March 15 2016

Music Review – Smoove Steve – Da Struggles

Opening up with a classic hip-hop sound to the music, yet the beat has a lightness to it, a chilled kind of darkness is created, which makes it all fairly unique sounding. The melodic chorus section is completely unexpected, it hits out of the blue, but it makes for a great break in the track, and a great hook. The transition to this part is a little unorthodox, there’s no lead up to it, no natural, musical pathway, but maybe that’s what makes it strong. It’s a good time to be experimenting with sound and song writing, structurally and otherwise, a means of keeping things fresh and new.

The melody is really strong and after just a couple of listens it gets caught up in your mind. That slightly haunting riff which loops behind the vocal as well, adds a really hypnotic and effective dynamic – you can get lost in the sound of this. Then on top of that you have those gritty spoken verses, adding to the darkness, the seriousness, the struggle – the theme of the whole piece. The lyrics are dark and raw and real. The style of the lead vocal is strong in an intimately serious and almost whispered kind of manner – the lyrics aren’t shouted at you, merely spoken, quite softly, with a really quick and unusual flow. It works; you look forward to hearing it again after the chorus section.

I feel like there could be some sort of musical interlude between the two sections, the verses and the hook, but the longer it plays for, the more times you listen, it all seems to fit into this new style of song crafting. The rules don’t apply, they don’t matter, it’s just creative freedom, the sound of an artist or artists lost in their own expression and art. There’s a classic hip-hop feel to the music, but there’s also a fresh twist of something original; it’s a great sounding combination.