Check this out: last time we saw a solo Rishi Rich album, Juggy D was bald and Jay Sean hadn't decided who he wanted to dance with yet. That was in 2002 and on Bally Sagoo's Ishq label. Madness, huh? Since then Rishi has become then intelligent face of British Asian pop and been involved in albums from Jay, Juggy and Veronica, as well as doing a zillion and one remixes for artists with the calibre of Craig David, Britney Spears and Madonna. About time he gave us some of his own stuff, don't you think?

'The Project' is a big release and that means you can get in HMV, so as you would expect there are full album credits, some nice photography and no shoddiness that you would normally expect from an Asian album.

The money spent on the actual product is matched by the collaborative artists: influence from the urban side of things comes from JD (formerly of So Solid Crew), Mr Phillips and Alison Hinds (two of the latest talents out of the dancehall scene), Chhya (who does bits in French) J2K and Babyblue (from the world of grime) and soul singer Sol. The array of talent from the desi scene is also big. We have Juggy D, Master Rakesh, Jassi Sidhu, Silinder Pardesi, Josh, Aamir Khan, Veronica and from somewhere in between those worlds is Jay Sean. But also, big props to Rafaqat Ali Khan, a Qawalli singer who does an outstanding job on all his tracks adding yet another angle of attack for Rishi to come from.

Rishi has further developed a new sub-genre, which Tigerstyle experimented with originally, on this album: bhangraton. Daddy Yankee and his friends blew up the entire Western hemisphere with anthems like 'Gasolina' and the Latin/West Indian hybrid was always going to get a desi twist, and the right man for the job took it. Rishi has created something which has energy, vibes but retains some heritage and he has definitely found his hole in our market.

After a nice introduction, we get into things properly with 'Flipmode', featuring JD's dancehall splurts and Des-C from the Mentor Kolectiv with the Punjabi vocals. It's a grinding tune and although the sounds are nice, I'm not feeling this. Technically, it's very good with some good sounds and production skills, but the tempo is too slow for it to be big. JD sounds like he's circling a roundabout on the hooks, but Des-C sounds very mature and powerful, and his verse is a real highlight.

Juggy D and Jay Sean are unleashed on track three, 'Push It Up (Aaja Kurieh)' - the bhangraton version. This is what we will know as classic Rishi Rich. An up-tempo reggae undertone, some nice R&B singing from Jay and Juggy D with the catchy chorus in a light tenor and it's a sure fire hit. I loved this from start to end, it sounds well recorded and engineered, and although the instruments all seem to come from Rishi's back catalogue, it sounds very fresh.

Track three is also top drawer. This time its Canadian duo Josh and Rafaqat Ali Kahn lending a hand to a unique flavour of Bollywood, Qawali and quick Reggaeton. 'Teri Masti' is like nothing I've heard before, it's so cool I struggle to find words to describe it, but it's a guaranteed floor filler at parties and I simply can't fault it.

The levels stay high for number four, 'Stomp!' which is a pressure R&B club track which will make the crowd stomp. After a creepy intro, the stomp drops and JD sounds much better than he did on the earlier track over the sickle produkkie. Jay Sean explodes with the second drop with his rap singing adding some nice content, ("ok, is it true that they won't play, certain music on the radio and won't say, which one, had a problem with this drum, you know the tabla the one that Timbaland loves….it's tacky when we use it" and I swear he sends for Raghav in this tune about people getting them two mixed up - Asian R&B clash, bring it!) but my question is why does Jay Sean hype up so much hate around himself. Don't worry about no-one else Jay, just do your thing innit! Mr Phillips' more husky voice is also all over this and the raga style is merking. Not a very Asian track but it's top quality in all areas. Now stomp!!

Jay gets a track to himself next on the more desi sounding 'Come Here', although all the vocals are in English. The chord sequence isn't great here and although each individual sound is nice the whole production doesn't quite come together. Jay sounds great on the verses though, demonstrating his vocal athleticism but the hook is a bit weak, especially when it sounds like he says "girl I wanna spit in your ear." and this guy gets loads of girls; I must be doing something wrong.

