Alex Thompson dissects the latest release from Brixton's Sneakbo
With his latest mixtape 9 Lives, South London MC Sneakbo cuts and weaves over dancehall and drill influenced instrumentals that pack an infectious bounce and punch. Slick and polished instrumentals and colourful production lend themselves to Sneakbo’s sharp flows, it’s nothing new but it’s done with an energy and life that keeps the album feeling fresh and club ready.
He also apparently turned into a cat in a McDonald's in Brixton but that's a story for another time...
The first thing you’ll notice about 9 Lives is its length. 17 tracks is an awful lot. While there’s some truly great songs scattered across the tracklist, it’s hard not to think that a more disciplined hand was needed in the cutting process. The album struggles to stay afloat at times, as some great tracks find themselves buried by unexceptional ones. It makes it a tough listen in full but it’s not designed for that, it’s designed to be scavenged for individual tracks for playlists, clubs and parties. This is an album that weirdly benefits from not being listened to from start to finish.
Instrumentals and productions have that usual Sneakbo punch, the catchy hooks and verses being layered over rich and polished afro bashment instrumentals, fusing West African aesthetics with cutting and gritty road rap. It’s an intoxicating blend, and more often than not pays off. The end result is some great beats, from the clattering snares and hi hats of ‘I Used To’ to the slinking bassline and hyperactive kicks of ‘Last Night In Brixton’ or 'Paris'.
The features on this project are (mostly) great. Fekky, MK and Stickz all pull through with tight flows and bars that each bring their own flavour to their respective tracks. Br3yna shines in her verses on ‘The Flyest’, coming out with an all-guns-blazing dancehall influenced verse.
Let’s just ignore the fact that Dappy is on here.
Lyrics flip from the stereotypes (sex, drugs, crime) to more conscious and thoughtful moments of confession and it’s a blend that works well. It manages to slip in a few properly good lines while never sacrificing the mass appeal of poppy hooks and club-friendly cliche. Hooks come thick and fast, it’s like this thing was assembled with the pure purpose of making a nightclub go wild.
Overall, 9 Lives might not be anything groundbreaking or unique but it’s an engaging and fun listen that blends dancehall, drill and bashment to create a style and sound that makes it feel club ready.
Will I listen to this album in its entirety again? Probably not.
Will I stick half of it in a playlist for house parties? Almost certainly.
Alex Thompson
7/10
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