Drain Gang | |
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Background information | |
Also known as | Smög Boys, Gravity Boys, Shield Gang, GTB, GTBSG, DG, D-9, SG |
Origin | Stockholm, Sweden |
Genres | |
Years active | 2013–present |
Labels |
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Members | |
Past members | Yung Sherman |
Website | https://gtb.sg/ |
Drain Gang (formerly known as Gravity Boys Shield Gang) is a Swedish music collective. Consisting of Bladee, Ecco2k, Thaiboy Digital and producer Whitearmor, [4] [2] the group rose to one of the top Swedish music collectives in the mid-late 2010s. They are known for their frequent collaborations with fellow Swedish rapper Yung Lean and producer Gud.
The group formed in 2013 in Stockholm. Thaiboy Digital was residing in Sweden at the time. Bladee and Ecco2K had previously collaborated as the grindcore duo Krossad. [5] Signing to the YEAR0001 label, the members of Drain Gang gained prominence in the cloud rap scene from their collaborations with labelmate Yung Lean. [6]
Speaking on the meaning of the group's name, Bladee states: [7]
Drain is about loss and gain; it could be good or bad — you could be drained of energy or you could drain something to gain energy. There’s financial, emotional and physical drains, for example — you could just be draining your bank account at the store. It doesn’t have to be deep. Basically, if I’m talking about ‘eating the night’ that means I drain it for its essence. Everything me and my bros do is connected to that concept — we might drain some blood for good fortune.
The compilation GTBSG is considered the collective's first work. The compilation contains various singles released throughout 2013, which are available online on the official Soundcloud account.
Gluee is Bladee's first mixtape, featuring Thaiboy Digital, Ecco2K, and BONES, and produced by Whitearmor, Yung Sherman, Curtis Heron, and Blank Body.
Thaiboy Digital's first mixtape, Tiger, was released in 2014. In 2015, Thaiboy Digital's visa expired and he was deported from Sweden. [8] Through the internet, he has managed to continue collaborating with the other members from his new home in Bangkok. He and Bladee released a collaborative EP titled AvP in 2016, which featured production from both Whitearmor and Yung Sherman. [9]
In 2017, Bladee, Ecco2K and Thaiboy Digital released their collaborative album D&G, featuring production from member Whitearmor, and frequent collaborators Gud, Yung Sherman, Woesum, and Australian-based collective Ripsquadd. [10]
In December 2017, Bladee also released the mixtape Working on Dying, which was a collaborative album with the Philadelphia producer collective Working on Dying. The entire project was produced by Working On Dying, with Whitearmor contributing additional production. The project had features from Yung Lean, Black Kray (a frequent collaborator of both Bladee and Working On Dying), and Ecco2k, while Thaiboy Digital provided additional vocals on a few tracks. The project is heavily influenced by tread music, a trap subgenre created by Working on Dying.
In spring of 2018, Bladee released the album Red Light , the follow-up to his 2016 debut album Eversince . The release was celebrated with a special concert at the O2 Islington Academy in London on 16 May 2018.
In 2018, Bladee released Icedancer, his third mixtape and ninth project. The mixtape was produced by RipSquad. The album features collaborations with Yung Lean, Cartier'GOD, and Thaiboy Digital.
In 2019, the group released a collaborative EP titled Trash Island . Whitearmor served as the executive producer, while Ripsquadd and German producer Mechatok returned to contribute additional production. The album was recorded and produced in Bangkok. The EP was a surprise release, as no announcement was made on YEAR0001's nor the group's various social medias. [11]
On 27 November 2019, Ecco2K released E , his first full-length project, produced by Yung Gud.
In 2020, Bladee released three full-length studio albums.
Bladee's first album of 2020 was Exeter (released in April), which was executive produced by frequent collaborator and Sad Boys member Gud. This was the first time that Gud executively produced one of Bladee's albums. The project contains elements of genres like cloud rap, art pop, trap, and alternative R&B.
