the people on the higher social class
often lack class cause they haven’t received class(es) & they make ass(es) of themselves in front of the mass(es).
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After having a very productive 2020 and 2021, long-time hip hop producer and beatmaker Ebano Flowlanskicontinues his high levels of creativity with another beat tape in the form of Alto Tigueraje, one that basically delivers a crime film through samples, boom bap and trap while also drawing inspiration from his Dominican heritage. Alto Tigueraje with “10 Kilos”, a track that starts the story through a boom bap beat which allows one to see characters working around in the drug business. Afterwards, listeners are teleported to “Merentrap”, a tune which creates a dark atmosphere. Then “Jevy en delincuencia” continues the murky setting through another powerful boom bap beat. Next, “El Clavo” is a fast-paced beat that mixes southern hip-hop influences with Dominican merengue in a tune that’ll have spectators imagining a drug deal gone wrong in an action-packed scene. “Mujeron dominicana” continues the story as Ebano provides a bachata/hip hop blend as the theme for a new character in this crime-driven tale. Finally, the first half of the project closes with “Mangue su table”, a slow lo-fi hip hop track with some beat switches and rock influences that provides yet another action scene. The second half of Ebano’s latest project starts with “Con de to”, a pounding beat that’ll have listeners bobbing their heads to the powerful drums and horns. Next, the tape’s title track comes in with a hypnotizing piano sample accompanied by banging boom bap production. Then “Jolopero life” serves as another display of Flowlanski continues experimentation in a tune that brings boom bap with a bit of electronic and Dominican music influences as the story turns a bit more violent. Afterwards, “La vainita” once again finds Ebano sampling bachata with other sounds providing a bit of a lighter setting within the crime-driven tale. Subsequently, “24 hrs en RD” brings audiences back to some gritty boom back production reminding us that this underground tale has yet to be resolved. Closing the project out is “Super greti”, another experimental track that finds Ebano playing around with sound collage while somewhat concluding the story he set to tell with this project; somewhat concluding it because it is a fable told through fragments to the very end, leaving it open to many interpretations and for potential sequels.
Overall, Ebano Flowlanski’s Alto Tigueraje is a story-driven experimental hip hop beat tape that finds the veteran producer and beatmaker mixing boom bap and southern rap elements with sounds that are familiar to Dominican and Caribbean culture. The project is one that continues to display the musician’s continuous mastery of the genre while showing his fearlessness towards other horizons. he walks with the elegance
of an african elephant leading young marginalized communities in the fight for a better life where equality can reign & oppression can cease. After having a very active 2021 with singles and a project, VEI HABACHE continues to grind and display his talents in his latest EP, Kodiasko ?????, a short presentation of his continuous experimentation as a young musician. Kodiasko ????? starts with “Quesitos en mi velorio”, a blend of lo-fi hip hop and trap vibes as VEI reflects on life, death, haters, and street life. Afterwards, “Medardo Carazo” continues with the lo-fi hip hop and melodic trap experimentation as the artist touches the subject of depression. Next, “Yo siento intensamente” finds VEI experimenting with indie and punk rock sounds in a heartfelt performance that shows him displaying the ways he escapes pain and reflecting on said emotion. Then, HABACHE delivers “Bailando con la soledad”, a danceable electronic collaboration with FANTA ROSARIO that finds both artists on the subject found in the song’s title, solitude. Finally, the project closes with “Check 123”, finds the musician exploring the singer/songwriter world in a guitar-driven tune where listeners can find a barebones presentation that makes one feel as if they’re a fly on the wall as the artist creates a new song.
In conclusion, VEI HABACHE’s Kodiasko ????? is a short exploration of the musician’s world as one gets to see to listen to many of the genres he’s been playing around with in a project that, for the most part, is driven by love and emotion. fear of embarrassment,
one of the biggest obstacles to overcome whenever we wanna practice an art form, but one we don’t have whenever we wanna talk shit across the web. After starting his career with some singles here and there and an album in 2021, Guzza continues to explore different sounds with his sophomore effort, Dedicado A Ti, an EP that shows him exploring guitar-driven soundscapes mixed with hip hop and rap elements. Dedicado A Ti starts with a slow intro inspired by elements of pop rock and pop punk. Afterwards, “el atardecer a veces puede ser triste” is an emo-inspired trap tune with a guitar sample that’ll have listeners entranced. Then Guzza presents “Dr. Seuss”, another guitar-sampling track that sees him practicing spoken word as he sends a message to his love interest. Next the project delves into the singer/songwriter realm as Guzza reminiscing on what’s left of his love story through string-driven indie folk music. Afterwards, Dedicado A Ti’s story closes with “Outro/Party”, a song that starts off with a gloom atmosphere, but later turns into a party, as its title suggests, fueled by electropop sounds. Finally, the project delivers “00739”, a story-driven bonus track powered by a lo-fi hip hop/reggaetón hybrid.
