Album Review: BROCKHAMPTON - GINGER

6.5/10

Best Tracks: NO HALO, BOY BYE, IF YOU PRAY RIGHT

FFO: Dominic Fike, Kevin Abstract, Tyler, The Creator

The fact that BROCKHAMPTON are one of the most important and prolific rap collectives of the decade despite having only been around since 2015 is pretty impressive. Their SATURATION trilogy, in particular, is surely destined to go down in history as some of the finest hip-hop of this generation.

On their fifth studio album, GINGER, the world’s greatest boyband take a far more lo-fi, laid-back, and melodic approach to their songwriting and production. It takes inspiration from many of the most popular artists in the genre right now, but still manages not to feel derivative. From the opening acoustic plucking (and gorgeous accompanying vocal refrain) of 'NO HALO', you'll likely be able to tell if the record is for you or not; it's a stark constract from BH's tendency to kick albums off with an absolute rager (see 'BOOGIE' and 'HEAT'). There's more of a focus here on atmosphere and melody than there ever has been before.

As always, there are a number of songs, moments, and verses across the track listing that stand out more than others. In particular, the run of four featuring 'BOY BYE', 'HEAVEN BELONGS TO YOU' (a great little standalone Slowthai feature), 'ST. PERCY', and 'IF YOU PRAY RIGHT'' is really brilliant. As always, Merlyn Wood steals the show on the few tracks he appears on with his unique delivery and intonation. The same could be said for Joba, the group's incredibly entertaining "wildcard"... though unfortunately his voice is distorted by over-the-top effects half the time. Bearface, however, really steps up to the plate on this album, as the sound of the record generally better suits the singer-songwriter's vocal stylings and creative ideas. Even in rapped verses on 'ST. PERCY' and 'BIG BOY', his voice is utilised so well and to such an extent that it'd be easy to argue the case that Bearface is the standout member of BROCKHAMPTON across the whole of the record.

Personally, my biggest issue with this album is that it simply lacks the pure, boundless energy and excitement of the group's previous material. It's true that GINGER feels much more like a cohesive body of work than any of their earlier projects, but that also means that once the album hits its second half, it starts to feel somewhat one-note, and even a little dull. There was a real charm and edge-of-your-seat feeling about the way that records such as SATURATION would flit from something wild to something more considered, and vice versa. Here, though, the album loses a bit more flavour with each new autotuned melody (a trend I generally can't stand anyway) and purposefully-understated verse.

GINGER is likely to please a whole lot of BROCKHAMPTON's current fans and bring in even more new ones. It's well-made, tonally consistent, enjoyable up to a point, and offers a fairly unique take on the current hip-hop zeitgeist. For my money, though, it's their weakest LP thus far.

Album Review: Slipknot - We Are Not Your Kind

7.5/10

Best Tracks: Unsainted, Nero Forte, Red Flag, Orphan

FFO: Korn, System Of A Down, Stone Sour

When chiseling out the Mt. Rushmore of metal bands, no group in the 21^st Century can be considered more of a candidate than Iowa legends Slipknot. Perhaps the biggest truly heavy band on the planet right now, the nine-person wrecking crew continue to sell out arenas worldwide on the release of their sixth studio album. 

We Are Not Your Kind is Slipknot’s best record in 15 years. It’s unique and original, it’s huge and accessible, and it’s still heavy as fuck. Where their previous effort, .5: The Gray Chapter, failed to deliver in terms of creativity and memorable moments, WANYK makes up for it in spades. It's a reminder of what made the band such a valuable commodity early in their career, but doesn't feel like they're trying to hark back to that earlier material in a cynical manner - this is a more mature piece of work, and a reflection on all that Corey Taylor and co. have learned in their time as a band.

Still, there are moments on this album that can hold up to some of Slipknot's most iconic work. With the album’s lead single (and first track proper), ‘Unsainted’, the band have crafted a chorus destined to go down in history alongside ‘Psychosocial’, ‘Wait and Bleed’, and ‘Duality’. There’s a good helping of sure-fire future setlist staples to go alongside it: the aforementioned ‘Nero Forte’;  full-on, mosh-ready ragers ‘Orphan’ and ‘Red Flag’; even album closer ‘Solway Firth’, with its oddly-enunciated intro. Corey sounds absolutely incredible across the board for a man who has been shredding his throat for so many years, and the instrumentation around him is just as furious as it always has been - from Mick Thomson and Jim Root's iconic guitarwork to Jay Weinberg's ever-insane drumming.

As always with Slipknot, though, there are a few more experimental tracks in amongst the gems which don’t work quite as well as the rest of the record. 'Spiders', despite its weirdly catchy refrain, features a number of questionable decisions in an apparent attempt to break up the intensity of the track listing. The same can be said for 'My Pain', a pretty dull, simplistic cut backed by electronic instrumentation and showcasing the worst of Taylor's vocals. Two out of three of the interludes peppered through the record also feel a little useless; the only one which serves a purpose is the album opener, 'Insert Coin' (and even that could be removed with minimal impact). Still, these hiccups are few and far between for the most part.

Although this album might not feel as wholly unstoppable as the band’s first few records, We Are Not Your Kind is still an outstanding success for Slipknot. Whether it’s viewed from a commercial or creative standpoint, this album is proof that an arena-level band 24 years into their career can still feel current, original, and often legitimately exciting.

Album Review: Guilt Trip - River Of Lies

8/10

Best Tracks: River Of Lies, Hand Of God, Thin Ice

FFO: Year Of The Knife, Judiciary, Trapped Under Ice

Ten tracks. Twenty minutes. You know exactly what you’re going to get with the debut album from Manchester hardcore upstarts Guilt Trip, and it doesn’t disappoint in the slightest. This record is very much My Kinda Shit™, so take the following review with a pinch of salt… but don't assume that the praise is misguided.

Here, Guilt Trip take the exact same bull-headed, hot-blooded approach to heavy hardcore demonstrated on their 2016 Unrelenting Force EP and transplant it onto an LP. The production sounds bigger and fuller this time around, though, and – despite having very obvious influences from groups like Trapped Under Ice - the band have more of a grasp on their defining personality. Primarily, it's an album built around riffage; mountains of powerful, palm-muted chugging accented by fleeting solos and gnarly pinch harmonics. Each new section is another reason to mosh until you break something, especially with tempo changes so often implemented at perfect moments. The band feel like a well-oiled machine a lot of the time, motorised by a destructive rhythm section and radiating sheer, ignorant energy (mainly generated by frontman Jay Valentine).

Within the 20-minute runtime of River Of Lies, there are a plethora of memorable moments which make this not-just-another-UKHC-album; from Alex Exemption’s barnstorming guest spot on ‘Hand Of God’ to the crowdkill-worthy double breakdown at the end of ‘Deceit’. The record's true highlight, though, is 'Thin Ice' - a song so adrenalised and in-your-face that it almost feels like it's emerging from the speakers to physically beat you down. Drummer Tom Aimson shines on this track, with thumping toms, creative fills, and great usage of the ride bell giving the percussion a distinctly unstoppable feel.

This full-length debut from Guilt Trip is quite easily one of the best hardcore releases of 2019. It's a testament to the strength of the British scene, and there's no reason for you not to check it out if you're a fan of heavy music and big fuck-off riffing.