Septuagenarian UK drill duo Pete & Bas have made waves since their formation in 2017, with a slew of singles and their Quick Little Mixtape cementing their reputation as one of the most surprising breakthrough acts in British rap. In late 2024 their first studio album, Mugshot dropped via off-licence-turned-record-label Sindhuworld.
From the start it's clear that Pete & Bas are more than just a novelty act - these gents can rap. Their distinctive voices, weathered by time, cigarettes and booze, add an extra grit and complement their styles oddly well. Opening track "T Pain", the lead single from Mugshot, is a perfect introduction for new listeners to what you can expect. The lyrics are filled with clever wordplay and references ranging from your typical gangster rap posturing (women, sex, crime and money are often recurring themes) to more typically British references that people of a certain age are more likely to relate to.
Music wise, the production is largely slanted towards grime and UK drill with a mix of harder hitting and more mid-paced, bass driven tracks. Songs like "Slap the Stick", "Action Man" and the more R&B influenced "Goodfella" give Bas more of the spotlight, whereas the harder tracks like "T Pain" and album highlight "Whirlybird" are very much the stage for Pete to shine, with the duo showing particular proficiency in rapid-fire lyrical onslaught on the latter track.
One major problem Mugshot has, however, is that the songs work better when taken as individual tracks. The songs are good, but when listening to the album as a whole, certain patterns start to emerge which can take away from the overall experience. The main flaw is their over-reliance on a select few samples to introduce songs, in particular the "9, 1" and "Omelette du fromage" samples that can be heard in half of the tracks. The producers writing the music need to expand their library on future efforts to avoid becoming too repetitive, although the rising stock Pete & Bas have could see them collaborating with more producers next time they hit the studio. The "T Pain" remix, featuring a major coup with a verse from the titular rapper himself, also suffers from the overindulgence of the bass boost, which leads to distortion and clipping in the music.
However, whether you're listening purely for the novelty or indeed for the actual quality of the music, you'll find stuff to enjoy on Mugshot. It has some glaring flaws which need ironing out should they choose to follow it up, and is best digested in small doses, but Pete & Bas show their quality in the rap game throughout. Beware an old man in a profession where men usually die young.
Mugshot is out now via Sindhuworld. Stream and buy the album below.