Written by Elijah P. “Basic” is Shanti Dope’s statement to rap’s mega complex. Right off the bat, he finds it easy to course through 5-tracks showing that he’s the best. The young Caviteño has barely even reached his creative peak. Shanti’s career as a rapper so far has been a mix of triumph and controversy: PDEA tags “Amatz” as a negative influence towards his audiences; Gloc-9 passes the torch shortly after signing a deal with Universal Records; Disney+ adds the aforementioned track in their hit series Falcon and the Winter Soldier; and clearing his name from being affiliated with the notorious Miguelito Malakas. The de facto leader of Young God Recordz first started out from playing at small rooftop bars in Bacoor. Now he has the whole world on his hands. For this EP however, he’s going back to his roots. “Basic” was an assemblage of his cohorts; he givesthe spotlight to his closest family in his own label — minus Pricetagg Official and Hero who have their own respective cliques to handle in the competition. He maximized his resources for this EP, it’s evident comparing this from his previous full-length outing as a rookie back in his self-titled debut release – a project where we witnessed his first stumble as a rapper. It had tracks that expressed his juvenility and impulses, but neither of those subject matter proved a checkmate in the game. In “Basic”, there’s maturity, solid schemes, and a mission. All the tracks were mapped out, Shanti being the master at his element: tracklist feels more compact but packed with punchlines, guest features feel at home, and most importantly, Shanti Dope proves time and time again that he isn’t just a rapper with a double-time flow, he’s more than that. Shanti has a skillset almost no one can match at his age and current status. In the title track “Basic”, he and fellow Cavite partner Mhot go back and forth at a boom bap beat, all the while playing around with different voice pitches by the latter half, which calls for an experimental phase in Shanti’s music. The different voices of Shanti possess a different tone in his arsenal, wherein his untouchable hook writing can go very well together with his affinity for pitching his vocals differently in each track; The best example of this stylistic choice are either tracks like “Tabi” or “Loaded” – the former takes a form of a tamed conscience while the latter describes the life and times of a desperado at the dead of night. “Basic” collects one of Shanti’s best tracks in recent memory. The instrumentals put a good spin to the solo rapper’s career as he continues to push himself further as an individual with a generation behind him and raise the standard of rap altogether. Support the art & the artist:
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TRACK REVIEW: Lyn Lapid – I Guess That Was Goodbye
Written by Elijah P. When it comes to dramatic pieces of a piano ballad, there’s a mix of melodrama, regret, and even remorse from the songwriter. There are times of reminiscing and nostalgia found in the subtle parts of its verses and a cathartic release by the chorus. And more often than not, the songwriter asks for closure once the final piano line fades in the distance. For Baltimore-based singer Lyn Lapid, her constant aping on Lorde’s Melodrama proves that the singer-songwriter genre is at a stagnant state. “I Guess That Was Goodbye” is a follow-up to her massive slow jam soul of a single “In My Mind” – one of her many viral tracks that helped skyrocketed her career on platforms like Tiktok – and it’s becoming frustratingly obvious that her unceasing desire of genre-hopping has made her artistry all the more across-the-board. Sometimes going back and forth from her debut to the latest single, it should at least occur to the listener that Lyn acts like an algorithm changing to better suit everyone’s tastes every now and then, with nothing of substance and emotional value to it whatsoever. “I Guess That Was Goodbye” combines dry diaristic writing, anticlimactic structures, unnecessary symphonic leads, and a singer whose skills scream mid-tier all the way back at the recording studio. Link:
EP REVIEW: reon – Sentiments
Written by Elijah P. reon is a duo consisting of songwriters Reanne and Noah hailing from Leyte, Eastern Visayas. They are the type of duo who are waiting to shine out from the dark. Though they’re not there yet, at least for now. But they’ve at least shown materially that they’re ready to slide out of that darkness, shimmering across the chamber folk spectrum at lightspeed. In “Sentiments”, their 6-track EP, peaks variously in emotional levels of relief, catharsis, and infatuation. The tracks speak softly, in volumes so tender that it speaks more character than other har-har acts that are coming out today. Their choices for production are muted and intimate, mostly a balance of both: pianos streaming across the male and female harmonies, drum machines lingering as a unique backbone to their palette. There’s a showcase of experimentalism and polarity between the tracks, presenting a Side A and Side B of their skills as songwriters and producers. In “Is It Too Much Ask”, reon challenge themselves in narrative-writing via a lengthy 5-minute-and-a-half length. As it sways in midtempo, the duo slowly but surely enlivens the atmosphere adjacent to their singing. Shortly after the track, they never compromised their delightful sound. “Back To The Times” – arguably the best track in the entire project – aspires to become a tranquil version of the templated semi-abrasive contemporary dream