Overall, Guzza’s Dedicado A Ti is a nice story-driven project where the young artist explores the subject of love through various soundscapes while taking the emo aesthetic as a starting point. It is an EP where he promises to be one of the most interesting talents in the underground. technology is often blamed
for the ignorance is newer generations & that might be happening & that might be a factor, but i’d say they’re more intelligent in certain subjects thanks to technology. the problem is they lack certain interests & skills for other fields that elder generations used to value a 1000% more. vivimos en la era de la nostalgia,
but wait siempre hemos vivido en la nostalgia, siempre mirando hacia atrás pa’ movernos adelante (shout out a los renacentistas), pero hoy se ve con más frecuencia. quizás es porque queremos volver a ese comfort zone de esos tiempos más sencillos donde no había preocupaciones excepto la diversión del día a día. pride can hold us back from achieving many goals,
but sometimes it’s something beautiful to express. por eso el boricua puede ser tan alegre. sentado en el work
y falta dormir por falta de sueño y ser despertado por pesadillas. hace falta la cama, pero aquí seguimos sentado en el woLkeo con los ojos cerrándose. “A Quien Pueda Interesar”: Joyce Santana Explores Familiar Territory While Trying to Break It Down3/11/2022 After having a very active 2021 and kicking off 2022 with a few singles and features, Joyce Santana delivers A Quien Pueda Interesar, a short three-song EP where he explores familiar territory while trying to break down its boundaries. A Quien Pueda Interesar starts with “Dormir Sola”, a reggaetón tune that features some influences from other Caribbean sounds such salsa and dancehall. Afterwards, the project delivers “Besties”, a banger where Santana delivers a great performance but gives the spotlight to the promising Young Miko so she can shine in a bigger platform, a task she does in a fantastic fashion. Then the project closes with “Tu Canción”, a collaboration with Amarion where both artists explore familiar melodic rap territory yet show their mastery of the sound.
In the end, Joyce Santana’s A Quien Pueda Interesar is a short and to-the-point EP that’ll satisfy fans and newcomers as he delivers on familiar sounds. It is also a project where he isn’t afraid to lay back for a while as he provides a platform to musicians who might not share the amount of popularity as he does. words will never be enough
for humanity to fully express everything that travels across their minds & time will always bring more & more forms of expression that’ll also never be enough for humanity to put it all out there. After having an extremely active 2020 with projects such as serenidá tigueraje full force, Dandy, Sutileza, Sangre Adentro and the Christmas collaboration Amor de Monte with Skeptic, musician, poet and self-proclaimed zodiac dandy Unochosiete decided to sit back to work harder on what would be his newest project, Tormento. The February-released album starts with “Noche Serena”, an alternative hip hop track that presents Unochosiete displaying his spoken word-inspired flow that finishes with a sample of a Pedro Albizu Campos speech that reflects on human rights and the opposing sides of the political spectrum. Afterwards, “Magnetismo” is a smooth, sexy, and suave rap tune with Caribbean elements and a hypnotizing guitar sample that will keep listeners imagining all sorts of sensual tropical paintings. Then “Todo Empieza (Frenesí)” finds Unochosiete exhibiting his rock n’ roll and blues influences in a love-fueled song. The first half of Tormentocloses with “Cabalgue”, a funky love-fueled hip pop track that finds Unochosiete collaborating with Skeptic once again. Tormento’s second part starts with “Fogoneo (Nuevo Fuego)”, a rock, rap, and funk blend where Unochosiete reflects on how sometimes good times can be ruined by negativity and/or toxicity. While many of the songs on Tormento could be danceable or worthy of headbanging/headbobbing, “Ese Culito” is the one that will truly have you stomping your feet, moving your hips, and shaking your body in its entirety as Unochosiete creates a funk/disco-inspired tune that is worthy of any party environment. Unochosiete closes his latest album with “Besos Perdidos” a melodic love tune that sees him blending familiar guitar strings with some inspired by Asian folk music.
