Hip Hop Roundup: Bomethius, Polo G, Jean Deax, and More

Album of the week: Bomethius – Inadiquit

https://bomethius.bandcamp.com/album/inadiquit

I’m breaking the rules this week to highlight one of my favorite albums anyone has sent me this year. Jonathan Hodges is a multi-instrumentalist from Dallas, Texas who just released a nine-song project titled Inadiquit. It’s a stout piece of alternative music that transcends the simple human emotions we feel everyday.

Hodges uses descriptive songwriting as an avenue for some of his deepest thoughts, sometimes even breaking them down into their most mythical of terms. “As memories thundered at mental terror/Auras mask truth as Medusa trembles/At majestic torches atop mystic temples,” he softly croons on “A Mazing Tonic,” the album’s subtle centerpiece that rattles with percussive highs and lows as Hodges paints a poetic landscape where his keen eye for nature is plastered at the forefront of his whimsical adventure.

His music often acts as a time capsule, leaving us with remnants of definitive reflections that occupy certain places in time. On “The Old Ones,” Hodges characterizes childhood as an innocent feat, the auspicious prequel to the malaise of modern adulthood. He plays a wise professor on “The Machine,” nitpicking the ales of capitalism, and the cynical qualities that come with it (“So warm and secure in this elegant cage/Fear not so we’re told the divine holy rage /But we best not slip up and fall through the ladders /Though we’re told it’s true nothing we do really matters”). His instrumental palette is filled with signature acoustic, heavy percussion and ominous piano symphonies-the perfect platform to showcase the full scope of our complicated desires. This is romantic impressionism at its most unhinged and discordant.

Jean Deaux (feat. Saba) – “Moody!”

It’s been a little over a year since Chicago neo soul/hip hop artist Jean Deaux was anointed as one of the big names to watch in 2019. She’s been relatively quiet since releasing her debut EP Krash, and has only been featured on a handful of songs with Smino, Mick Jenkins and Isaiah Rashad. She is also a part of the Medicine Women collective with Ravyn Lenae, Drea Smith and Via Rosa.

Here she links up with Saba for a literal piece of “mood” music that’s more banger than biography. The beat is skeletal in nature, a complete contrast to Chicago’s usual sumptuousness. Deaux energetically mutters typical rap banter, occasionally dropping an entertaining one-liner for shits and giggles (“Mwah, chef kiss when I’m in it, it’s a movie”). Saba alters his flow but keeps things pretty basic lyrically. This is a fun piece of party music, but I can’t imagine either artist heading in this minimalist direction.

Mozzy (feat. Polo G and Lil Poppa) – “Pricetag”

These three could form a rap group and it’d probably be one of the best things to come out of the year. Think about it, Mozzy’s contemptuous pockets of hopelessness, Polo G’s melancholic struggles that will never leave his soul, and Lil Poppa’s straightforward brashness. Their attributes work harmoniously to form a conveyer belt of introspective ideologies. I hope one day we see a coast-to-coast collaborative tape where each artist attempts to utilize their grab-bag of styles over Spanish-laden guitar samples and echoing 808s.

Tmcthedon – “Adios”

Things are starting to look great for Baltimore’s rap scene. Between Shordie Shordie’s excellent tape from two weeks ago and Tmcthedon’s amusement park aesthetic on “Adios,” the city is beaming with light from all sides of the spectrum. You can plainly witness the camaraderie materialize in their music videos. Everyone looks like their having fun while simultaneously giving listeners a glimpse of their culture over a nocturnal setting and countless takeout restaurants.

Tmcthedon capitalizes on his 2019 community hit “Hellcat” with this fun little sequel. The piano twirls like a merry-go-round and the drums thump with Wheezy-induced finesse. The sky is the limit for Maryland right now.

Rico Nasty – “Popstar”

The queen of sugar trap is back to once again detail the luxurious imperfections of fame. Rico has kept things noticeably unpredictable sign her incredible tape with Kenny Beats from 2019. “Time Flies” portrayed the early remnants of Tacobello, while the DayTrip-assissted “Hard” had Nasty written all over it. “Lightning” experienced both alter-egos.

“Popstar” is more on the melodic side of things; though the video suggests that the psychedelic trip Rico has recently sent us on is far from over. Can’t wait to see what artistic direction she catapults into next.

Trippie Redd & Sunny2point0 – “Star Power”

Trippie sounds exponentially more nasally as he’s drenched in high-pitched vocal affects as he gives off those impassioned yelps. Sunny2point0 is naturally more baby voiced in his inflections (think a little bit more clear than 645AR)-an aesthetic very much inspired by Playboi Carti. What really makes this song pop is the dreamy twinkling keys. I feel like I’m acquiring millions of those gold stars in Super Mario as this spacious track ascends into the stratosphere. Both artists reference their collective boredom amongst our new abnormal (thank you for that one Strokes), while slyly mentioning the cartoon Phineas & Ferb. Every once in a while Trippie will experiment with something cool. This happens to be one of those times.

Advertisement