Sneaker Pimps Album: “Bloodsport”

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.

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.

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!

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!!!