English & Polish review ready to be viewed at www.BAYUNDAGROUND.com
Hard copies still available or you can always resort to digital at any retailer you can imagine! GYEAH
Click Here To Listen To The Album
STEREOLIZED REVIEW - BAYUNDAGROUND
- Thread starter servnu151
- Start date
English & Polish review ready to be viewed at www.BAYUNDAGROUND.com
Hard copies still available or you can always resort to digital at any retailer you can imagine! GYEAH
Click Here To Listen To The Album
That's right
Kap10 & Arsen - Stereolized
Despite many years in the rap game, Arsen still represents the underground scene and hasn't become renowned. He debuted* back in 2003 with a solo titled "151xplicit" and then followed with a series of mixtapes that united rising artists from the 650 area code and more. He returned in 2005 with a full-length project recorded together with Mista Cane - "High Risk, High Reward". Fans had to wait 4 more years until in 2009 they could grab the currently reviewed collaboration album with Kap10, who's an East Side San Bruno representative as well. What is more, he's a member of the group Trench Town Hustlaz, that has already released at least 2 cds; I haven't followed their career carefully, so I'm not sure.
Initially "Stereolized" was only available for download and I feared that it would stay that way, which would be yet another symptom of a progressing music digitalization. Fortunately around 2 months after the premiere fans could also get regular, pressed units, that I'm really grateful for. But let's cut to the chase. Those of you who are already familiar with San Bruno representatives' endeavors know, that they do not record typical west coast songs praising gangster or grimy street type of attitude, neither excessive pimping or the hyphy movement mannerism. San Bruno crew, Mista Cane, Nocturnal Hustlers and others tend to talk about their own life, about its ups and downs, sorrows and joys, dark and bright sides. It didn't change on this one, therefore you'll receive a solid dose of insight into various aspects, for example in "Thoughts", "Stressin" speaking of tension and "Eyes Closed" talking about being vigilant, sleeping short and trying to keep your eyes open for as long as possible. The first half of the album made a good impression on me mainly thanks to polished, loud beats filled with rich sounds. I should also point out great music and hooks in tracks like "Mi Barrio" as well as "Mamacita" (RnB performed by Fred Rock), that have a Mexican feel to them.
As far as vocals are concerned, the artists came off well, however I won't deny that I'm more into Arsen's flow, as he seems to be smoother and more versatile than Kap10. The latter one is also fine, yet he rarely shows emotions and is not melodious enough. What is more, Arsen is characterized by the original, rather high-pitched voice, so you can always recognize him without any second thoughts. Both artists took their time with the lyrics which resulted in interesting rhymes specked in-between the lines like Grey Goose / grape juice or occasion / equation. There are a few slight glitches though, namely G. Deville's verses were twice not matched properly with the rhythm, therefore it seems as if he were totally off-beat. Yet he does follow the drum hits but with a delay, for which I blame the mixing (or whatever's the name of this phase). A similar slip-up happened to Arsen's verse on "Stressin". Since I'm talking about the guest appearances, I'd like to mention the noteworthy bars by K Dinero, whom I haven't had an opportunity to hear in a while.
Unfortunately the production on "Stereolized" is uneven. The beginning of the project showcases outstanding, hard vibes with distinct drums (apart from "Mi Barrio" that asks for louder ones) and solid bass lines, while in the latter parts it calms down. Ever since "Check Yo Bitch" both rappers focus on women, but it is "I Got It" that introduces a smooth, light and even sweet style that won't leave you until the very end. These last cuts concentrate partly on flirting, partly on love, but the common ground is their unexpected and in my opinion unfitting romanticism. The diversified production was mainly handled by G. Deville with 7 tracks under his belt, but also by Fred Rock, Adon & Rodzilla, J-Moe, Mastermind, Infinity Slump and Young PMC. In conclusion "Stereolized" seems to be an unbalanced album to me. On one hand it features both thought-provoking and hyping-up songs ("We Thizz, Smoke...") as well as those with already mentioned flaws; on the other you'll obtain the calm ones that didn't quite get to me. I encourage you to listen to them on Servnu151's blog, as it may turn out that you'll feel such style. Arsen, thank you for providing the album for the review. I'm looking forward to your solo project.
* - Arsen debuted with a solo project back then, but he also used to be a member of a strictly underground group M.I.P. (Macs In Progress). You can read about artist's first endeavors on his blog.
