Although Kano eventually went the same way as Dizzee Rascal and left behind the grime scene that had birthed him (much to the anger and mockery of many hardcore grime fans), his early mixtapes display a talent that matches up to the others around him at the time. Beats + Bars is the pick of the bunch, and is long enough that it makes up for the artist's somewhat patchy subsequent output since. It's a shame that Kano didn't really stick to his guns, although he probably would be unwilling to trade his relative mainstream success for more releases of the quality of his first few mixtapes. Kano is a prime example of the reason why grime gradually dissipated (prior to its recent revival). Many of its leading figures saw the potential to become success stories by latching onto genres such as UK hip-hop and more generic pastiches of American styles, recognising that grime was too weird, angry and experimental to make waves on a grand scale. This explains why grime has also gradually moved towards the dance-floor, with underground club cultures generally more receptive to new and innovative sounds than the charts.
