Review Summary: More free music - Promising industrial glitch-hop at that.
Stream or download for free at
www.theresponsivechord.com
Someone's pretty high on K.; whether it's confidence or just an exuberant publicist at work,
The Responsive Chord has a strong billing to live up to. Self-proclaimed "post-rap", the initial (and natural) reaction any hip-hop critic would have is caution; one Dalek is enough - are imitators really necessary? One quickly discovers that K. brings something unique to the game: static, noise, drum n' bass, and a touch of industrial influence. In fact,
The Responsive Chord is less hip-hop and more something completely different. But where K. is an innovator, it becomes evident: these experiments are incomplete, or even slightly flawed. Most notably, "I Is" and "Notorious" almost insist on abrupt (and questionable) genre shifts - of course this lends to issues with album continuity, but almost adheres to a strict blueprint for progressive noise-rap and rapcore, respectively. Regardless, K. impresses with effectively implemented existential lyricism and a convincing hardcore delivery (see fellow Arizona rapper Gutta's
Heads Will Roll for an example of what not to do). The vocal and production aspects come together on "Band Aid" and "Riderback" - encouraging instances where K. finds stylistic cohesion while limiting static and noise levels from the excessive earlier tracks. Chorus-heavy synths amidst a noisy, glitch-laden trip-hop atmosphere, the former offers subject matter directly contrasting a poppy feel, while the latter takes a more desolate approach to dynamics and drum n bass.
The Responsive Chord is proof that people are still out there making new hip-hop; it only needs a more defined direction, proper channeling, and fine tuning. And seriously, are the wrestling samples absolutely necessary?
