This was pitched to me as the hot new shit, an urgent slice of cutting edge underground rap. This was a fair assessment. Yet it’s also oddly depressing, a reminder that “underground rap” has been treading circles around the same resonance-filtered turf for well over a decade straight now.
Yet what need is there to change a recipe that works? Falling Into Place: Side A is an exemplary post-FLYGOD rap album. Westside Gunn’s debut dropped almost exactly 10 years ago, and even then, Alvin was paying tribute to his influences: the LP was mostly Darginger, but Roc Marciano and Alchemist both contributed beats. FLYGOD remains iconic, historic and beyond reproach, but it was only groundbreaking to heads who weren’t paying attention.
“Drumless beats” are mostly mis-diagnosed, and the whole debate around this subject is too stupid to engage with. There are drums all over this album, and no tempo-free Albert Ayler abstractions anywhere in sight. All of these beats cook. The notion that it is somehow more difficult to rap over a beat that doesn’t have a +6db snare punctuating time is one of those arguments that’s only convincing to outsiders.
It’s not even like Soek’s stripped-down approach necessarily puts more emphasis on the emcees. This is a smartly creative producer who is happy to have psychedelic touches and soaring vocal chops compete with any & every verse. Which is good: that kind of added detail is essential to sustaining the spell of these woozy backdrops.
There is also the fact that a lot of the rappers here are kinda forgettable. However, all of them add interest & texture. After a few spins, I came to appreciate Soek’s ear for pairing voices with beats; a skillset unto itself. He was working with an audibly mixed bag, in term of vocal take quality, but he is technically competent enough to make it all work.
When the rappers are on point, things hugely improve. Estee Nack and Mickey Diamond make for a superb stylistic contrast on “SPACETIMETRAVEL,” and the newly minted Griselda protege Brother Tom Sos damn near steals the whole show on the laid back “Make a Toast.” Maze Overlay also shines through his two verses on “Uni,” which plays like a short film. Props due to Willyynova, a name I’d never so much as seen before, but he makes the most of every chance he gets here.
So while this is not an essential listen, it is one hell of a strong business card for Soek. This is a young artist who is already fully-formed, as a beatmaker and as a curator with a clear vision. I will be checking for Side B whenever that drops. Four Dickies.
