Since the mid-80s, Simon Reynolds has been pointing out the similarities between hip-hop and rock, but still today, people stick their fingers in their ears and turn the other way. Sadly, come the end of his 20-year odyssey through the important musical movements and subcultures from 1986-2006, this includes the musicians. Morrissey might have claimed “reggae is vile”, but that didn’t stop that roots music combining with techno in the early 90s to produce a vibrant subculture.
These days white rock is happy secluding itself, while Reynolds sees it as needing to engage with black music,
