Sleaze
Plymouth, England, United Kingdom | INDIE
Music
Press
After a busy year of holding down shows all over the country, Birmingham’s Sonnyjim of the Eat Good clique follows up an arsenal of releases from 2010 (Trading Standards remixes and instrumentals, 99% and Airtight) with the digital only package “The Long Road”.
Upon first hearing this I was unsure as to if I had downloaded the right track as the first bars start with the plucking of an acoustic guitar, 20 seconds later my fears were quashed as the wonky stuttering beat drops and Jim goes in hard.
Staying true to his mission statement Sonny takes a militant stance on his love/hate relationship with the British scene. Greasy Vinyl and Top Billin honcho Sleaze spits guest bars on the second verse, Nikki Marie has the chorus vocals while long time Eat Good and Louis Den collaborator Kelakovski laces the track with his trademark swing heavy production.
A host of remixes are available for “The Long Road” 2 dubstep reworks come from Kelatron and Kid Kaos, Australia’s Apatight sticks with the hiphop format and Tidal brings a drum and bass offering. With the retail release of “The Purple Patch” E.P.(March 6th) on the horizon and The Psychonaut LP dropping imminently, 2011 stands to be another big year for Sonnyjim. If you haven’t copped any off Sonnyjims work you must have been sleeping in a North Korean nuke facility. Things are looking glorious, go get that fam !!
Available from all decent online retailers, also check the links below for a shed load of downloads and realness.
www.eatgoodrecords.com
www.eatgoodrecords.blogspot.com
www.sonnyjim.bandcamp.com - UK HH
After a busy year of holding down shows all over the country, Birmingham’s Sonnyjim of the Eat Good clique follows up an arsenal of releases from 2010 (Trading Standards remixes and instrumentals, 99% and Airtight) with the digital only package “The Long Road”.
Upon first hearing this I was unsure as to if I had downloaded the right track as the first bars start with the plucking of an acoustic guitar, 20 seconds later my fears were quashed as the wonky stuttering beat drops and Jim goes in hard.
Staying true to his mission statement Sonny takes a militant stance on his love/hate relationship with the British scene. Greasy Vinyl and Top Billin honcho Sleaze spits guest bars on the second verse, Nikki Marie has the chorus vocals while long time Eat Good and Louis Den collaborator Kelakovski laces the track with his trademark swing heavy production.
A host of remixes are available for “The Long Road” 2 dubstep reworks come from Kelatron and Kid Kaos, Australia’s Apatight sticks with the hiphop format and Tidal brings a drum and bass offering. With the retail release of “The Purple Patch” E.P.(March 6th) on the horizon and The Psychonaut LP dropping imminently, 2011 stands to be another big year for Sonnyjim. If you haven’t copped any off Sonnyjims work you must have been sleeping in a North Korean nuke facility. Things are looking glorious, go get that fam !!
Available from all decent online retailers, also check the links below for a shed load of downloads and realness.
www.eatgoodrecords.com
www.eatgoodrecords.blogspot.com
www.sonnyjim.bandcamp.com - UK HH
The word 'mnemonic' means any learning device that aids memory, like a special word. But it can be visual in nature, which sums up nicely the creative thinking behind this solid EP from West Bromwich duo Sleaze and Sonnyjim, released on their own labels, free of major label interference.
Both rappers play off each other with kinetic chemistry whilst offering their own twist on proceedings, ably supported by some talented cameos and guests.
'Methalodical' (featuring Kosyne) has a sparring sort of a beat, conjuring up drama and meaning business, with Sleaze's West Midlands accent reppin' large throughout, hitting those end-of-sentences with authority and a cheeky swagger. The fluty head-nodder 'Work in Mnemonics' is rude boy reflective, rough and smooth, thoughtful and boastful at the same time.
The choppy bassline and rolling piano on 'What Up Now' is a club waist-swayer with SonnyJim's confident, cocky 'f----you' to other lesser rappers. 'Long Road' is the radio-ready beat with a female vocal hook from Nikki Marie. Thankfully, they don't get this marriage of beat and vocal wrong; the rhymes blend with the beat and Nikki gives the track a soulful edge to the funk.
The whole EP is nicely produced with thoughtful wordplay and some crazy soundscape samples. These add more atmosphere to what is already a heavy, undiluted U.K hip-hop EP, that should keep these dudes in the mind of heads that know where to find true rap music. - Black Sheep Magazine
The word 'mnemonic' means any learning device that aids memory, like a special word. But it can be visual in nature, which sums up nicely the creative thinking behind this solid EP from West Bromwich duo Sleaze and Sonnyjim, released on their own labels, free of major label interference.
Both rappers play off each other with kinetic chemistry whilst offering their own twist on proceedings, ably supported by some talented cameos and guests.
