Room 25 by Noname; Bandcamp Link: Room 25
Number 38 in the Wire Magazine (@thewiremagazine) Top 50 Releases of 2018.
There are things I like about Room 25 and things I don’t.
The music and beats are Jazz/Soul/Gospel inspired, which is interesting for a rap album. Noname has an interesting speak-sing delivery. Her poetry is clever and enjoyable.
However, the music is on the AOR side of Jazz, Soul, and Gospel, just a tad too pleasant for my tastes.
The combination of her quiet speak-song delivery and a bit of muddle in the Mids makes it a not very good album to listen to while driving. You just can’t hear her very well over the road or if you are listening to it from something like the speakers on your phone.
Coincidentally, I was reading a pretty cool interview with Dennis Bovell in Wire Magazine (Issue 416, if you want to track it down,) where he talked about aspects of mixing instruments so that each one has it’s own aural space in the mix of a tune.
They didn’t do that and the mix suffers a bit unless you are listening on headphones or in a quiet room.
#Room25 #Noname #TodaysCommuteSoundtrack #WireMagazineTop50
