The remarkable thing about Section Boyz is the fact that they continuously reinvent themselves and find new ways to keep their music fresh and relevant. Not many artists are able to build a successful career without the curse of being recognised for one song, but Section Boyz have become key players in the UK Rap scene and have gained massive traction across the pond since the release of their debut anthem ‘Delete My Number’ back in 2014, which still remains a timeless banger. Since then they’ve been shutting down various shows with other bangers over the years such as “Trapping Ain’t Dead”, “Lock Arff” and “Came Back (Bando)” to name a few.
Fast forward to 2017 and Section Boyz has achieved many accolades including winning two MOBO Awards in two consecutive years and receiving heavy consigns from global megastars from the likes of Drake and Chris Brown, who boldly professed his admiration for the South London crew and teamed up with them for the collaborative 2016 mixtape ‘Attack The Block’.
It has been roughly a year and a half since the release of their last solo project ‘Don’t Panic’ which achieved chart success entering at number 36 independently. Nevertheless, it looks like Section Boyz hasn’t forgotten about their core fan base with the release of ‘SoundCheck’, a surprise 19 track project that blesses us with an array of hard hitting bangers, catchy adlibs and dynamic flows.
One noticeable thing about ‘SoundCheck’ was the number of producers featured on the mixtape totalling at an enormous 17, including a few UK favourites from the likes of The HeavyTrackerz, LA Beats, Rude Kid, Pinero Beats, Z Dot and many more!
The mixtape begins with “Step In” (Produced by LA Beats) as each member reminds the scene that they are still active as ever with a style that cannot be replicated. Over the years each artist has flourished and has allowed their characters to shine through their music, which is why we have grown to appreciate each artist for what they bring to the table and to the forefront of UK Rap.
We were glad that the whole crew wasn’t on every track throughout the mixtape and it was intriguing to hear the various combinations of artists on tracks such as “Barzy” (Produced by Pinero Beats) with Inch, Sleeks and Swift going back to back dropping some serious heat and Littlez, Swift and Deepee’s offering in the more traditional Section sound “Lyriczy” (Produced by Wardot).
We definitely get a vibrant, versatile sound on ‘SoundCheck’ courtesy of all the producers on the mixtape. Section Boyz proved at an earlier stage that they can produce bangers from a wide range of BPM levels and does so effortlessly on tracks like the Rude Kid produced “Army”, “Madness” (Produced by Benson) and “Loading” (Produced by Mikabeats).
With such a lengthy project it’s understandable why the mixtape may sound a bit repetitive listening to the project in its entirety. However, tracks like “Good Stuff” (Produced by Keanubeats), “Pengy Say” (Produced by Drapezdrapo) and “Came Up” (Produced by Montage) makes the project refreshing to say the least as they don’t have to rely on the excessive bass bumping tracks to keep us engaged. Nevertheless, there are definitely many gems on the mixtape and it certainly has the longevity to keep you more than occupied for the summer.
With so many amazing projects dropping this year from our favourite UK artists, we couldn’t be happier to get a brand new project from Section Boyz as they have indeed broken barriers and has allowed the world to see from the outside-in what authentic UK urban music is all about.
Section Boyz is undoubtedly one of the most exciting UK Rap groups we’ve come across and they have elevated to global success without compromising their sound which is why ‘SoundCheck’ is a celebratory project for their hard graft to stardom. The project offers that infectious, raw Section Boyz energy throughout and give us a subtle reminder that nobody does it better than Section!
Favourite Track: Army (Produced by Rude Kid)
Follow Section Boyz on Twitter: @SectionBoyz_
Review by: Explicit LDN