Biography
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Years Active
2008 – present (16 years)
When is a band not a band? Perhaps when it's made up of disparate members whose combined musical heritage touches on orchestral, jazz, ska and, er, grime.
With so many influences, and a frontman who "was never really into music" it's any wonder the four-piece ever got together. But here they stand ready to reveal the ingredients in their melting pot of ideas.
Moving outside the M25 to Wellingborough may not sound like the first step on the MC career ladder. But, after escaping the Orbital (and gaining a few feet in height) Karl Phillips soon began making his move on an urban scene typified by garish chains and faux Ray Bans much to the distaste of his peers, many of who felt the full brunt of his wit.
Now, what started as "a mock up band, put together for a laugh" is on the road to success with a crossover sound referencing dubstep, hip-hop and punk. Confusing? Then you should hear Karl's description:
"It sound's like the noise you get when you slap Tim Westwoods face."
"Unlike Karl I'm quite a big music fan, though I'm really into guitar bands," states drummer David Hole, who cites The Smashing Pumpkins and Radiohead as key influences. He's a surprising addition to an outfit that aurally resemble a punch up in a brewery, and it doesn't stop there.
"The first time I played with Karl I said to him: 'You're good at what you do, but it's not really my thing'," says David 'Stifler' Pape, a classical pianist, trumpeter, self-taught bassist and fan of the Royal Crown Review (the jazz band from The Mask).
By now it should shock few to learn that the Ramblers' second guitarist, Elliot Cameron, cut his teeth on the Mississippi blues of John Lee Hooker. Karl's then-girlfriend knew Elliot, one boozy chat and a few jams later and the rest is history.
This almost accidental success looks set to continue on its all-conquering mission to call a spade a spade, an arsehole an arsehole and a pompous twat a pompous twat. Refreshingly honest, hilariously irreverent and always up for a pint, Karl Phillips and The Ramblers are one in the eye of an overtly arrogant scene, and an anti-thesis to skinny jeans. But don't ask them about it, they're just having a laugh.
Combining grime, hip-hop, indie rock, ska and some kind of Dylan folk, this is an amazing debut. Danceable, shoutable, anthemic. This is what not giving a **** sounds like.
This review in the Daily Echo sums it up perfectly:
"Every once in a while you hear an album and think, this is the one. It is a very rare occurrence. Sometimes it may be the new LP from your favourite band. At others it may be the emergence of an artist so similar, or completely aloof, from the music you love to chill out too.
Karl Phillips & The Midnight Ramblers expertly entwine the fierce and lively riffs of ska with the "don't give a fig" attitudes and aggressive lyrical styles of hip hop with some dashes of punk and grime thrown in for good measure.
Lyrically it's one of the more vibrant and down-to-earth masterpieces heard in a long while. Phillips states that he was "never really in to music" so where he developed his lyrical style beggars belief. Witty and quick, his tracks regularly garner a smile, a little snigger which gains a few strange looks on the bus.
It is one of the most honest assessments of 21st Century Britain you could ever ask for and there hasn't been an album more in touch with modern strife since The Holloways released So This Is Great Britain? in 2006.
Whether sending out messages to his rivals in Wellingborough and Brighton or discussing everyday male population disasters such as spilling another's pint down your local, this LP speaks to Average Joe.
As Linkin' Park and Jay Z proved, there is just something a little bit special about rapping over the top of rock. These guys prove that theory further. If you do nothing else this week, get a copy of the track Danger H (Or Harold To His Mother). This, coupled with the rest of the album, will blow you away.
LEIGH SANDERS Rating: 5/5"
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