Customer Reviews

Bloodsport

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Since the last CD I was waiting anxiously for the next recording from Sneaker Pimps. After maturing from the lightweight sound of Becoming X the Pimps came up with a modern music masterpiece in Splinter. How do you top that? You don't. Bloodsport is a great effort and clearly better than most music out these days. I always shake my head when I read reviews comparing a band to someone else. In the comparison to Depeche Mode I must say, it's pretty accurate. Bloodsport uses alot more of the standard electro pop rhythms although the textures are cleverly mixed. I still need to give this a few more listens but Loretta Young Silks stands out so far as my favorite song. Some positive and negatives: the female vocals on several tracks do nothing for those songs. Corner's voice is so unique and well suited for this music it should be left without the addition of other voices. Corner does begin to stretch out a little more vocally but the lyrics are no where near as emotional and intricate as Splinter. This album will keep the Sneaker Pimps exactly where they are, pretty much unknown and underrated. Still, really good music.

I first heard of the Sneaker Pimps when "Loretta Young Silks" was played on a TV show and instantly loved the song... it starts out pretty slow and calm and then erupts into a loud, more intense chorus with amazing lyrics to boot. And it's not even the best song on the album. It's very easy to get stuck on "Kiro TV", "Sick", and the aforementioned track (all very catchy and amazing songs) and subsequently ignore the rest of the album; I'd strongly advise against it, because the other tracks are where the band's genius really shines. "Fuel", "Bloodsport", and "Think Harder" are more electronic-y sounding songs, whereas "Blue Movie" and "Small Town Witch" are more haunting, slower tracks with amazing beats. The music is impeccable, and the lyrics are mindblowing... my most favorite lyric of the whole album definitely comes off of "Think Harder": "You asked me how to kill your headache: use a gun." Pretty clever. Guaranteed to please.

Anyone who thinks Kelli should still be singing, has never seen Sneaker Pimps live. Guitarist/vocalist Chris Corner is incredible! I saw them in San Francisco a few weeks back and was completely converted to Chris on vocals. He sang the old tracks with a twisted passion that Kelli just could never reach (remember these are HIS words, not hers). Fans seem to forget that he is not a new member. The new album Bloodsport, and better yet the previous "Splinter" shows what this band is really capable of. The songs are much more wharped, tense and mature. Thing is, most people don't want that. They want the bubble gum pop feel that Kelli brought to the material. Not this listener. Though bloodsport is quite accessible to the masses, thick with tight grooves and catchy vocal lines, there is something disturbed about the lyrics that makes the album more than just radio buzz. The first single "Sick" is a perfect example of this, openly attacking the media's bent habit for turning on pop musicans. To summarize, the Sneakers are writing the albums that listeners wish higher profile groups like Nine Inch Nails and Depeche Mode could still write. Open your mind and give this GREAT band a second try, with clear ears and forget the past. The future is looking nice and dark!

Sneaker Pimps "Bloodsport" is one of the most amazing new electronic/alternative albums that came out.i heard "Black sheep" one time on radio and it catched my ear for a while.i always wanted to buy this album but i always haven't got time.so one fine day i went to local store and found that "Bloodsport" is laying on a shelf and noone propably ever wanted to buy it.i did.and i dodn't regret.
"Bloodsport" is a inteligent mixture of pop,electronic beats and rock.while industrial "Kiro tv" si more angry and sharp track "Sick" features radio-friendly and very catchy melody (nice acoustic guitars) and awesome chorus.other superb tracks are pathetic "Loretta young silks",Depeche modesque "Small town withc" and of course "Black sheep" - dark ballad about intolerance.propably the best tracks from here.title track were we are listening that "Love is just the bloodsport" is also amazing.
great lyrics,good electronic background are making this album.

if yuo like electronic beats with specific alternative flavour then this one is for oyu.and of course i recomend it for all of you who want to listen good music.Sneaker Pimps are sucesfully filling the hole between Placebo and Massive attack.

Another extrodinary follow-up to "Splinter." Although, "Bloodsport" contains hit tracks resembling their preceding album, (such as "M'Aidez" and "Loretta Young Silks"), it seems more radio friendly for new listeners. Tracks like, "Fuel", "Sick", "Kiro TV" and "Bloodsport", seem more upbeat; a bit commercialized. Being a huge fan of "Splinter", it's hard to place them both on a scale and compare them. So I recommend to any new listeners, buy "Bloodsport" first, and "Splinter" next. The Sneaker Pimps are the only band I know that could get pigeon-holed into a trip-hop genre, then release something different / fresh / orginial, only to still impress and sound amazing!!!

