‘Curiouser… And Curiouser: B-Curious’ | Album Review’
June 30 2025 | Written by Phoebe Needham-Chandler
Inventor of the avant-garde hip-hop subgenre ‘chap-hop’, Jim Burke, known professionally as Mr. B The Gentleman Rhymer, has released his latest studio album, ‘B-Curious’, in May 2025. Quintessential of the chap-hop genre, which fuses hip-hop elements with stereotypical English obsessions like tea and the weather, ‘B-Curious’ explores themes such as British mannerisms and old English language through a humorous interpretation. From ‘Flibbertigibbet’ to ‘Recrudescence’, Mr. B’s playful and whimsical approach to song writing makes every track on the album worth a repeat listen.
‘B-Curious’ takes you on a journey that’s’ rather reminiscent of falling down a rabbit hole. The opening track, aptly named ‘Curiouser…’, pays homage to Lewis Carroll’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’, circling back into the closing track ‘…And Curiouser’. Carrying on the theme of inquisition, Mr. B delights in revolving certain songs around 18th century words and phrases. Some examples include ‘The Morbs’, ‘Snerdle’, and ‘Flibbertigibbet’. Despite referring to Victorian slang for depression, ‘The Morbs’ is a catchy, light-hearted tune which melodiously reignites a long-forgotten phrase. Like the album’s tenth track ‘Snerdle’, meaning ‘to nestle closely’, and its seventh track ‘Flibbertigibbet’, meaning ‘an excessively talkative person’, ‘The Morbs’ has a playful ring to it. ‘B Curious’ guarantees listeners several new additions to their everyday vocabulary, as Mr. B comically demonstrates how the past can inspire us. With complex rhyme schemes and an energetic delivery, it is bafflingly impressive how Mr. B weaves language together.
Remarking on the commonalities of British mannerisms, ‘B-Curious’ features notable tracks like ‘Eat, Sleep, Apologise, Repeat’ and ‘Bringing Charming Back’. It is a frequent observation that Brits apologise a lot – often for trivial things – so the addictively dulcet tone of the album’s second track ‘Eat, Sleep, Apologise, Repeat’ is a hysterically fitting introduction to the album. ‘Bringing Charming Back’, in true chap fashion, criticizes performative masculinity and embraces a deliberately old-fashioned, refined, and humorous approach to it instead. Mr B’s parodistic approach to song writing, whilst adding the vital ingredient of humour, demonstrates a layer of complexity to his creative process, especially when paired with the enigmatic stage presence. It takes gumption and imagination to effectively handle satire, and Mr. B’s splendid efforts at ‘bringing charming back’ are certainly paying off with his avant-garde musical makings.
‘Thinkwank’, the album’s eleventh track, has a cheerful, bouncy rhythm, critiquing the internet for its easily accessible pornographic content – not quite the sex-fuelled lyrics you’d expect from a rap song. Track twelve, ‘Took A Quiche To A Day Rave’, is one of the album’s mellower tunes, detailing the unique ordeal of smuggling a quiche into a day rave – not quite the drugs-fuelled lyrics you’d expect from a rap song either! However, the anxiety inducing prospect of hiding a quiche in a briefcase does sound tense. Describing this sneaky act as a ‘peach of a brain wave’, Mr. B is bound to inspire the shopping lists of 2025’s music festival attendees.
From scandalously declaring ‘Oh my ankles baby more than you can handle’, to featuring a Nirvana solo in ‘An Absolute Plomb’, Mr. B continues to prove that musical creativity knows no bounds. The chap-hop artist orchestrates satire brilliantly, and provides listeners with a unique escapism that fuses the sophisticated with the silly. Paired with the plonky twang of a banjolele, Mr. B’s exceptional talents for rapping and song writing are an unmissable live experience. Available for purchase on Bandcamp, ‘B-Curious’ is a distinctive, one-of-a-kind album that you’ll want to hear again and again!