Overall, Unochosiete’s Tormento is a display of the artist’s continuously expanding soundscape as he takes familiar topics such as love and life experiences as his starting point to blend sounds such as rock, hip hop, funk, disco, and blues with his spoken word-inspired flow. often looking for greatness
in works that are praised. often disappointed in works that are praised. part of the trouble behind hype culture. After starting his career with various singles, EPs and albums exploring genres such as lo-fi hip hop, phonk, chopped and screwed and other sounds, KAMPO changed his name to DJ KAMPO and continued experimenting with other sounds, a practice he displays in his latest project BRINCA VERJA. BRINCA VERJA kicks off with “No Son Ustedes”, a short electronic tune that will throw listeners into cyberpunk worlds. Next, “Asaltando” finds DJ KAMPO exploring more breakbeat style that will have audiences dancing through its over a minute lasting time. Finally, BRINCA VERJA closes with its title track, one fueled by drum and bass and house that’ll have some thinking about the classic Batman Beyond cartoon.
Overall, DJ KAMPO’s BRINCA VERJA is a cool and to-the-point project that displays a promising sound shift for a producer, beatmaker and musician who has already shown what he can do with limited resources. After presenting his goth trap aesthetic alongside Orteez back in 2019 with his debut EP Yang, Ferrori took a backseat and released a few singles here and there along with some collaborations. Now, Ferrori and Orteez team up once again with Ying, a project that seeks to update listeners on Ferrori’s life while also completing the aesthetic and presentation letter that began with Yang. Ying kicks things off with “Luz e de brillar”, a melodic trap track where Ferrori reflects on his struggle and tries to inspire listeners to keep fighting to achieve their goals and dreams. The album then presents “Amor Isleño”, a short yet banging love tune that explores the many acts one would do for love. Afterwards, “Eres tú” displays Ferrori and Orteez collaborating with familiar face/rapper/Los Rarxs member Erre in a love and sex-driven track that uses its atmospheric R&B production to create hazy setting full of the night’s most sensual images. Then, “Como la luna” finishes the first half of the project in another love tale that uses pictures, metaphors, and similes of the night to keep the goth aesthetic while telling its story. The second half of Ying starts strong with “Devuelvo la Lluvia”, an experimental collaboration with Jeysell and Gaby Chuleta that feels a bit like a surreal, trap driven A24 romantic horror film. Next “NELQP” or “Nada Es Lo Que Parece” brings Ferrori back into the world of mosh trap as Orteez provides a banging beat for him to flex or display reflections of life’s realities. Then “Estoy Afuego” does exactly what the title states as Ferrori raps about how great he is at his craft while also telling how he came to this conclusion through a lot of grinding and setting up certain priorities for himself. Finally, the album closes with “La Pista Está Embrujá”, a song that sees Ferrori and Orteez blending the danceable sounds of reggaetón and dembow with the dark and experimental reverberations of the goth aesthetic that started with Yang and continued to be explored in this project.
Overall, Ferrori and Orteez’s latest offering displays how, despite time passing, their chemistry between rapper and producer continues to be intact. Ying shows that sometimes giving room to breathe can improve on what was already a great collaboration. In addition, the album is a great closure for the proposal that started with Yang while also opening the door for new sounds and blends to be explored in future projects. The one question I would have, at least for now, would be: Are Ferrori and Orteez going to continue mixing mythology, goth and what feels like black metal influences into their ever-growing sound? I don’t know, but I can’t wait to see/listen to what they got for the future. teenage years
full of rock n roll tunes & hip hop tunes & reggae tunes where electronic tunes were looking to be part of my itunes list interesting times that passed by fast & are now making a bit of a comeback in different forms. After starting their careers on their own terms, Kheb with XYZ Collective and Solecito on his own beat tapes, the two producers/beatmakers decided to join forces on Prisma, a short beat tape that’ll satisfy fans of the lo-fi sound but also peak the interest of those looking for a bit of experimentation in that space. Prisma kicks off with “Divine Ether”, an experimental and almost glitchy track that’ll immediately capture listeners’ attention. Afterwards, “Sun Glaze” provides a bit of a mix of lo-fi with some ethereal samples and phonk vibes accompanied by an entrancing piano and bass sample. Next, the duo delivers the second longest song in the project, “Holographic”, which displays some Caribbean, electronic, African, and even seapunk influences. Then “Reflection” serves as the most laid-back song to this point while also being a bit of a break from the avant-gardeness of the previous one. The second half of the project starts with “Beam”, a lo-fi tune inspired by electronic music, B-movie sci-fi soundtracks, and space rock. Next, “Projection” is another much more traditional lo-fi tune, but one that still finds the duo experimenting with jazz and minimal electronic influences. Finally, the project closes with “Daylight”, a fun collaboration with XYZ Collective as the beatmakers sample vocals and instrumentation from the band providing a psychedelic experience that’ll entrance listeners.
