Sly Moon - Blah Stylin II / 'No Gamble, No Future' / Upcoming shows
Despite homegrown hip-hop declining in support over the past decade, Blah Records have maintained momentum and continued regularly releasing music, being increasingly well received overseas as well as in the UK. Always pushing the boundaries from traditional boom-bap styles, Blah have been revered for their high quality releases, however it’s notable that the levels of the collective’s lyrical content and production qualities are consistently improving. Amongst a multitude of excellent EP’s and albums, the labels most recent drop is a standout; veteran rapper Sly Moon released a project entitled ‘No Gamble, No Future’ - an 8 track EP which has a duration of around 20 minutes. As the title insinuates, the EP features a chronicle of Sly Moon’s wins and losses encountered across years of his gambling addiction. The EP’s description provides an apt summary, stating that ‘The end is the beginning and the beginning is the end.’
Renowned for his role in Blah’s earliest projects, beginning in the early 2000’s from his participation with a collective called Children Of The Damned (later renamed Cult Of The Damned), Sly’s verses were a cherished rarity. After taking a long hiatus from releasing music, Sly surprised the world by releasing his long-awaited debut album, ‘Why Am I So Sly?’ in 2020. Praised for its production value, containing zero samples and enigmatic wordplay, this album set the precedent for more solo Sly Moon projects over the years following. And fans have not been disappointed, as Sly has released projects on an annual basis ever since.
To promote his latest musical offering, last week Sly provided his fans with an exclusive freestyle on Blah Records YouTube channel - his second featured appearance on the ‘Blah Stylin’ series. Over a traditional, self-produced cold saggin’ instrumental mixed by Reklews, Sly spits an addictive verse describing his experiences ‘from vagabond, to rich, to vagabond - and it carries on,’ providing insights into the content contained within his ‘No Gamble, No Future’ EP. Set to perform his first Australian headline show in Sydney on March 23rd, Sly also has an event at The Hootananny in Brixton on May 10th for UK fans to catch him performing his projects in the intimate flesh. If you are in either location on those particular dates, make sure not to miss “The slyest man to ever pick up a microphone” and book a ticket in advance.
Check out the video for Sly Moon’s ‘Blah Stylin II’ video below and if you’re feeling it, go stream the ‘No Gamble, No Future’ EP for a listening experience you won’t regret.