Showing posts with label Eminem. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Eminem. Show all posts



When you forego conformity, and pursue your own, distinct artistry; the product you produce will be that much more powerful. It will breathe an idiosyncratic life of its own, and that life will bless you with prestige unlike any given to those around you. Coming from me, you can take that with a grain salt. Coming from Bay Area duo, Off Kilter, and their brand new EP, “No Filter”, this truth becomes harder to resist. Because they, over the course of six tracks, go completely against the status quo, and that makes their music all the more fascinating. 


The first thing that will captivate you about rappers, TLick and Burny, are their brisk and breathless flows. They deliver some of the most lax, yet rapid-fire raps; and that unique blend of tone and cadence extremely compliments their production, creating a completely avant-garde sound. Their flows aren’t the end all be all either. Riding the rapid-fire wave of their cadences are shots of lyricism and vocal acrobatics. They will bend their voice into different bellies of the beat, all the while giving you metaphors, imagery and similes that will spin your mind. When dealing with such sporadic spitting, you would expect the instrumental to be made at a tempo that can keep up. That is not the case with this duo. Their self-produced beats facilitate a slow head nod at best; being hypnotic and chill. Some of my favorite tracks on this project (“I Make It Rain In The Desert” , “Unfuckwittable” , and “Nuthin To Me”) feature this matchless harmony between fast and slow. It is that matchless harmony that breathes this originality into Offkilter’s music. That originality, in due time, is going to earn them a powerful fanbase and peerless longevity in the world of rap.

“NO FILTER”


Recent Interview
http://tobtr.com/s/10933915


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Back in 2006, legendary New York emcee, Nas, declared that Hip-Hop was dead. The insurgence of autotune, melodies, and growing “pop” aesthetic in the music, made this declaration incredibly logical. Even modern day, where the culture is leaning further and further towards a commodity instead of artform; Golden Hip-Hop seems to have lost its place with the turn of the century. That’s what makes rap act, Lockness Carnival’s, recent release “Tickets To The Dope Show” such a blindsided sucker-punch; loud enough to throttle the graveyard, and awaken that Golden Age artistry from its deathly slumber. “Tickets To The Dope Show” is a seven-track resurrection of one of the most celebrated eras of rap; hearkening back to the 90s time period with a beautiful blend of lyricism and old-school production. The only exception to this is the second track, “Urban Litty” which features a more new-age, electronic beat. Everything else follows a strict, satisfying rubric; with which the emcee, Dark Angel, shines impeccably across his producer, Strange’s, instrumentation. Dark Angel has a powerful affinity with imagery and storytelling; and he uses such to paint the most polarizing portraits. There are strong horrorcore themes locked in the stories of “Margo Santana” and “Hector”, yet backed by Strange’s warm, vinyl-singed primeval production, this imagery becomes eerily gorgeous. Another great element of this duo is that they do not solely rely on music to tell their tales. In the middle of the project, there are skits and snippets that fit flawlessly between Angel’s own verses, giving his stories even greater dimensionality. “Tickets To The Dope Show” is an outstanding blast to the past from two amazing creatives. If Hip-Hop is dead, they’ll be of the few to thank for its revival.


 [Download/Stream]
“Tickets To The Dope Show”
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/tickets-to-the-dope-show/1417721010


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  Not a single nook or cranny in the life of Santa Cruz rapper, Recklous, goes unexplored on his latest “Cop This Mixtape” project. The twelve track opus is a melting pot of subjects and sonics all blending together to paint a unique portrait of the man behind them. The first two tracks (“L.O.R.D” and “Blocked Numba”) are scorching trap bangers, aimed at incinerating an ex-lover whose ostensibly done Recklous wrong. “I Bet You Would” strikes as an ancient, G-funk anthem; whose production could have been graced by the likes of Dr. Dre. In alignment with that aesthetic, Recklous taps into an off kilter, Eminem-esque flow near the end of his ultimate verse; tying the song together, sonically. A personal favorite, both production-wise, as well as lyrically, will be the track “Deadpool”. “Deadpool” features a spine-chilling, synth-based melody; backed by a dark, heavy brass, and galloping trap beat. On the record, Recklous dives completely into his past struggles with drug abuse and suicidal thoughts; touching are two topics that are extremely relevant to the youth of modern America. And he does so with unshakeable confidence; as if he fully knows the power of his voice is greater than any shame he may feel about his past. “Perfect 10” is a confession of the rappet struggling with finances; dealing with being kicked out, homeless and owing some significant debt. The last track, “Sextape” is a smooth, fun, melodic cut done in ode to Recklous’s new love interest. On the record, he expresses his desire to turn her into a star akin to Paris Hilton, and Kim Kardashian... by identical means. This rounds the mixtape off beautifully; having started with torment over a past relationship, and ending with hope in a new one. All in all, this is a great, wholehearted debut by Recklous; and if he continues to be this honest in his music, he will build a fanbase like no other.

“COP THIS, MIXTAPE” Stream/Download:
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