Bladee's second album of 2020 was 333 (released in July), executive produced by Whitearmor. Gud, Mechatok, Ripsquadd member Lusi, and Swedish musician Jokim Benon all contributed additional production to the album. The album was noted for containing sonic similarities to hyperpop music, being described as "hyperpop adjacent".
The Fool is Bladee's fifth studio album. All songs on the project are produced by Lusi along with other producers such as Loesoe, who appears several times on the album. The album's artwork and track listing were leaked on 14 May 2021, with a planned release date of 11 June.
In late 2021, the group announced a 2022 Drain Gang world tour, consisting of 23 performances across Europe and North America. [12]
In 2022, Bladee and Ecco2K released a collaborative single titled "Amygdala" produced by Mechatok. [13] A collaborative album by Bladee & Ecco2K, entitled Crest , was released unannounced in March of the same year. The album, containing the single "Girls just want to have fun", which had previously been released as a miscellaneous single in 2020, was produced entirely by Whitearmor. [14]
Later that year Whitearmor released his solo debut, a full-length instrumental album titled In The Abyss: Music for Weddings. [15]
Jonatan Aron Leandoer Håstad, known professionally as Yung Lean, is a Swedish rapper, singer and songwriter. Widely cited as one of the most influential figures in the early cloud rap era, Yung Lean rose to prominence in 2013 with his song "Ginseng Strip 2002", which went viral on YouTube. Later that same year, he released his debut mixtape, Unknown Death 2002, and the following year, he released his debut studio album, Unknown Memory.
Carl-Mikael Göran "Micke" Berlander, known professionally as Gud, is a Swedish DJ, music producer and rapper best known as a member of rapper Yung Lean's Stockholm-based group Sad Boys. He began producing at the age of twelve, making psychedelic trance music, which heavily influenced his sonic palette. His production as a part of Sad Boys has been well received.
Swedish rapper Yung Lean, has released seven studio albums, six EPs and three mixtapes.
Benjamin Reichwald, known professionally as Bladee, is a Swedish rapper, singer, record producer, designer, and member of the artistic collective Drain Gang. Reichwald has released music through the Stockholm record label Year0001 since his debut mixtape Gluee in 2014. In addition to his music, Reichwald creates visual art, which frequently appears as cover art for his releases. Reichwald also serves as the creative director for Yung Lean's clothing line Sadboys Gear.
Red Light is the second studio album by Swedish rapper Bladee. It was released on 11 May 2018 by YEAR0001. The album was released to digital retailers and streaming services along with an announcement that Bladee would be performing his first major solo show at London's O2 Academy Islington the following week.
Eversince is the debut studio album by Swedish rapper and Drain Gang member Bladee. It was released on May 25, 2016 by YEAR0001. The album contains elements of hip hop, R&B, gothic rock, new wave music, and electronic music.
Year0001 is an independent record label based in Stockholm, Sweden. Founded in 2015 by Oskar Ekman and Emilio Fagone, it is under an exclusive distribution agreement with Dutch distributor FUGA.
Thanapat Bunleang, better known by his stage name Thaiboy Digital, is a Thai rapper, singer, producer, and fashion designer. Born in Khon Kaen, Thailand, Bunleang moved to Stockholm, Sweden at the age of eight, and is now based in Bangkok. In addition to his solo work, Bunleang is a member of the group Drain Gang.
Zak Arogundade Gaterud, better known as Ecco2K, is a Swedish-British designer, visual artist, and rapper. He founded Drain Gang with childhood friends Bladee, Thaiboy Digital and Whitearmor in 2013. Having experience with graphics software since he was 5, Arogundade founded the band Krossad with Bladee, his then-classmate, in 2004. Three years later, he founded his first fashion brand, Alaska, and later joined the Swedish shoe brand Eytys. Over the next decade, Ecco2K appeared on albums with Drain Gang and directed music videos before releasing his debut solo studio album, E, in 2019. He went on to release EP PXE in 2021 and Crest in 2022, the latter with Bladee. Arogundade is known as a private and secretive person, and has incorporated queer themes in his work.
