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Track Listings
| 1. One Twos |
| 2. Run Run Run |
| 3. Us Against Whatever Ever |
| 4. Finished I Ain't |
| 5. Longing For The Night |
| 6. Yeah Pause |
| 7. I Just Don't Know |
| 8. Survive It |
| 9. Gaaasp |
| 10. Cash & Carry Me Home |
| 11. Garden Path |
| 12. Liiines |
Product Description
Review
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.
--Adam Kennedy
Find more music at the BBC This link will take you off Amazon in a new window
Product Description
Customer Reviews
day Dick Whittington, left the cold grey streets of
Coventry and set off for London Town in search of
something golden. His album 'Peanut Butter Blues and
Melancholy Jam' may well bring him fortune and fame.
The ephemeral image on the project's front cover is
entirely apt. A man barely emerging from a thick,
cloying mist; his features half-formed and melting.
So too, in many ways, with the music. The album stutters
and stammers into life over the bruised and battered riff
of 'One Twos', segueing with the stark rumbling narrative
of 'Run Run Run'. It's chilly stuff. Melancholy indeed.
Mr Ejimiwe creates a distinctively bleak sound world.
There is little respite from his unsettling urban vision.
'Us Against Whatever Ever' pitches a vocal akin to an
evocative playground rhyme against a rumbling and grumbling
bass and synth misama. Love struggling against adversity.
'Longing For The Night (Yeah Pause)' is a fine invention.
The fractured quasi-latin beats support some of the album's
strongest lyrical imagery. Quietly humourous and strangely
affecting; a man trying to make sense of the world with words.
'Gaaasp' wraps up a bluesy melody in a juddering four-chord
arrangement. "I take a deep breath and live life a little bit";
cautious optimism; a little ray of sunshine trying to push its
way through the dense clouds. The best track by a mile.
Final track 'Liines' is a dark rocking anthem of sorts. The
textures are more open; the voice less obscured; the rhythm
solid, muscular and clearly defined. A powerful conclusion.
With PBBandMJ Ghostpoet has given the listening world a gift.
A dusty gem determined to show a sparkling face in the darkness.
Highly Recommended.
The production is pretty minimal and works so well, with its scattered hi-hats, deep kick drums and earth-rumbling basslines. There are some moments that utilise a "band", i.e. acoustic drums, a synth-line here and there and some guitar work, but blends so well with the primarily electronic sound.
But its the vocals that take first place. There have been comparisons to The Streets (and I have read somewhere that Mike Skinner has championed Ghostpoet somewhat...), but I don't think the comparison does it justice. Yes, some of the lyrical themes are similar (i.e. songs about night outs and drinking, etc etc) but I personally find The Streets a bit too cheesy whereas Ghostpoet explores new ways of writing about those similar themes. Vocally, they are worlds apart. I love the slurred but fluid tones of this man, he makes rapping melodic and manages to get some hooks into his wordplay that won't leave you alone.
Love the album from start to finish, no dud tracks to be seen. Personal highlights are 'Us Against Whatever Ever', 'Survive It', 'Cash & Carry Me Home' and the best album-closer I have heard in a longwhile - 'Liiines'.
In short - Get this in your life immediately!!!!
Impressed :)
The lazy tones and the beats help you walk to work with a bounce. Read more
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