The Forcefield Kids - Home EP

Hear The Track here OR Soundclick

The continuing saga of Stain and Sleepy... Not, as you might have imagined, a couple of dwarfs on the prowl, merely a couple of likely hiphop (UK stylee) lads from Newcastle who teamed up a while ago and have made some considerable noise since doing so. They themselves say that they 'have always striven to deliver alt.hiphop with depth and maturity' and IMHO they have been succeeding mightily and already have a string of highly recommendeds from this reviewer. Mind you, I am a big fan of the UK's idiosyncratic approach to hiphop and rap but for sure it won't appeal to the 'riches and bitches' crowd. As always with Stain (aka Stain(ed) Art) the lyrical quality is undeniable - here is a man with lots to say and a great way of saying it.

Less of the 'hoooway the lads' if you please....

Home is a brand new five track EP on the band's own DFNT Records label, one track - Little Miss Star - was the first track I reviewed from this new combination back at the beginning of the year and I liked it then. Sleepy, despite his name, is the musical muscle behind the Kids and its the combination of his simple but effective style and Stain's acerbic flow that make the Forcefield Kids that bit special. One of my all time fave Stain tracks was Cradle to Grave (December 2005) but I don't think the version that starts Home is the same track. It might be the same lyrics but the music is totally redone. If you want a quick impression of why I think this outfit are special, no better place to start than here and read the lyrics (it helps!). Creepers (track two) is a much more expected sound, and I have to say I think the music in this track really shows what Sleepy brings to this party. Class track.

If the first two tracks show exactly why this combination of simple, effective scores and extremely lucid lyrical vision is new and fresh, then its a shoo in you are going to love this EP. Little Miss Star sounds as good as it did when I reviewed it, although the chorus sounds considerably better or maybe it's just striking me more now. Great lyrics, as always. Since We Last Spoke is much more straightforward hiphop but no less a track for that, the flow on this track is terrific. My Dead Body rounds out the EP and brings a jazzy coolness that compliments the jagged vocals, themselves complimented with some extremely sensuous female vocal lines. The one abiding impression you come away with from an achievement like this is..wow!! It is my contention that Stain is in a class on his own, an intelligent, cogent lyricist with intense vision.

MUST HAVE UK alt.hiphop