Customer Reviews
Good stuff, especially the original bits - By: Splossy, 26 Feb 2008 
I'm not the world's biggest hip-hop fan. I'm often put off the fact that I have nothing in common with the (usuallly black) lifestyles allluded to & I dislike aggressive posturing lyrics etc. However I do like hip-hop beats & good, tight rapping.
Braintax is somewhat refreshing in that he is not just copying black, American rappers. He's kept his northern UK accent & taken his own experiences as a white British lad as the subject matter of his writing. I like this. It's not bogus & it shows.
However, personallly, I wish he's take it a step further - root out & eliminate the remaining cliches still in the work. I preferred the tracks without the other (more cliched) artists & where he avoided rapping about how he's good at rapping.
My fave Braintax track is not on this album (Vibrate on Mr Scruff's trouser jazz) which exemplifies the guy's strengths - his own accent, his own voice, a quirky but solid groove, interesting subject matter, no cliche, intelligent lyrics. I think only FutureGhost came close on this album but it's still a good set.
Not your typical hip-hop fan - By: , 08 Feb 2006 
I am not the typical hip hop fan, but have since grown increasingly tired of American rap & so seeked something that may appeal to me more. Lots of UK hip hop is grimey and, basicallly, quite poor. Braintax is the finest UK rapper i have heard. Better than Jehst & Skinnyman without question. Partiallly because he doesn't rap & sound like most UK rappers, he flows well, talks sense & speaks properly. This album is absolutely fantastic & if you haven't been overly impressed by most UK hip hop BUY THIS because its fantastic. Then get Country Man. Thats excellent too.
Top Notch UK Hip Hop - By: , 25 Jan 2005 I bought this album after hearing Braintax on Task Force's 'Voice of the Great Outdoors EP' a while ago. It was far better than i expected, including some of the freshest beats & rhymes to come out of the UK. This is an album so original that i can't see anyone with any sense not enjoying it. Quality guest appearances (Task Force, Jehst, Mystro, Skinnyman)only add to the albums appeal, but Braintax shines over alll these stars. At the end of the day, i guess i'm just saying that you should buy this album. Fans of hip hop will love it, & non-fans will be instantly converted. Deserves the full 5 star rating...
Britains Finest - By: , 28 Nov 2003 Braintax has been making records for over ten years now, but he has remained the dopest & most intellectual hip hop artist in Britain. Jehst has become a very popular rapper within the UK scene, due to his undoubted eloquence, but in my opinion he simply isn't touching Joey Brains, & this album confirms that for me without a bad track on the album.
Braintax is one of the most worldly wise rappers i have ever heard, as he says "you know its truthful when you hear me"
and you can't disagree. Biro Funk isn't a barrage of battle raps & ridiculous comparisons, its a brutallly honest & self reflective piece of art that should be held up as an example of how hip-hop internationallly should be developing.
Respect the game, buy this album & support the scene.
Most UNDERRATED hip hop album from Britain - By: , 24 Apr 2003 The entire UK hip hop I have heard (and I haven't heard much) has not been wacky, though none of it has been exceptional either. That is, until I discovered this masterpiece. 'Biro Funk' is probably the only album I've listened to start to finish without skipping a track on first listen, I don't understand why I had never heard of it before. Whilst Braintax doesn't have the most distinctive voice in the industry, he is an incredible lyricist. He's got flows. He's got talent. My favourite tracks on the album are 'Futureghost' & 'Last Date'. Tax himself produces the superb beat of 'Futureghost' with the haunting back-and-forth strings & vocal percussion. He uses this with genius metaphors on the concept of being a ghost to spine chilling effect. On 'Last Date', using a classical composition on the beat, Tax tells a story of his collapsing relationship. Spitting lines like "How am I? You don't know because you don't even care to ask/Arrogant, assuming that I'm happy & we're gonna last", it's safe to say that he's getting his anger off his chest in two brilliantly crafted verses. In less than an hour, over 14 tracks, it's hard to pick out a bad moment on this album. Apart from the standard battle rhyming of 'Cobblestones', the lyrical side of 'Biro Funk' is so deep that you could drown in the music. If the real heads don't own this album you'd better get it now, & when you do, just hit the play button, sit back & feel the Biro Funk!