'Methalodical' (featuring Kosyne) has a sparring sort of a beat, conjuring up drama and meaning business, with Sleaze's West Midlands accent reppin' large throughout, hitting those end-of-sentences with authority and a cheeky swagger. The fluty head-nodder 'Work in Mnemonics' is rude boy reflective, rough and smooth, thoughtful and boastful at the same time.
The choppy bassline and rolling piano on 'What Up Now' is a club waist-swayer with SonnyJim's confident, cocky 'f----you' to other lesser rappers. 'Long Road' is the radio-ready beat with a female vocal hook from Nikki Marie. Thankfully, they don't get this marriage of beat and vocal wrong; the rhymes blend with the beat and Nikki gives the track a soulful edge to the funk.
The whole EP is nicely produced with thoughtful wordplay and some crazy soundscape samples. These add more atmosphere to what is already a heavy, undiluted U.K hip-hop EP, that should keep these dudes in the mind of heads that know where to find true rap music. - Black Sheep Magazine
Coming straight out of the Midlands, Sleaze and SonnyJim are two of the finest emcees active on the UK underground today, and for the Work In Mnemonics EP they're combining forces. For those that don't know, Sleaze has made a name for himself as an erudite and intellectually challenging emcee through his thought-provoking album Theolovision, while SonnyJim has been fighting the good fight against the clichés that dominate so much of modern hip hop, exchanging the cars, cash and concubines for tales of real life on his Trading Standards mixtape.
The order of the day on the Work In Mnemonics EP is classic, golden-era boom-bap hip hop with jazzy samples and vinyl crackle throughout. The title track closes the disc with a mournful flute drifting over a simple, sharp-snapping beat, forging an atmosphere very reminiscent of Asylum Speakers, the first album by Foreign Beggars (with whom SonnyJim has shared the stage on many occasions). Sleaze takes the first half of the track, rapping in his heavy West Bromwich brogue and jumping from rhythm to rhythm seamlessly. His is a very individual voice - he himself admits at one point "my style is very unique" - but that's precisely what gives him his appeal. SonnyJim approaches his flow in a more conventional manner, but with no less pleasing a result as he criticises the profit-driven enterprise that is the music industry.
A refreshing EP without a bandwagon in sight from this top quality collaboration. - I Like Music
Coming straight out of the Midlands, Sleaze and SonnyJim are two of the finest emcees active on the UK underground today, and for the Work In Mnemonics EP they're combining forces. For those that don't know, Sleaze has made a name for himself as an erudite and intellectually challenging emcee through his thought-provoking album Theolovision, while SonnyJim has been fighting the good fight against the clichés that dominate so much of modern hip hop, exchanging the cars, cash and concubines for tales of real life on his Trading Standards mixtape.
The order of the day on the Work In Mnemonics EP is classic, golden-era boom-bap hip hop with jazzy samples and vinyl crackle throughout. The title track closes the disc with a mournful flute drifting over a simple, sharp-snapping beat, forging an atmosphere very reminiscent of Asylum Speakers, the first album by Foreign Beggars (with whom SonnyJim has shared the stage on many occasions). Sleaze takes the first half of the track, rapping in his heavy West Bromwich brogue and jumping from rhythm to rhythm seamlessly. His is a very individual voice - he himself admits at one point "my style is very unique" - but that's precisely what gives him his appeal. SonnyJim approaches his flow in a more conventional manner, but with no less pleasing a result as he criticises the profit-driven enterprise that is the music industry.
A refreshing EP without a bandwagon in sight from this top quality collaboration. - I Like Music
Discography
Sleaze EP (2003)
Through The Haze EP (2007)
Theolovision LP (2009)
Long Road and Remixes Digital Single WITH SONNYJIM (2010)
Work In Mnemonics EP WITH SONNYJIM (2010)
Back In the Day 2002-2006 Ruff Shit (2010)
Itolism EP appearing with GV Clik (2011)
Kates Hill Movement/Winter Breeze Digital Single (2011)
Arkitectoniks LP (2011)
Greasy Plates Vol 1. Mixed By DJisGod APPEARING WITH G V CLIK (2011)
Photos
Bio
In 2003, Hip-Hop in the UK was starting to become a more feasable artform for a lot more people and Sleaze, who had been penning for years and was inspired by the new wave of rappers from his country, decided to take his hobby seriously. Fast-forward to 2011 and 4 eps, 2 albums and a mixtape later, it seems it was well worth taking seriously for the Greasy One.
Forging his own distinctive slang drawl style with book worm vocabulary and a golden era sensibility, he managed to carve a niche in the scene and is going from strength to strength. Establishing his record label, Greasy Vinyl, in 2007 to release his own and his growing Cliks work, running one of the countrys biggest and most successful Hip-Hop nights 'Top Billin', doing legendary shows up and down the country and prolifically releasing music, Sleaze still finds time to do other things (sometimes).
Links