Tracklist:
01. Intro
02. Never Stay Away
03. Eyes Closed
04. Just Another Day - G. Deville & Rodzilla
05. Mi Barrio
06. Thoughts
07. Stressin f. G. Deville
08. We Thizz, Smoke, Pop Bottles f. G. Deville
09. Doin' It f. Skuba
10. Check Yo Bitch
11. Mamacita f. K Dinero
12. I Got It
13. Show Me Something
14. Stranger
15. Just You
Kap10 & Arsen - Stereolized
Despite many years in the rap game, Arsen still represents the underground scene and hasn't become renowned. He debuted* back in 2003 with a solo titled "151xplicit" and then followed with a series of mixtapes that united rising artists from the 650 area code and more. He returned in 2005 with a full-length project recorded together with Mista Cane - "High Risk, High Reward". Fans had to wait 4 more years until in 2009 they could grab the currently reviewed collaboration album with Kap10, who's an East Side San Bruno representative as well. What is more, he's a member of the group Trench Town Hustlaz, that has already released at least 2 cds; I haven't followed their career carefully, so I'm not sure.
Initially "Stereolized" was only available for download and I feared that it would stay that way, which would be yet another symptom of a progressing music digitalization. Fortunately around 2 months after the premiere fans could also get regular, pressed units, that I'm really grateful for. But let's cut to the chase. Those of you who are already familiar with San Bruno representatives' endeavors know, that they do not record typical west coast songs praising gangster or grimy street type of attitude, neither excessive pimping or the hyphy movement mannerism. San Bruno crew, Mista Cane, Nocturnal Hustlers and others tend to talk about their own life, about its ups and downs, sorrows and joys, dark and bright sides. It didn't change on this one, therefore you'll receive a solid dose of insight into various aspects, for example in "Thoughts", "Stressin" speaking of tension and "Eyes Closed" talking about being vigilant, sleeping short and trying to keep your eyes open for as long as possible. The first half of the album made a good impression on me mainly thanks to polished, loud beats filled with rich sounds. I should also point out great music and hooks in tracks like "Mi Barrio" as well as "Mamacita" (RnB performed by Fred Rock), that have a Mexican feel to them.
As far as vocals are concerned, the artists came off well, however I won't deny that I'm more into Arsen's flow, as he seems to be smoother and more versatile than Kap10. The latter one is also fine, yet he rarely shows emotions and is not melodious enough. What is more, Arsen is characterized by the original, rather high-pitched voice, so you can always recognize him without any second thoughts. Both artists took their time with the lyrics which resulted in interesting rhymes specked in-between the lines like Grey Goose / grape juice or occasion / equation. There are a few slight glitches though, namely G. Deville's verses were twice not matched properly with the rhythm, therefore it seems as if he were totally off-beat. Yet he does follow the drum hits but with a delay, for which I blame the mixing (or whatever's the name of this phase). A similar slip-up happened to Arsen's verse on "Stressin". Since I'm talking about the guest appearances, I'd like to mention the noteworthy bars by K Dinero, whom I haven't had an opportunity to hear in a while.
Unfortunately the production on "Stereolized" is uneven. The beginning of the project showcases outstanding, hard vibes with distinct drums (apart from "Mi Barrio" that asks for louder ones) and solid bass lines, while in the latter parts it calms down. Ever since "Check Yo Bitch" both rappers focus on women, but it is "I Got It" that introduces a smooth, light and even sweet style that won't leave you until the very end. These last cuts concentrate partly on flirting, partly on love, but the common ground is their unexpected and in my opinion unfitting romanticism. The diversified production was mainly handled by G. Deville with 7 tracks under his belt, but also by Fred Rock, Adon & Rodzilla, J-Moe, Mastermind, Infinity Slump and Young PMC. In conclusion "Stereolized" seems to be an unbalanced album to me. On one hand it features both thought-provoking and hyping-up songs ("We Thizz, Smoke...") as well as those with already mentioned flaws; on the other you'll obtain the calm ones that didn't quite get to me. I encourage you to listen to them on Servnu151's blog, as it may turn out that you'll feel such style. Arsen, thank you for providing the album for the review. I'm looking forward to your solo project.
* - Arsen debuted with a solo project back then, but he also used to be a member of a strictly underground group M.I.P. (Macs In Progress). You can read about artist's first endeavors on his blog.
Tracklist:
01. Intro
02. Never Stay Away
03. Eyes Closed
04. Just Another Day - G. Deville & Rodzilla
05. Mi Barrio
06. Thoughts
07. Stressin f. G. Deville
08. We Thizz, Smoke, Pop Bottles f. G. Deville
09. Doin' It f. Skuba
10. Check Yo Bitch
11. Mamacita f. K Dinero
12. I Got It
13. Show Me Something
14. Stranger
15. Just You
That review was a solid one; and yeah, I'm also looking forward for the solo joint by Arsen.
Props:
servnu151 and servnu151
i'm tryna find the trench town hustlaz and m.i.p. albums. tryna complete my 650 collection.
Props:
servnu151 and servnu151