BBC Review
An early contender for 2011's finest out-of-leftfield long-players.
Adam Kennedy 2011-02-02
Rarely does a British debut album forge such a fully formed, genuinely unique direction that attempts to slot it into established scenes prove almost entirely fruitless. But Peanut Butter Blues and Melancholy Jam, the full-length bow of late-20s wisdom dispenser/producer Obaro 'Ghostpoet' Ejimiwe, achieves such a feat. You probably have to go back to Original Pirate Material, in fact, for similar impact.
Dubbing himself "a lad with a lisp with some stories to tell", the truth is a mite more complex, as hinted by the record's tricksy, somewhat over-self-aware title. His recent relocation from Coventry to London will doubtless ensure plentiful parallels with famed West Midlands to Big Smoke migrant Mike Skinner. But while sharing a knack for anxious streams of consciousness peppered with endearing everyday Brit culture references, Ejimiwe's subtleties outstrip The Streets.
Anybody who's had the misfortune to visit Coventry will agree the city is sufficiently depressing to breed levels of urban dread last equalled in Tricky's heyday. From stuttering, held-together-with-Sellotape-and-elastic-bands intro Onetwos onward, Ejimiwe's sleepy delivery owes little to any other UK rhymers, however, despite an air of a bedsit Roots Manuva, eyebrow-cocked self-deprecation and all. It's a fact he notes himself on I Just Don't Know, declaring "Other MCs want to talk about crime / But that ain't me..." before an off-kilter chorus that catches you so off-guard that gleefully humming along is the only logical response.
The album builds to a fascinating climax, the whisky-fuelled Cash and Carry Me Home succinctly encapsulating all the hungover loathing and creeping worry that follow an out-of-control drinking session, while Liiines is truly spirit-elevating with its "Life is too short to store up grudges" refrain. During the latter Ejimiwe complains that "I keep on writing, writing / But them folk ain't biting, biting". Such indifference, though, is about to change.
Hipster-hating hip hop aficionados may take one look at Ejimiwe and run a mile. Don't be dissuaded by his fashionable hat and spectacles: Peanut Butter Blues and Melancholy Jam throws its headgear into the ring as an early contender for 2011's finest out-of-leftfield long-players.
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Comment number 1.
At 18:40 2nd Feb 2011, davey wrote:Ejimiwes music cool man cool , your thoughts on Coventry get your act together and meet the real people in this country dj
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Comment number 2.
At 11:16 6th Feb 2011, BCingU wrote:Ghostpoet has always been a great MC and very original and I wish him all the success in the world as their needs to be some original Hip-Hop in the UK as it is becoming too bubblegum pop. However abit of info he comes from South London moved to Coventry to go Uni and came back to South London after, he lived in Coventry while studying there for 3 years he is not from there. How do I know this I went to the same Uni with him, he was in the 2nd Year when I was in my 3rd year he ran a Hip-Hop night for a while and they were hard to do because they claimed that violence would always happen at these events, I ran a night and the BS i had to put up with was jokes, as Coventry is a little rough and depressing is not half of it (I saw stuff worse in Cov then I have ever seen in London, and i have lived in East, South and North) . Get your facts right! Lazy journalism is second rate.
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Comment number 3.
At 16:33 6th Feb 2011, Mike Diver wrote:Hi BCingU. Thanks for the comment. It doesn't say, above, that the gent is from Coventry, that he was born and raised there. Just that this album follows in the wake of a relocation from there to London. Glad you like this record though - I'm sure it will be one of the strongest British debuts of 2011.
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Comment number 4.
At 23:16 4th Mar 2011, eastieinthenorth wrote:Wherever the man from is from what do you mean by the lazy "Cov is nasty" comments. Its like any other big city , its got good and its got bad. Loads of people have had " the misfortune " to be born there and are proud of it. Pathetic stuff.
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Comment number 5.
At 11:16 20th Jul 2011, vanarkel wrote:Have to agree with eastieinthenorth - why all the "Cov is so depressing" nonsense? Cities can be rough, they can be beautiful, they can be confusing and wild too. London/Birmingham/Manchester/Glasgow/Cardiff - it makes no difference in the end, they possess all of life. In the comments, I can more or less understand these lazy statements, but in the original article, it's unforgivable. Here's something Adam Kennedy might find amazing - people in Coventry aren't so clinically depressed by their awful surroundings that they don't bother to learn to read or, perhaps, seek out new music, and they might even manage to avoid lazy prejudice too. Maybe Adam can try that himself next time.
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