Jonny Virgo: Devils Brew

Jonny Virgo
Devil's Brew
Magic Eye
2007-05-01

I always thought Slick Rick’s “A Children’s Story”, though masterful, was a peculiar choice for a bedtime story. I wonder if Slick Rick honestly thought his young listeners would get a good night’s sleep after hearing this: a tale of a 17-year-old’s descent into crime (robbery, resisting arrest, kidnapping) after succumbing to peer pressure. And he gets shot and killed by the police in the end!

Well, in 2007, UK hip-hop artist Jonny Virgo brings us a different cautionary tale, but with a smooth flow and imagery every bit as haunting as Slick Rick’s. “Devil’s Brew” is an entertaining hip-hop-meets-pop affair, complete with alien abductions and possible one-night stands. That’s “possible one-night stands” because the speaker in Virgo’s rhyme can’t remember what happened the night before, all because he overindulged in alcohol. If he ever did remember, he claims the experience “would probably be censored”.

This first person account of drunken mayhem emphasizes the woes of over-consumption without coming off like a know-it-all lecture. It’s a “Don’t Do What I Did” speech, but way more fun. With two appearances of “Devil’s Brew” (an edited version and an explicit version), this single should create quite a buzz for Virgo’s debut, The Secret Diary.

RATING 6 / 10