A great deal of the negative reviews towards the Sneaker Pimps' music is unfair. To judge a group based upon a previous CD whose core member has left is illogical. Any person with commmon sense will realize that the departure of a key person from a group usually results in a shift in music direction and scope for the group.

And because 'Becoming X' was such a standout due to the vocals of their (then) lead singer - people are using it as a yardstick to judge 'Bloodsport'.

That being said, 'Bloodsport' *is* different. Yes - a male vocalist is used. Yes, the music is the tonal opposite of 'Becoming X' and is not dance-focused. The closest you will get to 'Becoming X' is the song 'Kiro TV'. But the music is still moody and atmospheric and most of the lyrics are thoughtful and well-written. 'Loretta Young Silks' and 'Blue Movie' are two examples of songs that are well-written/produced - but a clear departure from their previous work.

Sneaker Pimps had a Lucious Jackson vibe to it in 'Becoming X' - but that is no longer the case. And it's important to take this into consideration when listening/buying the CD. If you are expecting what came before - I would advise for you to pass on 'Bloodsport'. However, if you are interested in the new direction Sneaker Pimps have taken - I would strongly recommend getting it.

Each Sneaker Pimps CD goes into a new direction from the last and that is what I love about the Sneaker Pimps. Becoming X, Splinter, and Bloodsport sound almost nothing alike, but do have some similarities. If you do not have an open mind and can't get past that Kelli Ali left the Sneaker Pimps back in the 90's then there's no point in buying this album. This album is definately more upbeat than Splinter, but all are equally as awesome. I love this album, and I was extremely depressed before I first got it and sick of all of my old CD's, and this CD picked me up quickly and got me into so many different tastes in music that I never thought I had. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS CD!!!

I'm thinking that most people here in the U.S. completely missed the last album, "Splinter" due to the fact that it was released only as a high-priced import, on a very small label. Nevertheless, the difference between both that release and the new "Bloodsport" and the first album is considerable - but in a great way. Rarely does a band improve with the loss of a signature singer, especially replacing the singer with a vocalist of the opposite sex! Expanding upon their unique amalgam of trancey-electronic rhythm structure with a very organic use of fretless bass and simple electric and acoustic guitar, "Bloodsport" is nevertheless hard to describe...and simply infectious. Definitely more upbeat than the equally stunning "Splinter" - actually rather funky and rhythmically forceful throughout, but with gorgeously slower, ballad-like and dreamy tracks like "M'aidez" and "Grazes" that lend the whole album such a great sense of contrast. Thankfully, the Tommy Boy label has seen fit to sign this band for U.S distribution, so hopefully this great album, unlike so many other great albums, won't just come and go completely unheard. One of the best releases of 2002!

are these guys gods or what? visions of a brian kinney romance - phew.... poetry from a space odessey; suave, sexy, symbiotic sounds: dig it! This band rocks! Bought becoming x years back, yeah, that was ok, a sorta nice get over a hang over cd... but ditch kel, and boy oh boy do we have a winner!

The Sneaker Pimps have released 3 albums so far and all three have very different offerings actually. While their first one was based on athereal female vocals and classic trip-hop textures their second was a more "experimental" effort (that doesnt necessarily mean bad) and then we have this one, "Bloodsport": this LP could very possibly be the album of the year and I'm very well aware that this is a heavy statement especially when one thinks that especially in the electronic scene this has been a year of great releases.
BUT: "Bloodsport" has so many things going for it that its effectiveness is undeniable. First of all it has a stunning vocalist who never falls short of tricks throughout the album. It has trully great lyrics whether on the blood-bitter love songs or on those where social commentary is concerned. And then there is the music itself. I dont know about certain comparisons people are trying to come up with when it comes to "Bloodsport". I do know that that it has an abvious 80s touch to it, but actually the whole album is a musical orgasm of beats and great emo-melodies.. It shifts from dark scapes to "sunnier" offerings very smoothly and there is only one or two songs that can be considered "fillers"...
Amongst its many assets is the fact that 80% of the album sticks to your mind effortlessly...Not a bad job at a time when an album "earns" the title of "classic" because it has a mere 2-3 good songs on it, right?
Get yer hands on it!!!