King Remembered In Time – Big KRIT
Big K.R.I.T. is a Mississippi rapper famous for his personal lyrical content and his self-produced beats, but the rapper/producer has struggled to find recognition as he attempts to distinguish himself from all the wannabe-UGK rappers of the deep south.
King Remembered In Time benefits from a much bigger budget than K.R.I.T.’s previous releases, allowing him to further establish his southern-fried sound. The mixtape’s short opening track, “Purpose,” employs a gritty guitar solo that starts off with a feeling of hopelessness (clearly aided by the sound of a crying baby) that finds its way into K.R.I.T.’s lyrics as well, but that hopelessness gives way to a positivity that can only come finding one’s purpose, thus explaining the song’s title.
K.R.I.T.’s production style has always had a warm and organic aesthetic made possible by his extensive use of live instrumentation from the obvious triad of guitar, drums and bass all the way to employing full brass sections to make King Remembered In Time more rich and textured than anything the Mississippian has ever released.
King Remembered In Time is surely a meditation on motivation, family and love, but that doesn’t mean the album is short of bass-heavy club bangers.
“Talkin Bout Nothing” is one of the album’s most confrontational tracks, made obvious by the hook, “Yall ain’t talkin bout nothing, That I can’t do, That you done done, That I ain’t did.” K.R.I.T. revels in this sort of abrasive playfulness typical of southern rap acts, and he does it with both his gradual and rapid-fire flows.
Ultramarine – Young Galaxy
Montreal’s electronic pop quintet Young Galaxy may have released 2013’s album of choice for college-aged fans of electronic music with Ultramarine.
The album chronicles the anguish felt by 20-somethings dealing with growing up. Yet Ultramarine seems to find a degree of comfort in that inevitability, keeping the album from spiraling into darkness after its opening track “Pretty Boy.”
Seriously, “Pretty Boy” is a work of art. Its frankness and sincerity come as a massive breath of fresh air amidst the countless number of over-analyzed and hyper-intellectual albums coming from similar acts. The words sung on the track paint a vivid image of the naivety of young love (“I don’t care if the disbelievers don’t understand”) while simultaneously reveling in it (“You’re my pretty boy, always”), and they do this all without detracting from its accessibility, a marvelous feat in its own right.
The production on “Pretty Boy” is complex yet entirely crisp, employing a synthesized arpeggio that constantly cycles the track while the use of a real drum kit and interspersed violin frills add to the candor of the perfectly-chosen lyrics. Don’t be surprised when this song is used in the trailer for every coming-of-age movie to come out in the next few years—it’s perfect for it.
Unfortunately the rest of Ultramarine can hardly stand up to the album’s first four tracks, but to be fair there isn’t much else that can either. The rest of the album is enjoyable and well-made to be sure, but Young Galaxy certainly shows signs that the group still has some growing to do.
Altogether, Ultramarine is a thoroughly enjoyable listen despite the fact that its stunning opening tracks may overshadow some of the album’s more subtle moments.