Iglooghost - Göd Grid
Neo Wax Bloom

 

Background:

Brainfeeder records have always been an amazing source of experimental and left-field music, and Iglooghost is no acceptation. Banking off of the current underground music trends of the last several years, and placing it not-so-neatly into a breakcore framework, Iglooghost has managed to carve out a niche and "bust off the grid" as he would put it.

Sonically expressive and diverse, Iglooghost blends elements of PC Music, vaporwave, chiptune, wonky, "made for kids" type music, and strangely packs them into an "EDM banger" type of sound. There are even times where i feel a bit of a nightcore vibe densely packed in the mix.

Neo Wax Bloom is Iglooghost's latest release, and in my opinion, is his strongest showing yet. Taking the harsh gritty and uneven style of his original works and reshaping them into a more accessible format makes this album much more enjoyable to me, and there is more room to appreciate the interesting timbre's he plays with throughout the songs. This is not meant for everyone, and the harshness may turn some people away, but for those who are capable of withstanding his unyielding onslaught of sound, I would say check it out. This concept should not work, but somehow Iglooghost is able to pull it off and present a cohesive and finely tuned beast. 

Review:

I'm not going to lie, there is something special and interesting about every track on this album, so I had a hard time making a choice of song for review. I could have picked one of his more known songs from here, including Bug Thief, Solar Blade, or Peanut Choker, but I found myself drifting towards the deeper cuts.

I ended up choosing Göd Grid, simply for the fact that it is the closer to the album, and I think the overlying message of Iglooghost's music is summed up in this track. The entirety of his music seems to be wanting to expand off of his grid, outside the realms of reality, which really helps the listener understand how we came to this album and sound.

As the track starts already there is more room and space present to allow the listener to really take in the textures and polished production of the instrumentals. There is a sweeping vocal melody throughout the track which takes manipulated vocal samples, pitched higher and lower, and orchestras them together into a cohesive "chorus", accompanied by an eastern influenced instrumental. As the track progresses it continues to branch further and further into a chaotic place. This track truly feels like the album has been building up to this point, and we are at the climax of the album, complete with cinematic and orchestral feeling. This song is much more enjoyable as an album closer rather than a standalone track, but is still capable of standing on its own.

Frustrated, angry, manic, and childish, are all words I would use to describe the feeling I experience from this music. I believe that IG feels this way due to his inability to expand into another plain of existence, which could be a metaphor for his life, and other peoples lives as well, who feel that they are stuck somewhere and there is no way out. Göd Grid seems like the perfect period to place on the proverbial sentence that Iglooghost presents. I will definitely be revisiting when my mood is right to share in Iglooghosts bizarre world.

-TruffleDino

Lil Ugly Mane - Serious Shit
Mista Thug Isolation (2012)

Background:


Lil Ugly Mane is one of those artists that completely flew under my radar in 2012. I remember seeing the great album artwork here and there and didn't pay any mind, until a few years ago. Serious Shit was the first song I had ever heard from this artists, and I was blown away by the style. Before cloud rap and emotion rap started to show some mainstream interest, Lil Ugly Mane was creating some truly savage tracks, around 5 years before the genre blew up. i would go so far as to even credit him for influencing modern hip-hop today with many of the visual and emotional elements present, although done in a much more exhilarating way here.

The visuals do draw some elements from late 90s to early 00s rap artists, although in a bastardized sense. Taking the overly-machismo style and infusing it with grief, death, and depression. The lyrical content feels similar as his sharply dark rhetoric gleans through on every track. I would also recommend his series of "3 sided tape" albums, that take his style into more experimental territory.




Review:

The beginning of this track could be mistaken for some late night jazz that you would hear strolling into a NY bar. As the listener starts to paint a picture of the track, it changes directions quickly, with moody expressive instrumentals that lead into booming the booming chorus. The instrument sample is highly manipulated and gives an eerie sense as well as an impassioned background that echos throughout the track and feels perfect for the vocals.

The vocal delivery is slow riding, but heavy, allowing the listener feel the full impact of the lyrical content, and emotional expression in the track. Throughout the track the listener is bombarded with the sharply-tongued statements that help the listener peer into the internal world of Lil Ugly Mane. It is really amazing how you see all sides of the artist, as he stays in a machismo frame of mind, while delivering lines that are both confident and self-destructive at the same time.

The groove in this song is perfect for the dark and gloomy mood and is truly infectious. I do feel some light influences from the 2012 musical trends, possibly some vaporwave influences (more heavily present in other tracks on this album), although the song does feel strongly present on its own and is only complimented by the light influences, instead of feeling derivative.

I will definatley be returning to this track, and artist in the future, as his material is always interestingly varied. I would say to pop this album in, allow yourself to slip into the eerie mood, sit back, and enjoy




-TruffleDino