Review: 3.5 out of 5.
I'm back everyone,
Last month has been crazy. I left my review scribe of movie reels and settled in, now talking about music. What I have for you people here is a person from up North who I met a few times on set during his videos. He is laid back and is pretty safe. He calls himself Blaze Barnation. I have listened to his mix tape and I heard that he produced some of his own songs. That is a great art to have, considering most wannabe artist's or genuine ones scramble to find producer's and worry about gettin' signed to the best label. Music is not that easy to get into. Forget X-Factor an' that so-called reality-pansy rubbish, it's deeper than River Thames. Anyway, back to Blaze, it's not a bad mix at all. In fact, it can be marketable.
Good:
Blaze really knows how to set the mood as he often variate his tone on a particular beat while still keeping his flow locked. He has a very distinctive style which can go from a monotone to an upbeat Garage, Dub step, pace. You can tell which area his background comes from within this genre. The good thing is that his delivery is quite unique and I'm here scratching my head trying to figure out what artist could he be influenced from, British that is. I'm thinking of maybe Bashy, Ghetts or K-Coke but I could be wrong. Not sure, but I'm not gonna wrestle and rack my brain too much on it. Its better left another day.
There are some great tunes out there, but the good thing about this is its a different story every track. Every track is like a new chapter that progressed until the bitter end. The content is great, but I feel there is something missing. I will get onto the other side of it later, but I want to tell you some of the hardest bars on the mix-tape. I won't spoil it, but even though one of his tracks was not on my top list "A Star" featuring Drea was slow and quite built with electronica, but not hardcore. The beat was decent and had a strong voice from the singer. Blaze spit lines I liked "Tupac was talkin' about changes, something that can uplift our nation" and this one "But just cause I'm stuck an' coulda been ballers, but you're not, your more like a supporter". Those two bars are honest, smack in the middle and had meaning. Yes, Tupac was talking about changes. Another thing is "ballers", living the fast lane don't always give easy pickings and if you support that you are just as contradictory as them. There are more tracks I want to dive into.
The favourite tracks I have listened to is "Sometimes I Don't Want to Be Alive", "Legend", "I Am a Champion", just to name a few. The best guests alongside Blaze was Dominic, Abstrakt E, Blink and Sylvia. It feels more mainstream somehow, but I think it will catch on quickly if it hits the right circuit. The mixing was well put together and goes in and some of the tracks sound almost like remixes of each other, but its not, which is strange but yes, he came out the box. The way he ends on a line is a nice touch, something many rappers tend to do these days. He makes it his own though with his flow. Those are the best things about the mix-tape, as he swung punch lines right in a match.
Bad:
Now, with the highs always come with lows. I will be fair, there is not many tunes I listened to in the UK that are like this. I'm a hard judge, I don't try to go for commercial stuff. Not that there's anything wrong, but it has it's short coming's. One thing I have a problem with is his bars are sometimes not clear. I'm not someone who listens to music just for base, and I admit it's sick but I want to hear the lyrics as well. Those are what get me when I jump and start bopping my head. I need it, otherwise I miss out. Another thing is the tracks such as "A Star", "Let go", "Gorgeous" and "Lost With Nowhere to Go" has base and melody that is almost too similar. People may lose interest quickly, but the rest of the mix-tape such as "hood tracks" like "Rain on dem" help to compensate. I'm not into his other track "R-Kelly", but I think it's Blaze just having fun. I gotta say, the "R-Kelly swagger" is corny but catchy. Not a bad run, it's pretty swell.
Overall:
Barnation World did manage to make you feel at home with some very fitting tracks which can easily hit the mainstream. He is a talented rapper and producer who knows what he is doing, there is respectable delivery that goes right in but I feel it needed more work to push it to the right side of the spectrum. The biggest praise was the acts by Dominic, Abstrakt E and Blink. I think if the singers like Drea and Grace had more qualms, it would have potential to push it into the next wing of success. The next review will be P.U.K's EP and after that, is a surprise.
- Written by Kbon.
