Slowthai - Nothing Great About Britain

It’s been a sensational year for UK rap and while names like Dave and Skepta have taken the headlines, Northampton’s Slowthai has slowly been creeping towards his debut album with a slew of phenomenal singles across the past 6 months, culminating in the pollock painting of frustrations that is Nothing Great About Britain.

Collaborating with UK producer Kwes Darko, Nothing Great About Britain maintains Slowthai’s knack for wacky beats and off-the-wall raps but places it in a more meaningful context, as he dissects British culture and politics in a way that harkens back to the greats of British punk rock. The opening track ‘Nothing Great About Britain’ summarises this perfectly, as Slowthai combines British nostalgia and slang with criticisms of the British monarchy and the rise of racist far-right groups to create a sinister portrait of modern day Britain.

While this message is carried throughout the album, Slowthai’s sound changes, moving from heavier bangers such as the brilliant and volatile, Mura Masa produced, ‘Doorman’, to lighter and more melancholic ballads in the form of the autobiographical closer ‘Northampton’s Child’. Slowthai keeps the album from getting boring at any given moment by throwing in some slower tracks that work wonders in portraying his exhaustion and anger with modern British culture, but doesn’t always suit his delivery, as he rarely strays from his trademark volatile vocals that sometimes undermine the mournful tone he is trying to portray.