Computed Beats

    Today, I have the privilege of reviewing my brother MooNShyner |  ناصر بن منذر 's EP, the City Sleeps or المدينه نامت .      A 22-minute story borne of loss, reflection and pause, this Arabic EP brings together both personal and global stories that capture the minds and ears. With his elaborate use of echo sounding verses and vibes, Shyner processes living in his city, the loss of a special person among other feelings that hit close to home.      I enjoyed the set approach to the EP, ensuring that the listener needs to engulf themselves in the story as a whole and not a single track. Rhymes and verses were on point, and even though this is all self-mastered and partially self-produced (thanks YouTube beats!), you still hear the words coming through nicely and the echo is there for us to enjoy.      One criticism I have is the condensing of the lyrics. I have pointed this out to the artist himself many times and he has ...

         Today, we are doing things a little bit differently. Instead of doing an album review, we are doing an artist spotlight, which basically means we are putting an artist in the spotlight and giving our opinion on them. Today, our featured artist is Subjoi.     Operating out of Adelaide, Southern Australia, Subjoi (né Jakub Fidos) is an electronic music producer and DJ that specializes in house and the lo-fi genre. His sound is very experimental and it ranges from heavy bass looping with simple vocal loops to harder banging club-based vibes. His latest EP Fairfax shows that range and diversity in sound exactly. Although it is a higher BPM range than what we are usually accustomed to from Subjoi, it is still a joy to listen to nonetheless. You can find the EP tracks below.     My favorite songs of his are 'Flashing Lights' off the 'Flashing Lights EP', 'VIP' off the 'It's You EP' and 'The Way I Feel' single. All 3 songs show the variety...

     Today I will be reviewing the album 'As God Intended' by Apollo Brown and Che Noir that dropped on Mello Music Group label. The format will be different and made to be more accessible and readable. Without further ado, here is the review! Favorite Tracks: 1. Hustle Don't Give = 10/10 Favorite song on the album. Hard-hitting beats along with an amazing feature from Black Thought. 2. Daddy's Girl = 9/10 Very powerful lyrics about father daughter relationship over an easy beat. 3. Worth Gold = 9/10 A mature view on Che Noir's life experience up until now woven in a masterful lyrical canvas. The album is full of exquisite samples from the likes of Common , AZ and the boom bap feel that Detroit based Apollo Brown went for did not fail. He makes it easy for Che Noir to tell her story in the best way she can, with intricate lyrics that stem from real life experiences that deal with fandom, stardom, family, and growth. Che Noir's word play and writing is second t...

     Happy #NewMusicFriday everyone! Today I am going to be reviewing Westside Gunn's fifth studio album and sequel to Flygod Is An Awesome God, Flygod Is An Awesome God 2. Featuring artists such as AA Rashid ,  Stove God Cooks , Armani Caesar , fellow Griselda legend Benny The Butcher , Boldy James , Keisha Plum , and Rome Streetz , the album is one to look out for. Gunn's consistency has to be pointed out. He already dropped Pray For Paris this year and is showing no signs of slowing down. Without further ado, let's get into the tracks.     The album starts off with 'Praise God Intro' featuring AA Rashid and produced by Daringer . It is a spoken word existential monologue by Rashid exclaiming that we as a whole are in a renaissance. He continues to exclaim that as a whole, artists have taken the fear that has engulfed them and made it a slave to their art. This effort must continue with the help and praise to God. 'Michael Irvin' comes up next. Produced b...

     Today, I will be reviewing the album Mordechai by Khruangbin. First thing's first, I wanted to ensure that everyone knows how to pronounce the group's name since I have had trouble figuring it out. According to IndiShuffle.com : It is : "Pronounced “Kroongbin,” the name is meant to symbolize the band’s quest to include as many different international influences into their sound as possible, drawing from Thai, Spanish and middle-eastern influences, giving the band their instantly-recognizable and hauntingly psychedelic sound." The band itself Khruangbin is a Houston, Texas based trio that is known for their ecclectic sound. Mordechai is their third studio album to date and it was released under the Dead Oceans/Night Time Stories Label. Without further ado, let's jump into the tracks.      The album starts off with 'First Class' and the song is just that. It's creative use of wavy guitar, heavy bass, drums, bongo, xylophone, and soundscapes as inst...

    Happy Juneteenth everyone! Today I will be reviewing Curren$y and Fuse's latest mixtape - Spring Clean. For those of you unaware, Fuse is a producer with 808 Mafia . Curren$y has always consistently produced with big name producers, and it is no surprise that his versatility and poise have enabled him to join forces with yet another big producer to create Spring Clean.     This 10-track tape by the New Orleans heavy hitter comes at a much needed time and without much notice as we are accustomed. Without further ado, let's jump into the tracks!     'Coast 2 Coast' sets us off with the infamous Curren$y steez dripping with his flows, 'my hotel room got a basketball court in it, it's easy to tell who's making money and who isnt'. Topped with his signature 'la da da da's, immaculate alliteration and powerful wordplay, it makes for a great intro song. We then move on to 'The Game' featuring Fendi P , an artist on his label. The beat is r...

    Today, I will be reviewing Iann Dior 's third album I'm Gone. The 21-year-old Puerto Rican born, Texas-raised rapper is on the come up and he dropped this album a week before its release date. It's only 21 minutes long and honestly I think it was 20 minutes too long, but let's get into the songs.     The album starts off with 'Paradise', a summertime hit that you would play in your convertible produced by the main producers on this album Andrew Luce and Omer Fedi . It then quickly moves into 'Pretty Girls', a song that interpolates Gives You Hell by The All-American Rejects  as a first sign of his pop punk / rap sound that he is trying to go for. The song itself has a really catchy rhythm produced by Kinderr but it is really just a mindless 'lit' song about pretty girls having fun and offers no depth.     We then move on to 'Sickness' that begins with a cool guitar melody that serves as the foundation of the beat produced by Jason Sc...