I found this song from Virgil Abloh’s Beat’s 1 show called “Televised Radio.” “Televised Radio” is perfectly curated so that it includes popular and unpopular songs. All of the songs are really high quality; however, when I heard their song “too high,” it turned my head. Smokin’ with Superman is a Madison, Wisconsin based group that overall sounds like the answer to the question “what would happen if Erykah Badu and a Tribe called Quest made a album together?” They perfectly fuse Jazz, Hip-Hop, Funk, and RnB to create this unique sound that solidifies them as one of my favorite bands. The really interesting thing about this group is that they have basically no following. They could easily rival famous bands like The Roots and ATCQ, but instead they average 500 listeners on spotify and basically no one knows about them. Which kind of makes sense because the band was only together for 5 years and they only have one album. However it is very unfortunate that they are basically unrecognizable because they are an excellent group and should be mainstream. Smokin’ with Superman is composed of Shanan Galligan on guitar, Mark Marsh on drums, Brett Farrey on bass, Bryan Elliot on horns, Mark Sieganthaler on keyboards, Joy Dragland singing, and Laduma Nguyuza (whose stage name is Mr. Parker) rapping. I just love everything about this band. Nguyuza’s rhymes are fresh and exciting, and Dragland’s soulful voice just straight up hits! The Musicians are all very talented and do an excellent job of creating this platform that elevates Nguyuza and Dragland’s performances. The best part about their one and only album “Full Price” is that you can really get lost in it. This has probably been the hardest article I have had to write because the album has so many hypnotic grooves that make my mind go blank. Everything they do is big and passionate. For example on the 2nd track of the album, “Morning Sun,” Dragland delivers an infectious hook that makes your whole body groove to the beat. Nguyuza plays a supportive role on this song, but he still delivers an excellent performance. On “Nina,” Nguyuza takes the center stage and takes full advantage of the beautiful instrumental that the band has crafted. His hypnotic raps pull you in to the song and the chorus erupts and creates that signature groove. The last track that I will discuss on this album is “Dance MF.” Dragland’s performance is equal parts weird and catchy and the band delivers another excellent instrumental with a killer sax solo at the end. The beauty of this album is that it is so consistent. Each instrument is unique enough to show a broad spectrum of ideas, but similar enough to show the level of detail that was put into the creation of the album’s signature groove. The vocal performances are equally good and both vocalists push each other to be there best. The content of their lyrics don’t really matter too much on the album; what matters is the lyrics’ contribution to the groove. 13/10.

There are some songs that just totally simulate the feeling that the song is talking  about. For example, “Pony” by Genuine, “Summer’s Over Interlude” by Drake, “Gravity” by John Mayer, etc. However, the best song in this category is “Walking on the moon” by The Police. Granted I have not actually walked on the moon before, but I can almost guarantee that this song simulated that feeling. This song is just so out there and creative, it just makes me sit back and appreciate how artistic and driven this band was. I just love the songwriting in this song; It really makes me think deeply about my life and Sting’s vocal performance is one of a kind. This particular song just sounds so timeless. The thing about listening to music that is from 30 years ago is that sometimes it is hard to find bands that are not still popular. Sure Sting is a huge star and The Police are a very popular band, but they are nowhere near the level of The Beatles or The Rolling Stones. So for me at least growing up and listening to a lot of different genres this song just got lost in the shuffle. Sos started playing it in math tutorial the other day, and I have not stopped listening since. 14/10

I think Trippie Redd is one of the most underrated artists to come out of the “SoundCloud” era of rap, and he’s only getting better. His sound always seems to stick out from all the other rappers that are in his niche. Redd’s music involves a lot of the ideas and topics that are used in mainstream rap and punk, but he manages to put his own unique twist on them. The first time I heard Trippie Redd I was sitting on my couch at home relaxing. I was strolling through iTunes and stumbled upon his first mixtape: A Love Letter To You. I pressed play and fell into an abyss for about 3 hours. There was something incredibly intoxicating about his sound. It contained so much raw energy and power. The highlight of ALLTY for me is definitely the opening track. “Love Scars” was Redd’s first hit and put him on the map. It’s a ballad to his lost love. Trippie’s lyrics are pretty consistent over his entire discography. He usually raps about stereotypical topics such as killing people (I’m not sure if he has or not), getting his heart broken, breaking hearts, and intercourse, to name just a few. The reason why I keep coming back to Redd’s music is because on each new project he creates a fresh new sound that is built upon that foundation that made me so addicted to his music. Granted, Trippie’s albums are not without error. Trippie’s latest project A Love Letter To You 3, has some very good highlights, but the rest of the album blends together and sounds too similar to be enjoyable. “1400/999 Freestyle” and “Love Scars 3” are my favorite tracks off the record. “1400/999” is a collaboration with Juice Wrld and is a banger of track that is one of my favorite tracks of 2018. “Love Scars 3” is a perfect example of Redd’s musical evolution. This song is the third installment of the first Trippie Redd song I listened to and it is significantly better than the first installment. The hook and lyrics are more refined and the emotion he is emitting through the song seems to be more processed and realized. The beat is one of my favorite beats in his discography. It is a combination of banging 808s and a sound that is similar to a loved one whistling to you.

I am excited to see what Trippie Redd will do in the future because he has proven to me that he has what it take to make great music.

Overall Discography Discussion/10