333 is the fourth studio album by Swedish rapper Bladee. It was released on July 16, 2020, by YEAR0001, making it Bladee's second release of 2020, following April's Exeter. 333 is notable among Bladee's discography in featuring no collaborations from fellow Drain Gang members Thaiboy Digital and Ecco2K. The album has been associated with the hyperpop microgenre that rose to popularity in 2020, with one writer describing it as "hyperpop-adjacent".
The Fool is the sixth studio album by Swedish rapper and Drain Gang member Bladee. A surprise album, it was released on 28 May 2021 through Year0001. The track "Inspiration Comes" features fellow Drain Gang member Thaiboy Digital. The entirety of the project was produced by Lusi, although some songs have extra contributions from producers such as Clibbo, Loesoe, Outtatown, Rip, and Rok.
Stardust is the fourth mixtape by Swedish rapper Yung Lean. It was released on 8 April 2022 by the label World Affairs, a sub-label of YEAR0001.
Spiderr is the eighth studio album by Swedish musician Bladee. It was released on 30 September 2022 via Year0001. The album was announced via Bladee's Instagram on 15 September 2022 and along with the announcement, a song and accompanying video directed by Ecco2K "Drain Story" was shared. Spiderr follows Bladee's and Ecco2K's 2022 collaborative album Crest.
Adamn Killa is an American rapper from Chicago, Illinois. He is noted for his collaborations with rappers of the YEAR0001 collective Yung Lean, Bladee & Thaiboy Digital, as well as his experimental approach to hip hop.
Crest is a collaborative studio album by Swedish musicians Bladee and Ecco2K, released on 17 March 2022 through Year0001. It was recorded in Sweden with producer Whitearmor, close to the recording location of the film The Seventh Seal (1957). A progressive pop album, Crest contains Auto-Tune vocals with lyrics addressing themes of love and friendship, while including multiple references to Christianity and heaven. The track "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" was released as a single in 2020. Crest was considered one of the best albums of the year by The Fader and Anthony Fantano and one of the best progressive pop albums of the year by Pitchfork.
E is the debut solo studio album by Swedish-British singer Ecco2K. A surprise album, it was released on 27 November 2019 through Year0001.
Trash Island is a collaborative studio album by Swedish collective Drain Gang, released on 12 September 2019 through Year0001. It is performed by Bladee, Ecco2K and Thaiboy Digital, and produced by Whitearmor, with "Acid Rain" and "You Lose" being co-produced by Mechatok and Lusi, respectively. The song "1:1" features Yung Lean.
Ludwig Rosenberg, professionally known as Whitearmor, is a Swedish music producer, multi-instrumentalist, audio engineer and songwriter. He is best known for being a member of the Swedish music group and artist collective Drain Gang. His musical style has been described as softly textured, fluid and terminally online.
Legendary Member is the debut studio album by Thai rapper Thaiboy Digital, released on 26 September 2019 through Year0001. The album was recorded with Thaiboy Digital exchanging trips between London and Stockholm, and features Bladee, Ecco2K, and Yung Lean. The album has Gud as executive producer, with Whitearmor, RipSquad and Woesum as co-producers. It was first announced a month before with the release of a single, "Lip Service", featuring Ecco2K, followed by the release of "Nervous" and "IDGAF". A music video for the album's title track was released in October. Thaiboy Digital later toured Australia.
Psykos is a collaborative studio album by Swedish musicians Bladee and Yung Lean. A surprise album, it was released on 13 March 2024 through World Affairs. Recorded in Thailand and Sweden, the album was entirely produced by Palmistry and SilentSky. HotNewHipHop highlighted songs "Golden God" and "Enemy", while Paper highlighted "Ghosts".