There really isn’t a style of music I would turn down listening to. I
love and appreciate everything from rap, rock, hip hop, blues, jazz, etc. Good
music is good music is good music- a practice I like to follow. It doesn’t
matter who wrote it, what their ties are to the industry, or their popularity
among fellow musicgoers. Anything is game with me.
An artist I’ve been recently vibing is State of the Artist. The group is
comprised of a pop-rap trio from Seattle- Parker
Reddington, Hyphen8ed, and Young Thad. The group started out in 2007 and
has released three albums to date with a few mix tapes in between.
It has everything to love about
music- inventive melodies, a bluesy beat, and chill/soulful vocals. The group
doesn’t sing, but their rap definitely sets the mood for the songs they create.
It’s a band like SOTA that always makes their music sound fresh with every
listen. There’s a particular subtlety to their songs that never seems to die
out. The groups strong approach to lyricism and steady flow loop through different
variations of pace and rhythm. Each MC has his own style and the constant back
and forth between each other plays on the ears differently than other experimental
hip-hop artists do.
My favorite song by SOTA is” I Try” from their mix tape “Shapeshifters.”
The steady conversation between the electric and bass guitar in the beginning of
the song remedy and relax the mind with ease. The song is playful yet mature. The
instruments layer over each other with each impending segment of the song and
take the listener from door to door, showing the variety of creative elements
within hip-hop. SOTA make this song an inventive
explosion of instruments and beats. Just as the song seems to be approaching a
peak, it takes one step back and settles down, thus starting the innovation of
their music all over again. Every second is live in anticipation of what’s to
come next. Their songs are addicting and stimulating, they way music ought to
be.
SOTA is taking new age hip-hop in a new direction and bringing back the
essence of what it should be. With this group, it’s not just about witty lyrics
or popular melodies. Everything they do is unique to their genre and doesn’t
lose my interest. This up and coming group has the right luster to catch the ears
of more fans to come. Nothing beats the excitement of catching a band within
their beginning experiment phase.