Overall, Prisma is a fantastic collaboration between two very promising musicians as they display their mastery of the craft but also the chemistry they share. It is an EP that also demonstrates what can be done with a genre that, like many others, continues to be much more populated and direly needs some experimentation to survive on the long run. te miraban con reojo con frecuencia
y hoy casi no te veo en el mainstream. al parecer el reojo fue bien fuerte o ya pasó tu tiempo y te han tirado al lado como tu primo el cocolo. meneando la salsa
al ritmo de salsa con sabor a gran combo recordando a mi familia y todos los tiempos que hemos vivido contigo en el background como acompañante en la alegría. As the pandemic took a hold of all of us and forced us into lockdowns, moments of solitude, and events where we questioned our mortality. The Puerto Rican indie and underground scene kept working hard. One of the movement’s members to emerge as one of the most promising has been singer/songwriter RaiNao, a musician who mixes various elements of what is traditionally called “urban music” with alternative sounds making her a distinctive voice in the continuously evolving Boricua music landscape, something which she keeps demonstrating in her latest offering ahora A.K.A NAO. The project kicks off with the spoken word piece “Track3”, which sees her reflecting on the current Puerto Rican panorama along with her status on the industry. Afterwards, “Sukhoi” shows RaiNao stating her mission statement while mixing elements of rock and trap while displaying her singing and rapping skills. Then listeners are introduced into the entrancing sounds of “Plug,” a track that’ll have listeners slowly perreando hasta ‘bajo as RaiNao provides a mix of ethereal vibes with reggaetón, dembow and some strings on the side. Next, “Agapicidio” shows RaiNao mixing Caribbean sounds with a bit of pop in a love-driven track where many will be able to feel identified. The second half of the album kicks off with “Un Amarre,” a song that features another of the scene’s most promising artists, Villano Antillano, as both artists display their rapping skills on an experimental reggaetón beat while doing a little bit of flexing. Then RaiNao delivers “Mi Piscis”, an otherworldly R&B tune that once again shows RaiNao exhibiting her singing abilities as she tells a bit of a love story. Next, in “L.U.V” the singer/songwriter once again explores the topic of love, but this time on a reggaetón track, which features subtle experimental details that make it unique. Finally, the project closes with “Gata Loca”, a dreambow tune that serves as a perfect closure for the album as RaiNao mixes a distinctive sound like dreambow with others that you’d never expect making the track a display of the artist’s seamless ability to create something fresh out of something which has yet to reach the mainstream in full force. Overall, RaiNao’s ahora A.K.A NAO is a perfect presentation of the singer/songwriter’s abilities. It is a project that’ll have audiences guessing what’s coming next with each and every song, something that starts by simply watching the cover art by Milton “Gaquino” Pérez. As a whole, if you love reggaetón, dembow, hip hop, trap and R&B that takes a chance and experiments with different sounds, this album is one to definitely have on your rotation.
it’s amazing to see
how only one of your legends serves as the face of your sound, but i guess that’s still good cause other art forms don’t have that luxury. back in the day,
i used to despise you due to your repetitiveness but now i can appreciate you, especially what the new-new & the independents are doing. learning about your history made it easier for me to fall for you. After starting his career with some singles here and there, Alan The Kid finally made things a little more proper with the release of 1997, his debut EP where he gathers many of the sounds and influences displayed in his previous singles in a nice rounded package. 1997 kicks off with the lo-fi glitch phonk mix “Intro (Baja La Cámara)” presents his experimental sound so listeners can sit back and make a decision as to whether they want to explore Alan The Kid’s world. Next, “Celosa Mariposa” introduces a different side of Alan The Kid as he explores love in a laid back track inspired by electronic music and a bit of R&B. Afterwards, “Nos Vamos de Party” is a collaboration with Mike Rodz and Al Norte where the three artists provide a late night vibe through a track that explores the night life with a bit a mix of hip hop and electro pop. Finally, the project closes with “Botellas Rotas”, a collaboration with producer and XYZ Collective member Kheb that finds Alan The Kid exploring lo-fi hip hop sounds in a beat that’s also influenced by R&B.
Overall, Alan The Kid’s 1997 is a nice and to-the-point project that serves as a perfect presentation letter from a young artist who is still slowly experimenting with different sounds in order to properly find his voice in the vast Puerto Rican indie and underground scene. |
AuthorFernando E. E. Correa González is the author behind over 30 self-published poetry books. He has been published by literary magazines & journals [Id]entidad, El Vicio del Tintero, Sábanas Magazine, Smaeralit, The Occulum, Tonguas and Hound Magazine. Other than writing, Correa is also the host of FENCast, a podcast dedicated to documenting the Puerto Rican independent art scene. Aside from this, he experiments with filmmaking, photography, drawing, painting, multimedia and transmedia. He currently lives in his native Puerto Rico. Archives
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