pop sound. The beat compliments the hidden synths while the reverb acts as a blanket for the entirety of the track. Other than that, the string section in “Sentiments” and the acoustic guitar in “A Place I Could Call Home” are examples of avoiding a sterile sound. It feels and looks cinematic; better than watching mural-sized paint dry. Although, the project could’ve been more dynamic: instrumentations that evoke a certain feeling or conflict feels missing or better yet underdeveloped. Both reon have large amounts of potential to be thrown on the wall, they haven’t checked to see what sticks because of the concealed production style that easily hides their weaknesses as a duo. Their imagination for longing is restrained through the lyric-writing, which is underwhelming in some parts, or rather second-rate in repeated listens. Its warm sonics at some point could feel one-note throughout “Sentiments”, but at the very least both Noah and Reanne’s performances glisten in the vocal booth. Overall, reon is a duo that’s packed with potential. They got their cards right and as long as they play it right in the long run, they’ll yield great results. Support the art & the artist:
TRACK REVIEW: Al James – PSG
Written by Elijah P. The mythology of Al James as an annual hitmaker begins to loom over many hiphop heads ever since the start of the pandemic. Memes, jpegs, and fan comments explain the deprivation of new releases from one of their favorite rappers. As the Baryo Berde mainstay’s absence began to stretch for the entire duration of lockdown, the demand for something new, or even some presence to an extent, began to swarm all over social media. Like most artists of his size, Al James went to take a step back, rerouting back to family priorities. It was, no pun intended, a time for him to rest. That’s until he went on social media to move the symbolic ‘glass’, posting studio time with Nexxfriday for his long-awaited debut album and a rumored collaboration with arguably the biggest r&b artist of the moment, Arthur Nery. And then shortly after the tease, the six-foot tall, snapback-wearing figure unveiled a new glass he raised. This emblematic glass for him to raise was for his comeback single aptly titled “PSG” — a single where he’s got a stockfull of those ‘goods’ in the Delorean trunk as he runs 88 miles per hour in the freeway. It’s a celebration deemed as a ‘comeback of the century’ from hip-hop social media as a whole, media partners continuously rejoicing as Al James plans to roll out for more singles in the coming months or maybe in the coming years. But what else does he have besides the goodies? Well, nothing new really — and it comes off as no surprise if we’re expecting any detour after an almost 2-year absence. “PSG”, like many of his singles throughout his 5-year career as an entertainer, follows-up to none of his past potential. From “Pahinga” to “Ngayong Gabi”, Al James barely left 2016 in his latest offering. Trap may have evolved for the better, but to Al James’ detriment, barely anything came out as something career-defining or let alone a paradigm shift in 2022. It’s only appropriate that he was packaged as a time-traveling party goer from the past only to change the present, but this present of his barely has any progress musically for the future; The signature yet unvaried vocal register submerged in the shiny synths, the deep sub-bass rattling off the mild wag-’kang-nega verses, and the unimpressive progression from the verses to even the hooks, are all middle-of-the-road. “PSG” narrowly carves Al James for better and for worse. It’s a single that’s reserved as a time-capsule, a disappointing half-hearted effort that doesn’t exceed time nor his Delorean’s flux. Support the art & the artist:
TRACK REVIEW: Woochito – Validation
Written by Elijah P. Batangas-based solo artist Woochito’s vision in ‘Validation’ is nothing short of cliche. A beaten-up individual walks across several blocks way past midnight; bathroom breakdowns; and a couple shots that evoke a feeling of a daydream – it ticks all the boxes of an action-movie built for a bedroom pop audience. But there’s an underlying merit that needs to be acknowledged to Woochito – formerly known as ‘manila boy’ – and his knack for hypnotizing his audience in his bootleg internet Wonderland of sorts. There are examples of how his influence pierced the consciousness of his small internet following; his contemporaries Paul Parce and unikko ijo aren’t strangers from this trance-like, VHS-filtered state existing in their music. But as far as sonic-attraction is concerned, he is by far one of the most hypnotically captivating artists in his circle. The vocal mixing in “Validation” is unflattering, coming out as a sloppy performance, but it invites you into his world somehow. It’s a nervous, messy, and complicated situation to be in lyrically, as he describes his love as something to be ‘drooling’ for – a word that doesn’t need to be necessary as the music does most of its job in luring you into its beauty. The less attractive aspects of the song however doesn’t overshadow the overwhelming qualities of the track onwards. The instrumental flirtations of layered synth pads and chorus-pedal-guitar that happen between the verses and outro are love letters to one of his influences, but he isn’t far off as he wears these influences under his bruised-up blazer. However, Woochito packs a lot of uncontained infatuation in “Validation”, and as much as the amateurish may put off the listener at first, an earworm will be reserved in the following consecutive listens. Support the art & the artist:
