In the years leading up to Eat Biscuits, Jus Rival’s run was relentless. There were memorable clashes, solid singles, entertaining projects and collaborations with some of grime’s best artists in that period. This meant that anyone following the MC at the time would’ve noticed his sudden absence from around 2013 – which only felt that way because of the form he was on prior, but in 2015, the Headshot Season champion returned with a project that’s proven to be a classic in his career and aged to become one of grime’s most well-formed outings.
Eat Biscuits is packaged the way you’d expect a box of assorted cakes to be. The artwork by Konrad Clough fits, and although it’s far from a box of baked treats, the project is a rare kind of collection where every piece featured is impressive; 9 different producers are behind its 10 tracks, and Jus Rival’s bringing together of several talents to create something that’s sonically seamless is an underrated achievement. It follows a neat path that comes full circle by the end.
The intro tells us what Jus Rival wants from life and his desire for success, but it also notes day-to-day challenges.
Nothing ain’t Mary in my land . . . I come from rags, f*** a Rich Tea.
This, along with Jus Rival’s almost philosophical questioning of life’s imbalances and his vehement disassociation with anything deceitful and inauthentic, are the strongest threads in the release, with tracks like Window, Said to Me and Soul Speech being clear illustrations of this.
Kids all in estates end up in a state of mind that creates or misbehaves.
You let the heartless get rich and let all these good-hearted people suffer, and that’s crazy, I’m living a nightmare, hoping for a daydream to let my mind wonder from the pain, please.
I’ve been out here, in this music scene trying to get it, but the truth is I don’t get it: I think most of these man are pathetic.
Eat Biscuits routes us through the course the title track sets up, and it’s nuanced, like how its careful beat selection ensures listeners aren’t thrown out of rhythm when enjoying the package of songs, which is an example of how the project’s form is its greatest strength. It’s filled with confrontation, Alright, which includes a brilliantly vicious contribution from Blay Vision, vexed conversations with God – Said to Me, featuring Casey Lim and Ghetts, and both an exasperation at and celebration of grime music – Victory and Soul Speech. After Midnight Love cooly describes an unfaithful relationship, the album touches on the brightness it opened with in Young ‘n’ Lean, featuring Dubz D, and closes with absolute hope in the beautiful Come True, where Jus Rival and Brook Bailli talk about their wish to achieve what was said on the intro.
Been underrated so long I’m just waiting for the day that they all start hearing me.
Eat Biscuits has become a signifier of the permanence Jus Rival would go on to have, and since its release, the artist has continued to innovate the grime MC role with the BISC Series and his Optics & Design concept. It’s one of several projects that don’t receive the acclaim they warrant, but this doesn’t affect its status as a brilliant example of everything aligning in music and its potential to be something that garners praise as time goes on.