It’s an exciting day for the culture because we get to receive a new EP and, more importantly, original music by a man who has been driving in both lanes of NARCOMIXES and original music, and this time around we get that fresh, new shit, and with that in mind, we GOTTA GET INTO THIS!
This is the latest EP by MC Gustavo Louis and producer Happy Art, and together they drop a solid five tracks running just under 20 minutes, with the one guest appearance ofEarn Dinero, and across these five, we get Gustavo back on his more street poetry-heavy themed music that is just as mesmerising as it ever has been!
The thing to understand about Gustavo (for those who haven’t already heard his music) is that he’s a charismatic performer on his worst day. At his best, he’s a personality so strong that you can’t help but rock with it. He never just raps his bars; he brings them to life!
Whether we are talking about his sporadic adlibs reminiscent of WSG or his NECROMIXES where he challenges himself to the standards of the GOATS or if he’s just rapping with that incredible passion of his, he’s always trying to do the most, and it’s an entertaining result when he does!
As I mentioned above, it seems we are back on the street/drug talk as was made clear in the opening track ‘To Kill A Sparrow’ and only further confirms my point as the tracks go on, a topic he hasn’t been shy about discussing in the past, and I doubt this will be his last, but when does he always do so with immense enthusiasm and vivid imagery as he describes his situations, the equipment, the math behind the amounts, everything, and anything?
Combine that with his natural skills as an MC with his freelance flow, and you have a recipe for an artist that is equal parts engaging and deadly!
Of course, his chemistry with Earn is well documented as they’ve been on plenty of tracks before, but this time around, it felt like they were trying to get the very best out of one another, and it showed!
Dope verses by both men with the highest quality and most vibrant performances! A fantastic track.
As far as the production goes, each track feels like a street soup opera. If The Sopranos was a hip
Hop musical, then this is how it would sound! (Well, probably Christopher’s version), but still, it’s got that same feel of cinematic power as well as the muddy realism that comes with the topics spoken in the record!
Like how the guitar loops on track one make the song feel like a Tony Soprano montage scene of him going to different establishments and reminding everyone who is boss and why!
Or how on track 2 the plucked bass chords remind me of Sal, the loyal right-hand man going around putting out fires for Tony and maintaining the stability and FEAR of the Soprano Family. It’s got that chilling yet funky atmosphere to it that I fucking loved!
The track Feliz definitely reminds me of Uncle Jr’s soundtrack. Those classical jazz notes on loop accompanied by the glistening keys? You can’t tell me that’s not Junior sitting in his house on permanent house arrest just losing his mind, getting his hand stuck in the sink again while this is playing on his old-school radio! It has him written all over!
The point is, this is a more theatrical release than most for Gustavo. It’s as if hired Happy to compose a gangster play that runs for only 19 minutes, but the amount of depth and detail crammed in is more than enough to satisfy the customers in attendance!
If you had to check any Gustavo project out yet, it should be this one! It’s sharp, grand, and fun all around! Link below!
https://open.spotify.com/album/4WIDjg8it1q9cx97cUOEd8?si=cpAo_qtNSUu4cEoqP855IQ
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