MIXTAPE REVIEW: Kool A.D.- 19 and 63
Das Racist is broken up. No more Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell. No more Girl. No more Rainbow in the Dark. No more Michael Jackson. Now more Who’s That? Broooooown. No more Das Racist.
Now, the three former members have to go out on their own and figure out what to do. Dapwell didn’t really do anything in the group to begin with, so I’m not sure what his plan is. Plus, Heems should be totally fine on his own. His last mixtape, Nehru Jackets, was pretty great. But then there’s Kool A.D.. He’s probably the better lyricist, but his mixtapes have been leaving me yearning for more. His Palm Wine Drinkard tape was a messy excuse for some kind of experimental music thing. And then 51 was forgotten about 5 minutes after I heard it. I want Kool A.D. to blow the world away with his masterful lyrics and weird musical style, but he’s yet to really prove that.
19 and 63 both don’t really help.
The first mixtape, 19, is probably one of the worst Das Racist affiliated projects out there. It’s not as bad as Palm Wine (Which was easily one of the most disappointing releases of 2012.), but it is still bad. The production is incredibly messy, the lyrics are unfunny and not innovating (Just repeating “Bieber” over 
and over again is neither funny nor a proper form of social commentary). In fact, a lot of this feels like some kind of Chief Keef/ Odd Future cross over, which is just gross. He might be trying to satirize this style (Which, for Kool A.D., wouldn’t be a shock), but it just comes across as…well…forced. The only part I enjoyed was Krispy Kreme (I believe it was Krispy Kreme) ranting over the Workaholics theme. And even that was stupid.
The second mixtape, 63, is nearly good, but it’s still kind of underwhelming when we compare it to Das Racist’s greatest works. While 19 is focused on wonky and ugly beats, 63 takes R&B and eccentric 70s styles and meshes them into a weird concoction of weird. It’s a lot of fun, and there are some tracks that truly are great. The posse cuts are great, and all of the unknowns here bring something to the table, which is kind of strange in this day and age. However, there aren’t any tracks that really stick out in memory. It’s all very pleasant, but it doesn’t stick. Basically, the only thing that made me like this album way more than 19 was the more traditional sampling.
I miss Das Racist quite a bit, and I’ll always wish they stayed together. Now, I’m just worried about Kool A.D. Heems can live in a post-Das Racist world. I’m not as confident with Kool A.D.
Summary: 19 and 63 vary in quality, but neither really cement Kool A.D. as the talented rapper and lyricist he was in Das Racist.
Choice Cuts: Sclera, Red Wine
19- 2/5
63- 3/5
You can download both mixtapes here.
MIXTAPE REVIEW: Action Bronson- Rare Chandeliers
Action Bronson has released a lot of material in the past two years, so it’s been kind of hard to keep up. First there was that Dr. Lecter album that came out in June of 2011. Then he released a bunch of mixtapes, including this year’s really good Blue Chips mixtape with Party Supplies. Now, he’s dropped yet another mixtape, this time with legendary producer Alchemist.
While I’ve liked most of Bronson’s past material, I’ve never really loved his work. He has a booming and nasty flow, but his lyricism sometimes gets in the way. He veers between talking about his food (Which I’m cool with) and graphic sexual talk (Which I’m not as cool with). He also normally has production I like, but it’s never really memorable. Here, I was hoping that a few of those little nit picky issues would change. Bronson has really matured over the past couple of projects, and it’s shown. Plus Alchemist is a fantastic producer. The man had the power to salvage that mediocre Domo Genesis EP earlier this year.
The tape does immediately show promise. The beat on Big Body Bes Intro is just lush and bold. Then Bronson immediately goes hard on Rare Chandeliers, using a fiery flow over the James Bond-esque beat. The samples that Alchemist uses in-between Bronson’s verses are absolutely wonderful, adding a sense of more old school Hip-Hop to the tape. Which I really like.
Really, the thing that sticks out here isn’t Action Bronson, but Alchemist. Each beat sounds like its been tended to with the greatest care. Everything sounds just perfect. Plus, it shows that you don’t need SBS (Southern Boom S**t) beats in order to sound aggression or tough. I mean, Bronson is a big fluffy fat guy who has a thing for fine cuisine, and on this tape he sounds absolutely mean. In fact, Alchemist’s beats sound even better than much of his own past work. While his beats on No Idols did improve that tape, the beats were a bit one note and boring. Here, they live and breath, being exciting without taking too much attention away from Bronson. I mean, the saxophones on I Deserve You are absolutely great (along with the soul samples). In fact, this tape really feels like some early era Kanye West production. And I’m totally cool with that.
The guests here sound pretty good. They all have voices that match the feel of the tape, which is something that normally doesn’t happen. I especially like the track with Black Hippy’s Schoolboy Q (Someone that always sounds better on guest verses than his own tracks). For the most part, Bronson does his best here. His flow is fiery and his lyrics aren’t disgusting to the point of me wanting to turn off the tape. The lyrics aren’t particularly interesting, which is a little gripe I have, but they aren’t bad. I’m just glad he’s not graphically talking about vaginas and celery in the same verse as much. And if he does, I was too distracted by the fantastic production and the sound of his voice on the beat to really take notice.
Summary: Rare Chandeliers is Bronson’s best project yet, with some fantastic production, a bold flow, and some solid guests.
Choice Cuts- Rare Chandeliers, Demolition Man, B***h I Deserve You,
Also, that Mixtape Cover is fantastic.
4/5
Stream the entire tape below. You can download Rare Chandeliers here
Vantage Point Music 