Browsing Tag

Alt Hip Hop

JoeJas took high vibe hip hop to new heights with 2 Truck J

Posted on 22 November 2021

Alt hip hop artist, JoeJas, has dropped his most experimental track to date with 2 Truck J. Like many hip hop artists, he finds influence in the jazzy grooves of old school hip hop, but he goes far beyond assimilation with the dark and discordant electronica textures that he throws into his high vibe tracks.

With the Pokemon and Mario references in the bars, there is no denying there is a hint of nerdcore nestled in here, but JoeJas retains his convictive cool right up until the outro. 2 Truck J is one of those tragically rare tracks that uplift through their sheer eccentricity. It is no surprise that JoeJas has amassed over 48k streams on Spotify alone with some of his top tracks.

2 Truck J is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

BiggKen has dropped his spacey EDM trip-hop track, Grade A, featuring Louie Sace.

Posted on 16 November 2021

Grade A is the latest spacey, psychy hip hop track from US songwriter, artist and producer BiggKen; any fans of Busta Rhymes and Saul Williams will want to delve into the trippy ode to old school.

It comes as no surprise that BiggKen cut his teeth in the EDM scene with the experimental sonic textures that weaved their way into Grade A, which was created in collaboration with Louie Sace. BiggKen’s mission to unify the streets and the clubs definitely isn’t futile. Under his new moniker, his top track, Booty Crazy, has racked up over 68k listeners on Spotify alone. He is definitely one to watch as he climbs the charts.

Grade A is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Californian Lo-Fi luminary Bubbush proves that there’s two sides to every toxic story with ‘Toxic Me’

Posted on 16 November 2021

Rarely is lo-fi hip hop as ingeniously fresh as the standout single, Toxic Me, from the Californian recording artist, Bubbush. Right from the first verse, his playful lack of ego grips you and pulls you into the RnB laced single that runs through the quirky progressions and old school grind.

With hyper distorted high-pitch vocals layering around Bubbush’s bars, there’s a dialogic element to Toxic Me, serving the bitter-sweet reminder that there are two sides to every toxic love story.

After making a debut in 2015, Bubbush’s career quickly started to gain traction in his local scene and far beyond. We can only hope that there are more soul-sating tracks in the pipeline.

Check out Toxic Me for yourselves by heading over to YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Walker Deuce takes ambient trap to the realms of old school hip hop with ‘Chill’

Posted on 11 November 2021

From freestyle prodigy to vibe master, Walker Deuce’s sound may have evolved, but his bold, raw energy remains as visceral as ever. His standout release, Chill, has all the makings of your next vibe out playlist staple.

The short and sweet track may only run through for 1:34-minutes, but that is all the time it took for the Portland-based artist to lull you into a state of reflective catharsis through the wavy trippy tones and nostalgic old school sensibilities.

Chill carries all the grit of 80s hustler hip hop, but its colourful cadence and indie guitars stay on the more soulful and affable side of expression. Any fans of Snoop Dogg, Mac Miller, Dre won’t want to hang around in introducing Walker Deuce to their playlists.

Along with releasing eight albums, plus plenty more EPs and singles, the rapper and songwriter gives back to the hip hop scene as an indie label owner.

Chill officially released on September 29th; you can check it out for yourselves on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

 

Jambon goes interstellar with his spacey new wave hip hop track, Beam Me Up.

Posted on 7 November 2021

Spacey hip hop pioneer, Jambon released his latest RnB-laced interstellar hit, Beam Me Up, on October 29th and created a brand-new trajectory in the evolution of rap in the process.

With new wave trap elements grinding alongside old school grooves and electronic textures that have never before found their place in hip hop beats, Beam Me Up is a refreshingly high vibe track that allows you to transcend with the psychy energy alone before you even take into account the meta poetry in the lyrics and Jambon’s cleverly distorted semi-harmonic pop-rap vocals.

