“It’s my version of some Wu Tang shit. They had kung fu, if I could have manga that would be totally ill. It’s breaking new ground with an old idea.”
A week after Discovery Fund recipient and RATKING producer Sporting Life dropped off his kinetic video for “Kill That Shout,” the NY producer, creator and Letter Racer/R&S Records signee is back with the release of his Slam Dunk Ep, Vol. 1. Prepare to be teleported.
Inspired by the Japanese manga artist Takehiko Inoue’s enormously popular manga series, Slam Dunk Vol. 1 finds Sporting Life building a bridge between worlds, weaving in his own sonic textures with manga-influenced visuals and underpinned by his love for basketball, not just as a sport but as an expression of physical creativity.
Think about it like walking wide-eyed through a new city with your favorite album playing in your headphones. Like starting a pick-up game with strangers on a court you’ve been playing on since childhood. Like a longtime friend who comes back from a trip to Japan with a new book they know you’ll love. It’s something simultaneously new and familiar, a bridge between worlds that creates its own world.
Vol. 1 contains four audio tracks, plus a forthcoming video for “Hydrate The Hustle,” all paired with the release of a sweatband. Sporting Life told us that he wants his art to exist on multiple levels, and he’s succeeded. Stream or download/purchase now and level up.
It’s all available via BitTorrent Now, and keep an eye out for our in-depth interview with Sporting Life, coming soon.
Slam Dunk Vol. I Contents:
- Hydrate the Hustle
- Space Jam Money
- Kill That Shout
- Hydrate the Hustle (Galcher Lustwerk Remix)