The group, as seen in "Party Time." From left to right: Norman Pain, Kevin, Patrick Karneigh Jr.
The Northern Boys are a comedic Hip-Hop group whose members were born in Liverpool, though they met in Sutton Coldfield. Its main members are Norman Pain and Patrick Karneigh Jr., a duo of teachers who met while working at the same school and had solo music careers before joining forces. They are joined by a third member, Kevin, who only dances in their videos and is not heard in any of their songs.
As their name suggests, their musical style revolves around the Oop North trope, with Pain and Karneigh taking turns rapping about their miserable lives with distinctive accents. They gained popularity after releasing their first single, "Party Time", in 2022, which went viral.
Their music videos can be found on the Sindhu World
YouTube channel.
Tropes found in their music:
- Black Comedy Animal Cruelty: "Nobody Likes Me", as part of its general theme of the singers portraying themselves as weird, creepy, and generally unpleasant, makes sure to include a little bit of animal mistreatment, starting at the very beginning when Patrick Karneigh Jr. sings about owning a bichon frise that keeps sexually assaulting other dogs.Normal Pain: Now I have a cat, his name is Patrick
PKJ got jealous and attacked it. - Bring My Brown Pants: "Nobody Likes Me" has Norman Pain, surprisingly confidently, wrap up a verse about hanging out near the Red Light District with, "And then I get mugged and my pants turn brown!"
- Casanova Wannabe: A common theme in their lyrics is their failed attempts at picking up sex partners.I said "Hello there, can I fill your hole?"
She took one look and she told me "No." - Creepy Crossdresser: In the video for "Give It To Me", Norman wears a sequined dress, earrings, and makeup, which clashes with his bald head and facial hair.
- Dirty Old Man: The Northern Boys are old men in their 70s who rap about sex and drugs. See the following lyric from "Party Time":I'm a dirty wretched man
Call me "granddad" 'cause I fucked your nan - Drugs Are Bad: While they don't directly preach against drug use, their lyrics often juxtapose drug abuse with how miserable their lives are, portraying it as both an escape from and a contributor to their problems.
- Fan Disservice: Their sexually-charged lyrics are decidedly unsexy due to coming from a pair of Dirty Old Men living miserable lives.
- Intercourse with You: Sex is a common theme in their lyrics, though it tends to be portrayed in an unromanticized way with a dash of Fan Disservice.
- Lyrical Dissonance: "Nobody Likes Me", which is built around a fairly bright and chipper sample from Calvin Harris, is all about the singers portraying themselves as widely disliked for being weird, creepy and unpleasant. It's most obvious from Norman Pain, who injects a fair amount of confidence into his lines about shitting himself after being mugged near the red light district or having a grubby and semen-stained bachelor pad.
- Nervous Wreck: "Nobody Likes Me" is in part about how nervous they get in social situations.When I say hi, I get shut down
When I'm outside, I get stressed out
When I got people around I'm anxious
Nobody likes me, what the fuck now? - Only One Name: Kevin's last name is unknown.
- Oop North: As you might guess from their name, the group is comprised of Liverpool natives, which is reflected in their accents and lyrics about rough, lower-class life.
- Poor Man's Porn: "Nobody Likes Me" has a modernised version where the problem isn't a scrambled channel but an awful internet connection.Patrick Karneigh: WiFi's broken, so I gotta watch my porn in the form of comic books.
- Sharp-Dressed Man: Kevin's role in most videos consists of dancing while wearing a nice fitted suit and tie.
- Vocal Tag Team: Norman Pain and Patrick Karneigh Jr. take turns on the mic in each song, creating a contrast between Norman's rough, gravelly voice and Patrick's smoother sound.
- Vomit Indiscretion Shot: The video for "Sexy Train", which starts with text explaining that Norman was suffering from jaundice and deep vein thrombosis during filming, is suddenly interrupted when he vomits right as he starts his first verse. Text then appears again, explaining that his health quickly deteriorated and he had to be rushed to the hospital for treatment before the video could continue.