Beam Me Up is available to stream on Spotify, or you can check out the official video via YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Lolo GB is On Flex in his latest alt-hip hop single.

Posted on 4 November 2021
https://youtu.be/m1zMQ-tPUi4

Southside Chicago rap artist, Lolo GB, dropped his atmospheric drill track, On Flex, on October 23rd; prepare your vibe-out playlists for an immersively arresting addition.

The short and trippy track grooves through an ambiently wavy production through the bass-heavy 808 hits and reverb-drenched notes under Lolo GB’s deadpan yet dynamic rap bars. The production may not be the cleanest or the most robust, but that works in Lolo GB’s favour with the catharsis that this firecracker of an alt-hip hop can deliver as it works through its spacey lo-fi grooves.

On Flex is now available to stream on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Pan!c Pete delivers absorbing discord in his latest industrial hip hop track, Metallic Taste.

Posted on 4 November 2021

Any fans of Bob Vylan and Saul Williams will want to cut their teeth on Pan!c Pete’s electro-industrial hip hop sonic palette through his latest instrumental mix, Metallic Taste.

With gothy darkwave synth-carved melodies bringing bright polyphonic texture to the harsh and caustic bass lines and solid rattle of glitchy beats, Metallic Taste is an energetically dystopic track like no other. You’re left hooked right the way through the indulgently caustic single; it’s impossible not to be left absorbed by the discord in the fiery release.

We can’t wait to hear what Pan!c Pete serves up from the deep end of the south next.

Metallic Taste is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Get high with Adubs’ debut alt-hip hop album, The Come Up.

Posted on 3 November 2021

After his successful Halloween debut, the alt hip-hop luminary Adubs has dropped his dynamic debut album, The Come Up. In the opening track, Any Means, his relentlessly enigmatic rap bars groove to dark drill beats. The release takes a melancholic turn with track two, Baddie, which delivers pure spoken-word indie hip hop poetry over mellow RnB melodies.

Track three, featuring Gutta, brings the tempo back up and infuses hard-hitting electronica elements – showing yet another facet to Adubs’ endless stream of ingenuity that flows right through the album. The Come Up reaches visceral heights in the confrontationally direct track, I Promise, which exhibits the best of Adubs’ dynamic flow and ability to squeeze new meanings from words in a time when they can feel so meaningless.

The Come Up is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Vincent Tesoro extends salvation in his alt-hip hop track, Fix Me.

Posted on 2 November 2021

Vincent Tesoro has released his indie emo alt-hip hop debut album, Shooting Stars & Broken Halos, which deserves to be as revered as Lil Peep’s legacy of a back catalogue for the way it effortlessly obliterates genre by putting cutting emotion to the forefront. Outliers or anyone that has been down beaten and found the light from the gutter will be sucked in by the standout single, Fix Me.

Fix Me is a hooky call for salvation that comes with sniping Blink 182-style pop-punk tendencies, contemporary hip hop beats and vocals that compel you to verse the lyrics before you have even memorised them.

Along with his ability to bring resonant panache to hip hop, Vincent Tesoro is also a mental health advocate and a certified substance abuse counsellor after years of recovery between his overdose in 2014. It all comes together in his compassionate wisdom-packed tracks that we can’t wait to hear more of.

Fix Me is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Sham Parker has made his bruisingly confessional debut with his alt-trap track, XIX.

Posted on 28 October 2021

“Someone told me I wouldn’t reach 19, I’m trying to guess who it was, I guess it was probably me” is potentially the hardest hitting opening lyric in hip hop history. Even more impressively, it features in the debut single, XIX, by London-based alternative artist Sham Parker.

Despite the confessional candour that runs through thoughts that most would be too afraid to proclaim, there’s a sense of warmth and nihilist playfulness that instantly leaves you endeared. Sham Parker deserves to blow up for the same reason Lil Peep did; XIX exposes you to the artist’s demons as much as his sweet, creative sound that we hope to hear plenty more of.

You can stream the alt trap track for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast