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Gunshot is a British hip hop group, formed by MC Mercury, MC Alkaline, Q-Roc, DJ White Child Rix and DJ/MC Barry Blue in the area of Leyton in east London, around 1988/1989. They were originally called Sudden Impact.
They released their debut single "Battle Creek Brawl" (Vinyl Solution, 1990) to some acclaim, which was followed swiftly by the single "No Sell Out/Crime Story" (Vinyl Solution, 1991).[1] Both singles were well received within the hip hop scene, but following this release Q-Roc left the group to join Son of Noise under the name Curoc. Mercury, Alkaline and White Child Rix continued with the group, releasing a succession of singles in 1991/1992, that soon cemented them a place as one of the leaders of the UK hip hop scene.[citation needed] Their style was hardcore and fast, quickly coming to be considered—along with groups such as Hijack—the defining style of the genre.[citation needed]
One of their releases in this period was "Killing Season/Nobody Move" (Vinyl Solution, 1992), which was the first of their tunes to feature guest vocals from the rapper Barry Blue. Blue continued to provide guest vocals on some tracks for the group right up until their final album, as well as releasing the White Child Rix produced "The Story Begins . . . EP" (Move, 1994) as a solo artist.
The reception of Gunshot's first singles by British hip hop fans and DJ's was good and demand grew for an album. The group released Patriot Games, notable for the track "Mind of a Razor," which was subsequently released as a single and included a remix by the British extreme metal band, Napalm Death.[1] Patriot Games reached number 60 in the UK Albums Chart in June 1993.[2]
More singles followed, including "Color Code" (Vinyl Solution, 1994) which featured remixes by Depth Charge - repaying the favour of Alkaline rapping for them on the "Depth Charge vs Silver Fox" (Silver Fox Records, 1991) single.
A second album was never released, instead Vinyl Solution released a compilation of the group's singles. This marked the end of Gunshot's association with Vinyl Solution, and the group went underground. They communicated with their fans via their now defunct website, whilst they worked on getting a new recording contract.
Another single and album – Twilights Last Gleaming (Words of Warning, 1997), was followed by their next CD, International Rescue, in 2000. The track "The English Patient" included guest spots from The Icepick, Blade, MC Mell'O' and Chester P. The album was billed as Gunshot's final before it was released. In 2017, Naked Ape Records and Underground United reissued the album on double vinyl.
From 2001 to 2003 Alkaline has guested on tracks by Junior Disprol and Aspects, while Mercury featured on a track from Snuff The Ablist.
After an 18 year hiatus, in 2018 saw the return of Gunshot with their new single "Sulphur", followed up by their newest release, "Burn Cycle", in February 2020.