Sleaford Mods
UK Grim

Release Date: 03/10/2023 | Tracklist

Despite the current UK political climate being about as functional as a diesel engine in below-freezing temperatures, bona fide punk acts that are actively criticising the system in a topical and classic way are extremely thin on the ground. The sound has seen something of a resurgence in times of late globally, with bands such as Australia's Amyl and the Sniffers, who were able to reincarnate the punk sound with a modern sneer to rich and entertaining effect. More recently, UK act slowthai's dizzyingly impressive third album UGLY branched out into a punk ideal and created an interesting spillover between two of the more DIY genres on the British scene. Sleaford Mods' brand of unfiltered, borderline-spoken word grime/ hip hop/ post-punk/ The Streets-with-even-less-conviction amalgam, is unsophisticated in presentation and exhibits none of the texture or infectious enthusiasm of outfits usually associated with punk as a genre. Yet, their music is cerebral, topical, intricate in its monochromatic simplicity, and above all else, necessary. With the UK presently attempting to clamber out of the hole that it itself is responsible for digging following the Brexit referendum, their status as the only G7 country that was expected to go into recession post-COVID, and the antiquated political framework that mandates decision based upon greater and lesser flavours of sh*t, Sleaford Mods have a lot to talk about on perhaps their most socially conscious and immediate record for some time, and the chosen title could not feel more apt.

The expected sound is steel-toe booted and ready to rumble from the outset of UK GRIM, and the basic loops and monotone soliloquies are as simultaneously alienating and intriguing as always. The sense of British everyman energy is endearing and feels insightful in a streetwise way, with topics broaching a spectrum of social preoccupations, such as economic welfare, drug culture, modern artistry, healthcare, familial ties, law and order, education, social media and adolescence. Much in the same vein as the rest of the duo's output, these references are not explored particularly extensively, but are condensed into topical soudbytes that pepper songs throughout the release, almost in the style of vox pops, positioned for maximum impact. The topicality of UK GRIM feels especially pertinent to the modern climate, with pot shots taken at a grand variety of current figures and institutions. It exhibits the typical sense of social awareness, mostly owing to the fact that the UK at large is in a state of high political alert due to the constant flux of negative press regarding the country. As a result, the material found on UK GRIM feels like a political statement from the underdogs- lacking in stuffy eloquence but rich in meaning. The simple, shuffling beats are just metronomes to assist in expressing the ideas in a way that can be easily consumed, and it doesn't hurt that they are likeable in their simplicity. Moments like 'Apart From You', with its basic piano hook and pattering rhythm bears a vague resemblance to a primitive garage beat, but exhibits moments of unusual melody in the vocal passages from Jason Williamson. It has a sense of poignancy in the sound, a rarity for the act as typically it is the lyrical content itself that has this effect.

The foreboding electronic strains of cuts like the title track and 'Don' place a serious emphasis upon the lyrical conceits, and the statements are explicit and blunt- retorts of straight-faced seriousness with the dialogue of a football hooligan with a library card. Other moments, like 'Pit 2 Pit' and 'Force 10 From Navarone' display a more punk-lite tendency in their liveliness but are still extremely understated in execution, boiled down to a rolling basslines and galloping, percussive rhythms. Like all of their previous material, the lyrical content and the topics therein occupy the centre-stage focus throughout the record. The best illustration of the sound would be a simple, hand-drawn set background at an amateur theatre production. It is there to give the audience a contextual reference, rather than the idea itself, and in this regard the music serves its purpose perfectly. There are occasional moments of development and idm-style suggestions of tactile melodies and intricacy, but these incorporations are extremely understated- and so they should be; when the vocal content serves as important a purpose as this, distracting from it would rob the central focus of some of its power. Take 'DIwhy', and 'I Claudius', two of the most barebones moments on the album. Using the latter as an example, it frames the lyrical content with a tapping, lightly bassy rhythm, occasionally doubling the vocal lines to create emphasis within the content. The delivery is unhurried yet frantic, discussing nationalism and legally questionable activities. It is a meditation on its topic, eloquent in its profane tirade and guided by the simplicity of the beat loop. Similarly, 'Tory Kong', with the thudding beat and its political focus is a decimating display of suppressed rage, with a more elaborate rhythm and an excitable tone; it is relentless and primal in execution.

Considering the development of UK urban music in the last 5 years or so, Sleaford Mods and their style have never felt more at home on the scene. Though they do not inhabit the same edgy sphere as the typical grime sound that pervades youth culture in the modern age, they certainly skirt the fringes of that world with their experimental style. The rise of UK drill in times of late has created a subculture of criminal fetishization that expresses its energy through transgressive asides, rather than meaningful statements. Despite this, the movement is still inherently political, and as a continuation of the grime sound that is anchored by a heavier sonic tone and nastier, more violent aesthetic, it represents a newfound rebellion against the status quo within the UK. Sleaford Mods tacitly reject this directionless flailing; instead of talking about chinging yutes and bunnin zoots, they calmly but vitriolically express their perspective using deceptively simple yet thoughtful language, and incisively address a magnitude of issues in this way with careful precision. Their sound is truly of the streets, borne out of a disillusionment with the system and all who contribute to keep it in such a state of disrepair. Their statements, both political and personal, are all insights into worldly perspectives or overarching thematic conceits, and are expressed through a relatable stylistic baseline that is always accessible, yet exhibits disarming profundity. The linearity and repetitive nature of the uniformity in sound may deter some listeners from fully appreciating what the duo has to offer, and Sleaford Mods don't offer a great deal more in style than they have already established during their career on their most recent release. Nonetheless, UK GRIM is a siren of immediacy that demands attention. The content here is urgent, perhaps more so than any of their previous releases, because of the vital need for vocal criticism of the social climate that exists in the UK today. This album does so with a streetwise élan and an underdog righteousness, and it's a glorious display of laser-precise, downtrodden apoplexy.

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