TRACK REVIEW: Arthur Nery – Isa Lang
Written by Elijah P. As music listenership and awareness continues to grow, a ‘trifecta’ or ‘holy trinity’ arises from the ashes of ‘OPM’ past. Rock music with feelings are the new ‘nostalgia’ acts, while industry torchbearer soloists Zack Tabudlo and Adie claim to become the flavors for a new generation of local music listeners. The third man in the three flavors is none other than Cagayan De Oro’s very own Arthur Nery. Although his style differs from the aforementioned figures, each and one of them have their own characteristics of being substanceless ‘Pick Me Guys’ and seeking-for-validation-in-the-end-of-the-world types, Arthur Nery — now currently a top-drawer for Viva Records — churns out plain vanilla neo-R&B tracks shortly after the late celebration of his first album ‘Letters Never Sent’. He revels in being the loyal one, the only one in the partnership, as he prances outside of your subdivision home. “Isa Lang” — his latest single closing out the new year, opening 2022 with a new era of contemporaries — feels hollow, conserving vocal variety rather than exceeding one’s potential. And while the prince of Neo-R&B pleads you a wilted rose, he only offers less with the style he’s honing today. Not even the intimate bass kicks, organ synths, string section, and skeletal, groove-less backing-band sound can back up his one-noted commercial friendly vocal stylings. If anything that makes his music impactful, it’s the monotonous delivery that bores every section of the song with forced usages of ‘deep’ phrases and hushed, boy-bestfriend sentiments, barely tugging the heartstrings of his listeners. As Arthur continues to solidify himself as the biggest mainstream act of the moment, both his newer singles, “Isa Lang” and “Pagsamo” respectively, released in the past few months are no more than mere background music. Arthur is headed towards more fruitful straits, albeit while playing it safe: a move that would set the precedent for his younger contemporaries witnessing his rise. Support the art & the artist:
TRACK REVIEW: VXON – The Beast
Written by Elijah P. Cornerstone Entertainment Inc. – a talent agency that’s known to house all upcoming ‘artistas’ and established personalities such as Catriona Grey, Empoy Marquez, and just to name a few – has gambled on producing an all-male idol group called VXON (pronounced as ‘vi-sion’) and their latest debut that launched not too long ago titled “The Beast”. The up-and-coming five-member group aim to become showstoppers in the industry, putting a more rap-oriented track in the forefront of their debut. But in spite of the ambitious direction, VXON doesn’t live up to the hype of their promotion weeks prior to the release of “The Beast”; It takes a lot of courage to title your debut as ferocious as ever, let alone debut under the wing of a talent company that has produced a lot of known names along the way. However, “The Beast” doesn’t seem to live up to its title. In fact, it seems to cater more to ‘dude bros’ who hang out at bars in the middle of a Happy Thursday and book a cross-country trip to the nearest shoreline EDM festival. VXON can carry themselves choreo-wise, but lyrically, it seems like the laughable edits in the lyrics are crossing between delusional and outright ridiculous: “You can watch me, as I walk/ You can say my name” and “Gotta read back pages those changes/ We oversee in faces, realest faces/ Get you places, let erases beat disgraces”. There are sections here in “The Beast” where it feels out of place and oddly outdated by today’s production standards: brostep wobbles that channel 2014 Project-X parties, and growling vocal stylings similar to SB19’s Mapa. To think that this is a debut is a sign of a much needed training and development for the idol group. There is little to no hints of being a ‘beast’, especially if the presentation shown isn’t up to par in the idol group competition. SUPPORT THE ART & THE ARTIST:
TRACK REVIEW: HEY JUNE! – Panahon
Written by Elijah P. Hey June!’s sophomore single “Panahon” has a pretty straightforward premise: a protagonist yearning to repeat a certain moment only to be taken away from the claws of time. The four-piece didn’t want to mince any words — the song only contains two short verses, quick hooks, and a dramatic instrumental outro to spice things up. With the structure having the potential to be replicated to death, the band was able to become careful from the pre-pandemic trap, achieving the most sentimental and striking piece of teenage ennui. The band then eventually makes themselves as icons for the future. School culture is a keepsake worth noting in the psyche of Generation Z, especially where students take most of their time, energy, and memory throughout the cityscape than they could spend time in online class. Vocalist Earl Paglinawan hearty verses hit close to home while the grainy, bright synths in the intro draw out the soundscape for a more misty-eyed outlook onwards. “Panahon” is a richly textured synth-pop and alternative-rock fusion done right; It doesn’t overstay its welcome but it sure does make a powerful statement: Everything surrounding your institution, is your second home. Hey June! exudes this certain charisma: one that would only be executed in one-of-a-lifetime, and “Panahon” is proof that this youthful spirit is important to sing about. Youth culture has never sounded this promising and Hey June! are here to take it to the top of the line. Support the art & the artist: