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Spread the Social Love:
This review might be slightly biased as Jake Brook, otherwise known as Lunar C is a friend of mine, however, I’m pretty sure that even if I’d never heard of the guy before my review of his Sewer Side Sex mix-tape that it would be just as glowing.
I first met Lunar C around about 2007 or so, when he was supporting some other friends of mine who were in a group called Freyed Knot at a hip-hop night in a Polish social club in Bradford. The night was hosted by a collective of rappers and DJ’s that would go on to form Sinoptic Music, by whom Sewer Side Sex is released.
Although he was only about 17 at the time, you could tell Lunar C was one to watch as he showed a level of wit and rapping ability that was far beyond his years. It’s been interesting to watch Lunar C rise through the ranks, to the point where he seems almost on the cusp of some very big things.
It was cool to see Lunar C start out in Don’t Flop a year or so ago. He did that with the sole intention of getting a bit of exposure for his debut album The Lunar CD but he ended up becoming one of the league’s biggest stars in the process.
And then you’ve got the stuff he’s done in months since he announced he would be putting battling on hold to concentrate on his music. Although he received a backlash of sorts from some fans who only wanted to hear his mum jokes, he proved haters wrong by actually making some huge steps forward, such as appearing on Charlie Sloth's 1Xtra show and recording a ‘Fire In The Booth’ session, as well as collaborating with the likes of Dot Rotten, Jamal Edwards, JME and Labrinth. And now Lunar C has released Sewer Side Sex; a collection of top quality grime infused UK hip-hop that is the culmination of his months spent concentrating on his music.
It starts with 'SSS (lispy intro)' a short introduction skit in which Lunar C reels off a bunch of random SSS acronyms (Super Secret Squirrel, Shit Shower and Shave for example) in a tongue in cheek reference to the fact that Lunar C has a slight lisp. It sets the tone of the album nicely, letting the listener know not to expect anything overly serious! That said, there are some moments on the mixtape where Lunar C shows a surprising maturity, such as 'Obstacles' (feat Dot Rotten), which is essentially about being driven, facing fears head on and surviving in the face of adversity. It’s got a gorgeous, summery beat driven by a soaring flute and brass, with clever moments where it’s stripped back to just a lightly throbbing bass line. This puts all the emphasis on Lunar C’s words, almost as if he’s rapping a capella. Dot Rotten injects some soulful melody as he sings the chorus, although there is a strange effect on his voice that I’m not too sure about.
Thematically, most of the songs are about Lunar C himself, and his own life as a rapper. There’s plenty of swagger, slagging off other MC’s and Lunar talking himself up. Who can argue with lyrics like: “Lunar’s uppin’ the ante like your unborn cousin” from ‘Obstacles’; “All the critics describe me as Christ, I’ve got a bible of rhymes, I bring sight to the blind” on 'Jesus Swag'. It’s just one of the many lyrics wear Lunar refers to himself as Jesus!
Yes, a lot of it is just bravado, but that’s what hip-hop is all about, and Lunar C is one of the few rappers that actually has the skills to back up his cockiness. He also balances out the near arrogance with some pretty funny self-deprecation such as on the track 'Bozo' (feat Minas). “I’m a weirdo, 8 mil pieced holes in my earlobe, I’ll be getting ID’d for ciggies till my beard grows.” As well as his lyrics being full of clever word play and twisted humour, at times they’re just plain fucked up! For example in 'Bozo' he also says “If there’s a line I overstepped it by miles, on April Fool’s Day I went on Jeremy Kyle and accused my grandma of molesting a child.”
There are plenty of rappers out there with awesome lyrics though, and what sets rappers like Lunar C and his contemporaries apart is delivery. The way in which a rapper spits a line can make the difference between a good lyric and a great one.
Lunar C’s has his own unique style, rapping as he does in a kind of high pitched broad Yorkshire accent. With the majority of mainstream UK Hip-hop such as Pro Green, Dizzie Rascal, Jehst all having that same London accent, it’s refreshing to hear Lunar C and the rest of the WY collective rapping in West Yorkshire accents.
Quite a few of the WY dudes, who you may recognise from Don’t Flop battles or the WY Cypher videos, make an appearance on Sewer Side Sex. Huddersfield ‘s Jack Flash, fellow Fly Tipper Minas, and Ex-P (the founder Sinoptic Music, Flame Griller and the aforementioned Frayed Knot) all put in blinding verses on ‘WY Kings’. Another up and coming member of the WY clan, Chief Wigz makes an appearance on two tracks; a laid back ode to weed, ‘Pass It Round’ and the final track ‘Must Do That’, which features a really eerie, thugged out beat.
Lunar and the Sinoptic lads have got their head’s screwed on. As well as assembling a stellar cast of rappers for the mixtape, they’ve used beats from some top quality beat makers such as Sounar Cousin, Pete Cannon, Wizard and M Phazes. Between them they’ve provided a range of styles, from laid back, organic and jazzy beats full of splashy snares and brassy horn sections, to more electronically influenced heavy hitters like ‘Reality Check’, with its pounding rhythm patter that reminds me of ‘Witness The Fitness’ by Roots Manuva. It’s the standout track for me. Another standout track is his 'WY Freestyle over Angel Haze’s New York'. It’s got this crazy, stripped back, percussive beat that Lunar describes perfectly with the line “This is a hard beat pattern, sounds like a fat bitches arse cheeks clapping.”
Sewer Side Sex is a top quality collection of songs that should quiet the doubters that had Lunar C pinned as just a battle rapper who couldn’t make music. Like I said before, I’ve enjoyed seeing Lunar C progress to where he is today and, if he can continue to churn out tunes like these, collaborating with the right people and starting to play some shows, it’s likely Lunar C will have a bright future ahead of him.
Sewer Side Sex is available as a free download from Sewer Side Sex | Lunar C
I first met Lunar C around about 2007 or so, when he was supporting some other friends of mine who were in a group called Freyed Knot at a hip-hop night in a Polish social club in Bradford. The night was hosted by a collective of rappers and DJ’s that would go on to form Sinoptic Music, by whom Sewer Side Sex is released.
Although he was only about 17 at the time, you could tell Lunar C was one to watch as he showed a level of wit and rapping ability that was far beyond his years. It’s been interesting to watch Lunar C rise through the ranks, to the point where he seems almost on the cusp of some very big things.
It was cool to see Lunar C start out in Don’t Flop a year or so ago. He did that with the sole intention of getting a bit of exposure for his debut album The Lunar CD but he ended up becoming one of the league’s biggest stars in the process.
And then you’ve got the stuff he’s done in months since he announced he would be putting battling on hold to concentrate on his music. Although he received a backlash of sorts from some fans who only wanted to hear his mum jokes, he proved haters wrong by actually making some huge steps forward, such as appearing on Charlie Sloth's 1Xtra show and recording a ‘Fire In The Booth’ session, as well as collaborating with the likes of Dot Rotten, Jamal Edwards, JME and Labrinth. And now Lunar C has released Sewer Side Sex; a collection of top quality grime infused UK hip-hop that is the culmination of his months spent concentrating on his music.
It starts with 'SSS (lispy intro)' a short introduction skit in which Lunar C reels off a bunch of random SSS acronyms (Super Secret Squirrel, Shit Shower and Shave for example) in a tongue in cheek reference to the fact that Lunar C has a slight lisp. It sets the tone of the album nicely, letting the listener know not to expect anything overly serious! That said, there are some moments on the mixtape where Lunar C shows a surprising maturity, such as 'Obstacles' (feat Dot Rotten), which is essentially about being driven, facing fears head on and surviving in the face of adversity. It’s got a gorgeous, summery beat driven by a soaring flute and brass, with clever moments where it’s stripped back to just a lightly throbbing bass line. This puts all the emphasis on Lunar C’s words, almost as if he’s rapping a capella. Dot Rotten injects some soulful melody as he sings the chorus, although there is a strange effect on his voice that I’m not too sure about.
Thematically, most of the songs are about Lunar C himself, and his own life as a rapper. There’s plenty of swagger, slagging off other MC’s and Lunar talking himself up. Who can argue with lyrics like: “Lunar’s uppin’ the ante like your unborn cousin” from ‘Obstacles’; “All the critics describe me as Christ, I’ve got a bible of rhymes, I bring sight to the blind” on 'Jesus Swag'. It’s just one of the many lyrics wear Lunar refers to himself as Jesus!
Yes, a lot of it is just bravado, but that’s what hip-hop is all about, and Lunar C is one of the few rappers that actually has the skills to back up his cockiness. He also balances out the near arrogance with some pretty funny self-deprecation such as on the track 'Bozo' (feat Minas). “I’m a weirdo, 8 mil pieced holes in my earlobe, I’ll be getting ID’d for ciggies till my beard grows.” As well as his lyrics being full of clever word play and twisted humour, at times they’re just plain fucked up! For example in 'Bozo' he also says “If there’s a line I overstepped it by miles, on April Fool’s Day I went on Jeremy Kyle and accused my grandma of molesting a child.”
There are plenty of rappers out there with awesome lyrics though, and what sets rappers like Lunar C and his contemporaries apart is delivery. The way in which a rapper spits a line can make the difference between a good lyric and a great one.
Lunar C’s has his own unique style, rapping as he does in a kind of high pitched broad Yorkshire accent. With the majority of mainstream UK Hip-hop such as Pro Green, Dizzie Rascal, Jehst all having that same London accent, it’s refreshing to hear Lunar C and the rest of the WY collective rapping in West Yorkshire accents.
Quite a few of the WY dudes, who you may recognise from Don’t Flop battles or the WY Cypher videos, make an appearance on Sewer Side Sex. Huddersfield ‘s Jack Flash, fellow Fly Tipper Minas, and Ex-P (the founder Sinoptic Music, Flame Griller and the aforementioned Frayed Knot) all put in blinding verses on ‘WY Kings’. Another up and coming member of the WY clan, Chief Wigz makes an appearance on two tracks; a laid back ode to weed, ‘Pass It Round’ and the final track ‘Must Do That’, which features a really eerie, thugged out beat.
Lunar and the Sinoptic lads have got their head’s screwed on. As well as assembling a stellar cast of rappers for the mixtape, they’ve used beats from some top quality beat makers such as Sounar Cousin, Pete Cannon, Wizard and M Phazes. Between them they’ve provided a range of styles, from laid back, organic and jazzy beats full of splashy snares and brassy horn sections, to more electronically influenced heavy hitters like ‘Reality Check’, with its pounding rhythm patter that reminds me of ‘Witness The Fitness’ by Roots Manuva. It’s the standout track for me. Another standout track is his 'WY Freestyle over Angel Haze’s New York'. It’s got this crazy, stripped back, percussive beat that Lunar describes perfectly with the line “This is a hard beat pattern, sounds like a fat bitches arse cheeks clapping.”
Sewer Side Sex is a top quality collection of songs that should quiet the doubters that had Lunar C pinned as just a battle rapper who couldn’t make music. Like I said before, I’ve enjoyed seeing Lunar C progress to where he is today and, if he can continue to churn out tunes like these, collaborating with the right people and starting to play some shows, it’s likely Lunar C will have a bright future ahead of him.
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