Route

Anarchy Reigns, or as it's known in PAL territories as Max Anarchy, has a soundtrack that is quite eclectic, featuring mostly electronica and rap. Fast Lane is part of the former category, and it is without a doubt our favorite song from the game. Rushden & Diamonds are the force behind Fast Lane. - Super Phillip Central

Vancouver, B.C. – The comical hip-hop group that goes by the name of Rushden and Diamonds released their debut album 2010 in September and the group – consisting of Karl (aka Lord Edward Diamonds) and his partner Micheal Rushden – take on nostalgic eighties rifts and beats. The background beats and rifts are so ridiculously eighties that it is immediately recognizable that these two are trying at more than just musical ability. The project is hilarity. “Tell me How you Like It Ooh” is a chivalric mock. The sexy R&B tune in the background is so evocative that it brings back memories of nineties high school dances with sweaty hands on your shoulders. One of the emcees tells his lover that he will be her “toe tapper tonight.” The two compliment each other in differentiating themselves from one another. The funny thing is about these cats is that not only are they funny, and good with wordplay, the two are fairly good emcees as far as flow goes as well. “This is Life” uses Camp Lo’s renound “Luccini” beat and Diamond’s chivalric character, and though he carries on his strange “almost English” accent as he raps, he can definitely hold his own in the world of flow.

2010, also produced by the two MCs, is a refreshing project. While so many MCs these days have no interest other than to brag and gloat about swagger and shine, these boys take a spin on all of that and the way in which they do it works. The album will at least bring a smile to your face a few times. A fantastic listen while in the car with your silliest friends.

Written by Samantha Cairns for HipHopCanada - Hip Hop Canada

Rushden & Diamonds are Michael Rushden, a leather jacket wearing, cigarette smoking badass out of your favorite 80’s popcorn flick and Lord Diamonds, his bandmate or perhaps more mysterious arch nemesis.

You might have heard of them: back in 2010 where their blend of tongue-in-cheek hip-hop caused a stir with the release of their double album debut “2010”. And, after a short absence, their follow up album, All The Right Moves – a record which lists Michael Jackson and Chic among its influences – perhaps is just the right formula to get people talking again.

The duo blend innovative synths with some amazingly recorded live instrumentation. And, somehow, by tossing together some lyrical gems, they manage to create a fresh and exciting sound which is all their own. But what makes All The Right Moves so mesmerizing is its fresh concept, outlook and spur of imagination.

Rushden & Diamonds don’t just sound like their mega pop rock influences; they think like them too! All The Right Moves is one of the few records which paves the way for the followers to come. - Kassandra Guagliardi