Sleaford Mods

Sleaford Mods are an English post-punk duo from Nottingham, active since 2007. The group consists of Jason Williamson and Andrew Fearn; Simon Parfrement is also listed as a member. Their sound is rooted in post-punk, electronic music, grime, hip hop, minimal wave and political hip hop, and they are also associated with rap punk and crank wave.

Style and themes

Their music is known for a sparse, abrasive approach and for lyrics focused on austerity-era Britain, working-class life, culture, unemployment, modern labour, celebrities, pop culture, capitalism and society. Williamson delivers the words in an East Midlands accent, while Fearn provides the music. The pair describe their work as “electronic munt minimalist punk-hop rants for the working class”.

Williamson’s lyrics often use profanity, which he says reflects the way he speaks rather than being simply for shock value. Fearn’s instrumentals are described as minimal and repetitive, with bass-led post-punk elements, functional drum patterns, occasional basic keyboard lines and sparse guitar textures.

Formation and early background

The project begins in Nottingham in 2007. Williamson first meets Fearn in 2009 after hearing him DJ at the Chameleon, a small Nottingham club, where Fearn plays his own rough-edged, minimal grime-influenced tracks. Sleaford Mods originally start after a friend suggests Williamson combine his vocals with a sample from a Roni Size album. The project first carries the name “That’s Shit, Try Harder” before changing to Sleaford Mods, a reference to Sleaford in Lincolnshire near Grantham.

Members

Jason Williamson is born in 1970 in Grantham, Lincolnshire, and grows up there. Before Sleaford Mods, he spends several years trying to make music in different groups and as a solo singer-songwriter, and also works as a session musician with local artists, Spiritualized and Bent. Andrew Fearn is born in 1971 in Burton upon Trent and grows up on a farm in Saxilby, Lincolnshire.

Songwriting and roles

Williamson writes the lyrics, while Fearn is responsible for the music. This division of labour is central to the group’s stripped-down format and spoken-word delivery.