Zireal – Window (Produced By AmpOnTheTrack)

The beat on this track sounds well produced, the leading artist’s voice has a definite tone and style that brings character, the lyrics add to this, so there’s a lot that works in its favour. These two elements together however seem a little detached from one another at first.

The leading voice lies a little too removed from the main beat, a simple issue that makes it slightly difficult to connect with the character of the track as there’s not the weight and crispness of a well integrated vocal. It’s a strong vocal performance, the sound has a lot of individuality and confidence, as you listen past the quality of the mix that bounce and thickness of the beat becomes a familiarity and the same goes for Zireal’s performance. The song’s hook also makes itself known pretty quickly, the rhythm of it and indeed the concept offer something fresh and rhythmic that works in the way that all classic and mellow hip-hop should.

As an artist and songwriter the story telling is on point, there’s a sense of scene-setting and honesty that comes as quite refreshing considering the self-focused nature of much of modern rap. The whole reference to not looking out of the window is interesting and plays as a contrast to that idea, the track details a certain situation and though it is focused on the self, this is necessary in getting people to listen and relate. There’s imagery and there are surroundings here, as opposed to simply talking about yourself. It works well, and as stated, the rhythm of the piece is easy to get into, the vibe is strong, and the more you listen – the more the details of the whole thing step forward and start to more clearly craft the entire concept of the song in a way that makes perfect sense.

By Rebecca Cullen

Rebecca is a Musician and writer from Manchester, UK, with an MA in Song Writing