Sometimes an artist will take a path untraveled. A man who doesn’t like to be part of the sheep race and wants to do his own lone wolf and these are the types of artists I fuck with most! The ones who purposely ignore the trends and make their own, so with that in mind let’s talk about this brand new EP!
This brand new tape is by MC Ill Java and Producer b0nds and together they drop a 5 track project that is so far from the norm that I couldn’t help but be drawn to it. The truth is once you do this review shit as long as I have you start to appreciate the ones who don’t sound the same and that’s exactly what we have here!
Let’a start with the MC aspect. With the exception of Brizz Rawsteen & Sha Hef this one is soley done by Ill and does he ever deliver! What I’ve always appreciated about him (especially on this one) is his cold and borderline ‘lifeless’ approach to the delivery. Which isn’t a knock on the man, some of my favourite MC’s have utilises this pattern to create a more surreal and tension heavy performance that becomes more memorable as time goes by!
In this case, he’s flaunting his cerebral mind. He’s in his own head letting his emotions, thoughts and feelings all fester into one supreme ball that he’s unleashed onto the audience to make us absorb his mental in the most profound and meaningful way possible. His lyricism and cadence makes me feel like he’s been locked inside of his room just thinking and writing. As someone who’s been in those phases back when I was writing poetry I can understand what kind of mood and mindset that puts you in and it feels like he did the same!
His verses are compelling, penmanship sharp, flow on point and his conviction at an all time high. This isn’t merely a rap EP as much as it is a window into his soul (or so it feels to me) and the addition of the features does help break the illusion if only for a minute as we get two different styles of rapping that help latch on and amplify the sinister atmosphere that was created by Ill and pushed it forward! Fantastic chemistry between all 3 men!
As far as the production goes, to say it matches the dark vibes of the MC would be a massive understatement. Because what b0nds is able to do is create a realm of mostly methodically charged particles that form a collection of solid instrumentals!
From the opening track -Excalibur which has this distorted soul feel to it with those manipulated chord progressions, high strung strings, delicate keys glistening in the background with some super light drum work that helps wrap this whole track up!
Track 2-Profound Absurdly despite the name sake has one of the more upbeat tracks of the whole EP! From those light and smooth vocal snippets combined with those funky chords and rhythmic drums that made me bop my head non stop!
Accompanied with an overall 80’s music atmosphere this one I found myself going back to more than the others!
On track 3-Pain That Bonds we are greeted with a track that sounds fucking magical in execution. With what sounds like a gorgeous flute harmony running through the track with those elegant piano keys and thudding light drums that make this feel like some shit you’d hear on Zelda: Breath Of The Wild a truly atmospheric experience that will make you lucid dream if your not careful!
On track 4-Vagab0nd we are greeted with a more ‘boom Bap’ flavoured instrumental with those slow paced key progressions that feel absolutely murderous! Combined with these wavering chords that echo in the background and some light bass with some skeletal drums that come together to create an eerie feeling that makes you want to take out your worst enemy!
On track 5-Take Aim they decide to close off the project with a bang! By incorporating a more 90’s East Coast raw and heavy vibe with those light piano keys and these chords that sound diabolical in its structure! The drums on this track feel alot more lively and rhythmic which helps provide a sense of life to this rough and rugged track!
It’s clear, the chemistry between Ill and b0nds is strong as they execute one of the most original EP’s of the year! Go and check it out now below and support!
https://illjava.bandcamp.com/album/my-word
The Serpent Tongue Reviews 