Introducing Slowthai. This Northampton-bred wordsmith and producer is up to something. And something good.

We first caught word of him back in 2015 when along with Sammy Byrne, Slow Thai made up experimental rap duo, The Living Dead. But on a solo tip, we suggest you start with “Netflix+”, which according to Soundcloud was his first release; a brooding social commentary that uses the well-known film bank as a disguise to wax lyrical about our increasingly online-based lives.

More recently, “Jiggle” really helped to establish Thai’s musical comfort zone. Rap tempo grit coupled with strong whiffs of grime form quite the formidable backbone, while the lyrics toy with inner city brash talk and Bearman-era grime flows. The video — awash with Americana motifs and suitably grainy in style — is a must watch.

Which takes us through to the here and now. All of those other bits have acted as stepping stones for his debut project, slowitdown which arrives on December 5th and features fellow ones to watch like Oscar Worldpeace. “wiseman” is the first jab from the seven-tracker, and packs quite the punch. At just over two minutes, it’s a short yet heavyweight slab of grime-infused rap that also features Kwes Darko (aka Blue Daisy) on co-production.

It perfectly fits the upfront gunk mould that Skinny Macho has arranged for his radio show and occasional club night-come-label, Bone Soda. For fans of 808INK, Neverland Clan and the other Londoners chucking up a middle finger at anything close to default hip hop.