Nothing Great About Britain

slowthai - Nothing Great About Britain
Critic Score
Based on 22 reviews
2019 Ratings: #89 / 805
Year End Rank: #19
User Score
2019 Rank: #140
Liked by 195 people
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CRITIC REVIEWS

100
Highsnobiety
This album feels and sounds like an instant classic, and there’s a sense slowthai will soon be the name on everybody’s lips.
100
The Guardian

Clever, bleak, funny, bracing, aware of a broad musical heritage but never in thrall to it: after you hear Nothing Great About Britain, it’s even more obvious why Slowthai stands out.

90
Loud and Quiet
Brutally honest and amusingly witty with his flow, aggressive and dynamic with his production work, and captivatingly appealing with his charm and charisma, all taken together it assembles a hugely impressive, compelling and socially important listen.
90
Clash
This compelling and provocative record is a haunting echo of a seemingly hopeless vignette of Britain today, where slowthai offers the slightest glimmer of optimism for a potentially brighter future. slowthai is the unexpected hero for the people we didn’t know we needed, but so many, justly deserve.
90
God Is in the TV
The most thought provoking debut of the year will have you flipping and reflipping until you know it all off by heart like a grim prospectus of the realities of life out there once we finally come out of the other side.
85
Northern Transmissions

slowthai finds himself as the poster boy for Brexit Britain and it’s a mantle that this street poet will no doubt relish.

84
Pitchfork

The Bajan-British rapper’s debut tackles the UK’s pressing crises—a looming Brexit, class hostility, widening poverty—with great jokes and writerly candor.

80
Crack Magazine

His debut album, the knowingly-titled Nothing Great About Britain, succinctly captures the mental state of that fractured nation, and the fizzing energy of an exasperated youth.

80
Louder Than War
A unique take on modern hip hop and grime that takes it to the next level.
80
Dork
Scrappy or not, ‘Nothing Great About Britain’ is a triumph of a debut, genre-straddling, quick-witted and, most importantly, very fun to listen to.
80
The Observer

What connects is the dark charisma in Slowthai’s aggrieved squawk, a yelp of rage, fear and occasional self-loathing, crackling with the visceral betrayal of the left-behind.

80
The Needle Drop

On his debut album, slowthai proves himself to be an exciting new voice in the UK hip hop landscape.

80
The Line of Best Fit

It’s at times a brutal listen, but hidden between the hard knocks is the sound of a charismatic young artist who knows he’s making a debut album to remember.

80
NME
The Northampton rapper's unique debut album is authentic and honest in all its garish glory, an indication of the sprawling possible paths for his career to grow into.
80
AllMusic

Fresh and exhilarating, Nothing Great About Britain firmly establishes slowthai as one of U.K. rap's most relevant artists.

60
Spectrum Culture

Nothing Great About Britain is great at expressing a dizzying sort of (anti-)national pride, but the LP never quite puts its finger on new and newly inclusive ways of reimagining the nation.

40
musicOMH

A record that reveals the whirlwind of hype around Slowthai to be not much more than invisible garments on an arrogant emperor.

Doofy
72

The bloke’s from Northampton - all question of authenticity should be answered by that one fact.

He has my every sympathy.

BradTasteMusic
85

This is the first time in about 6 years that I have been amazed by UK Grime. Like genuinely amazed. I heard many of these songs live like 4 years ago when I saw him open for BROCKHAMPTON. I had no idea who he was at the time, and he seemed completely unhinged, so I barely knew what the hell was happening. Fast forward to today, I hear this whole thing, and I am absolutely in love with it.

If it wasn’t for a few very weak moments, this would be absolutely top tier shit. As it stands ... read more

laz456
95

Final Edit: I gotta go 9/10 on this. This album is so great, and incredibly consistent. Even the bonus tracks are awesome! I am captivated by this guy- his rapping, his story, his lyrics. This album is catchy, it's aggressive, it's emotional, and it's just a really satisfying experience front to back. Top 10 album of the year for me, possibly my rap AOTY, and definitely making my top 100 albums of the decade list easy.

Really solid front to back. Slowthai is compelling as a lyricist and ... read more

GusCreter
85

Slowthai is easily one of the strongest, most interesting UK rap voices in years, and this debut is excellent.

DoubleHsword
77

Only downside is that it's Br'ish.

BradTasteMusic
85

This is the first time in about 6 years that I have been amazed by UK Grime. Like genuinely amazed. I heard many of these songs live like 4 years ago when I saw him open for BROCKHAMPTON. I had no idea who he was at the time, and he seemed completely unhinged, so I barely knew what the hell was happening. Fast forward to today, I hear this whole thing, and I am absolutely in love with it.

If it wasn’t for a few very weak moments, this would be absolutely top tier shit. As it stands ... read more

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Track List

1Nothing Great About Britain
3:09
80
2Doorman
3:04
90
3Dead Leaves
2:48
76
4Gorgeous
4:15
84
5Crack
2:16
72
6Grow Up
3:00
feat. Jaykae
77
7Inglorious
3:08
feat. Skepta
83
8Toaster
3:04
78
9Peace of Mind
2:27
75
10Missing
2:20
83
11Northampton's Child
3:02
85
Total Length: 32 minutes
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Added on: March 28, 2019