Still Life review.

Review: 3 out of 5.

Here, another underground artist, the visionary Graphic Designer and Rapper Kieron Boothe has made it with "Still Life". This mix-tape is the demonstration of his artistry. He worked with Aaron London, a singer-songwriter, MC and producer. From East London, Kieron has done well and revealed putting out another mix-tape very soon. My opinion, I have listened and I got to say, the originality is there and the content is quirky. No, that's not the right word for it, I think a perfect term is hybrid. Oh yeah, it's U.K. Hip Hop but this one crossed genres. I spoke to Kieron and insisted Grime is not where he'll go to. That, I can understand, but I'll get to that later.

Good:

Kieron really went all out in this collection of awe-inspiring tracks. Still Life is clearly about the many aspects of his entire life that has shaped up in his work. Every list of music, ripe for the picking, has a taste of who Kieron is as both an artist and the mistakes, problems and willingness to move forward. There are crazy times and other times he would share in this set. The mix-tape has many subjects people from aged 16 and older can relate to, but this ain't the usual school boy aggregation that fuels all of our teenage hormones (twenty somethings included). This is on a whole new level of development, I continue to listen and the hooks really do hold you in place. That is thanks to singer, Amanda Mellid, who sung and hit notes as pleasant as a Robin. Still Life reminded me somewhat of the Wretch 32 album, Black & White, though less about opposite ends of contrast and more of a half way point between vague and exposed. It is balanced and just about right, which bring me to the amalgamation of the crossed genres I said before.

From the rhyming to the production, most of whom composed by Aaron London, the airplay that came to a total of approximately over 32 minutes was amazing. While the crew swung by with songs as uncanny as Awkward, fast enough on point with any beat boxer and Mistakes featuring Mellid herself. This is the ballad or rainy day feel that showed the depth of how far he could plug away and elevate your conscience. On Still Life, the title track of the same set, I couldn't get over that punch line Kieron made "So I went from a boy to a teen, now a teen tryin' tah live a man's dream, Man it's real stuff, then it all went Almond's, real nuts". That was cool and the rest which followed blew up and combined everything neatly. I could go on and on, though it could drag on the whole review. Oh No weren't bad, the chorus was more on the irritating side but Kieron saved about a large majority of the song. Nice touch on the guitar, though.

Bad:

Not much I can say about the negative sides. Most tracks were likable, a couple stood out more than others. The only thing I didn't like was there are too many "fillers" and what I mean by that is a tune used only for the soul purpose of "chilling out" or "raving". Examples of these are Blue Sky, Oh No, Awkward and Dead End featuring Aaron London and Labrinth. While Awkward and Dead End were fine, Oh No was a bit much. I also felt they put a lot in at once, plus they were some that was a downer at times. I needed a high, something upbeat instead of mellow and only steady. It made Mellid not having much to work with even if they did fit her tone. Apart from this, it was a brilliant run and I did enjoy it.

Overall:

Great performance from Kieron, excellent concept and execution by many of the artists such as Aaron, Mellid and Labrinth and well mixed, composed master pieces by XX and again Aaron. I am blown away from the lengths that has gone into this mix-tape. It did come about as overwhelming at certain points and the hybrid flew easily through a pretty reasonable duration of air play. It fell right into place and the ideas didn't encircle. They are close to Karat gold.

- Written by Kbon.

Take Care (2011) review.

Review: 3.5 out of 5.

October's very own, "Drizzy", is back with his 2nd album, Take Care. Serving as his answer to his debut from the Summer of 2010 from his last album, Thank Me Later, Producer. 40 really knew how to shake things up this time around. It has been evident Drake had been really sticking with studio time rather than chilling in his spare time in-between tours. The first track from Take Care I heard was "Headlines", then "Free Spirit" which featured Rick Ross, "Club Paradise" and lastly "The Real Her" (although Free Spirit and Club Paradise did not make it to the final track listing). I remember the last time I reviewed one of his album's and it seems like such an after thought now.

Good:

Released in November 15th 2011, Drake's transition from his debut has spread and defined who we are dealing with. No longer are we in front of an artist back in Toronto who is fresh, but an artist who carried weight. Not as many artists can be found here apart from The Weeknd, Rihanna, Birdman, Rick Ross, Andre 3000, Lil Wayne and of course Nicki Minaj compared to the large plethora of artists a year back. Many of his songs I actually liked. Sticking with past relationships, family and more about where he came from, where he is now and where he intends to go, Drake touched on how he is dealing with fame and his lifestyle in the fast lane and home. Unlike Thank Me Later, there was more focus, down tempo and is chilling without being too tranquil.

The best songs here was "Over My Dead Body", "Take Care", "The Real Her" and "Practice" for those ladies out there and those who are into neat sounds. I am very impressed with the great recording, mixing and production gone into the LP thanks to 40., T-Minus and Jamie xx. For those who aren't fond of that "sweet boy" Mitzvah don't feel left out, there's always ""Underground Kings", that Lowinski magic with "Make Me Proud" with Minaj and "HYFR" (Hell Ya Fucking Right) with Weezy. His lyrics on his own two feet coincide with his rapping ability. For me, what stuck out for me was "Cameras", "Over My Dead Body", "Underground Kings" and "The Real Her", especially in Andre 3000's verse. I'm a fan of his time from Outkast, he's a beast and he went in.

Bad:

Drizzy is better this time around, but only just a couple notches. My least favourite has got to be "Headlines", "Crew Love" and "Lord Knows". I will come back to these three later but my main issue is his trait of being relative to people as much as its his greatest strength may also be his most greatest vulnerability, lyrically and critically. I mean look at the boycott from Common. What I'm detracted from is when he sings, I can't feel it. I mean I feel the lyrics, but not the rhythm. Not the music, but the vocals. They don't vary, I mean there's only so much a rapper/singer can do. A few songs I began to notice this in was in "Shot For Me" and "We'll Be Fine". Now that we have a clear picture of who Drizzy is, I fear if he continues he might start to fade. How much "Bein' real" can you do? Eventually, you have to dig into the higher reaches than finer things in life. I am not feeling The Weeknd either. All I'm sayin' is he got to try something else, FAST!

Overall:

I haven't forgotten about the tracks I disliked, hold on. Drizzy has enough lyrics to load a shotgun and put out a hit list. Noah "40" Shebib really knows how to put it down, I credit him for topping this one. A descent, steady, collaboration from the likes of Rihanna, Kendrick Lamar, Lil Wayne and Andre 3000. "Headlines" felt like it was rushed plus there was nothing concrete in terms of rhythm and content while "Lord Knows" has got to be the most controversial, the thing about "Mink coats" and having relations with it, c'mon Ricky. As for "Crew Love", I ain't feeling XO (The Weeknd) to his OVO (Drake) but Drizzy has put out a good LP that will keep us busy for the time being.

- Written by Kbon.