Album Review
Lazy Habits – Lazy Habits
Lazy Habits are one of the UK’s finest rising hip-hop collectives. Having tread the stages of countless festivals over the last few years including acclaimed performances at Bestival, Secret Garden Party and one of the world’s largest festivals, Glastonbury, the band have also performed at some of the countries key venues including Shepherds Bush Empire, KOKO and The Roundhouse. The unit has also been releasing teaser tracks throughout their career, leading us toward the release of their debut album, a self-titled release that sees it’s unveiling on November 26th.
What we love about this 8-piece is not just the precise approach to each of the numbers included on the debut but the tightness that the band show as a unit. That tightness you can’t help but hear surging effortless through each of the 16 tracks offered to us on here on their debut.
A horn heavy, vintage coated instrumental in the form of ‘Processional’ opens the record before the track listing explodes with unique performances of big band coated hip-hop juggernauts like the following ‘Ashes’ which overflows with quick paced rap lickings while a modest horn steals some of the tracks limelight and provides the tracks closing credits.
‘Surface Dirt’ allows the collective to hurl numerous self shout-outs along with some complimenting scratching moments while metaphorical lyrics lines like ‘Lazy Habits scratches deeper than the sun’ help give this track a poetic edge as it finds its way into your memory banks.
Speak of memory banks, further down the record the group welcome UK singing sensation Babysol onto another of the records highlight moments. ‘Memory Banks’ confidently holds centre stage on the album, merging the sweet vocals of the rising British starlet with the slick rhyming skills of the groups skilled MC who offers us countless, well-articulated hip hop lashings over a smooth horn section that pops up in the tracks finer moments.
The group slow the tempo right down for ‘Fades’ allowing us to hear a diverse angle to the act in a slow jam with a syrupy, pop tinged chorus – perhaps the most commercial track heard on the record.
‘Bulletin’ finds its nesting spot nearing the end of the record. The track, the latest single release for Lazy Habits, it’s an effortless reminder of why this act has been so successful at building such an enormous cult following over the years and fronts the record with its flawless production and the staccato style horn section that flows like a vein through the track. The number is also bustling with witty lines like ‘it’s like a Nightmare on Elm Street, you snooze and you lose’ allowing us a further insight into the bands songsmith skills.
Over the 16 tracks that Lazy Habits present to us on the band’s debut it is safe to say that the 8-piece are destined for big things in 2013. Whether it’s flavorsome instrumentals like the opening ‘Processional’, the closing ‘Recessional’ or the gorgeous piano instrumental bonus track, ‘Ghosts’, Jazz coated nuggets like the eclectic ‘Starting Fires’, infectious, horn-laden hits like ‘The Road’ or the brassy and brash chunks of hip hop that soak through numbers like ‘Please People’, this debut has all the ingredients needed to cast the act straight into the mainstream.
Venue: Lazy Habits
Support Band: Run ‘n’ Jump Records