The bhangra crowds have not been catered for yet, but things change totally with 'Bhare Bazar' which has Master Rakesh on firing form. This is my favourite track on the whole album, it flows, has a dhol, Rakesh sounds great and Rishi has made a masterpiece of happy music. Whatever he did to that tumbi to make it sound like that I don't know but it's genius and I don't know where to start with Rakesh. This guy is so talented; he can sing all types of songs but is most at home on these up-tempo happy numbers. Bang this on repeat and play it loud!!!

We get back to the bhangraton vibe for 'Roll It Gal' featuring reggae vocals from Alison Hinds and Juggy keeping it Punjabi. This is a complete mashment of a groove and Hinds leads the dance in a soulful and passionate style. Rishi has brought out his favourite tumbi sound for this, but the dhol breaks are good and Juggy's "aaja tu aaja heereay" are shouting to be echoed. More outstanding positive vibes.

Rishi then drops one of those meaningless interludes that settle you down a bit before the next track and it does come at a good time as the pressure of the last few tracks needs relieving. Make an album, not a collection of songs.

The rhythmic tantra of 'Aj Kal' comes next as the track numbers reach double figures. Veronica and Juggy supply the vocals on this track which is fairly old and was released on the self-entitled DVD a while back but finally gets a proper CD release. Strict beats, fluid singing and a nice chorus make this a good song but boundaries have already been pushed and that means this sounds normal here.

We get our second fully Punjabi track with Des-C coming back on a bhangraton riddim for 'Majajneh (Too Stoosh)'. The authority we heard in his voice on the first song is not so prevalent and that gives big detriment to this track. The taal is alright but a bit repetitive, and when Des C's voice gets doubled it seems too obvious.

Track twelve is 'Sorry' and a solo plinth for Rafaqat Ali Khan. It's an urban qawalli combo and is a real showpiece for the vocal as the beats are dubbed down and empty enough for him to fill them how he pleases. It's very fresh to hear urban music united with such a different style and Rafaqat's talents make this work.

The tempo raises for the entry of Chhaya, who appears alongside Juggy D on 'Do What You Like'. This is a bit of filler, but a decent one all the same. R&B style and some Panjabi vocals from Juggy.

Our second interlude comes next, with Juggy humming some sweetness over a slow jam, before we get what is one of several puzzling collaborations.

Rishi teams up So Solid's JD and Jassi Sidhu on 'Maar Sootiya.' I guess this is a matchup of two fallen great teams and on their own I think they both do well, but Rishi's production favours JD. Anyone who has read one of my reviews featuring Jassi Sidhu will know he is one of my favourite singers and is immensely talented, but on this slower urban beat I can't hear the same passion he has over the desi stuff. It is the job of a producer to utilise the talents in his vocalists and Rishi disappoints me on this one.

Grime music is one of the fastest growing underground genres in the UK at the moment, and since the success of Dizzee Rascal a few years back, London unfairly had only Kano and Wiley who have become big One of the biggest nearly men is J2K who has been grinding for a while in the scene alongside Crazy Titch in the Alliance before Titch got locked up again and J2K now finds himself spitting lyrics for a producer who has never done grime before. The beat is a bit too incessant and doesn't match J2K's decent one-line flow and there's not enough sublow to make this a good crossover of genres. Babyblue fares better (but normally struggles on the grimier beats) and Silinder Pardesi appears to whisper some desiness into the mix. Desi grime can be massive, but not like this.

Veronica gets her own tune next on the vocally challenging and lyrically challenged 'Tera Bina' when she stakes her claim as the number one British Asian soprano. It's nice, production is crisp and inventive but there's not enough vocabulary.

A final interlude - again of top class production - comes before 'Please Me', the final track. This sees Sol and Aamir Khan (not the boxer!!) supply vocals, with the R&B man giving a nice portion of soul but his qawalli colleague can't quite match his levels. It's nice and relaxing, although Rishi's bass carries a bit too much doom. It's alright though and a pleasant finish.

The Project has got everything: big party tunes, experimental beats, big vocals, a positive message and most importantly, plenty of happy vibes. Most of the cast live up to their big (or growing) reputations and they more than make up for the couple of disappointments. Although reggaeton seems to have been and gone in the mainstream, Rishi's bhangraton style is fabulous. What's more is that you get a massive 19 songs (three are interludes but that's nothing) and offers outstanding value for money. The Project is the best example of British Asian urban music in recent years and means that you must go out and support in the big shops. This gets the proud award of 8.5 out of 10.