Oblique Strategies - Raw Pastiche (Review)

Nottingham's own Grand Imperial Cappo and We Stay True label boss/producer Mr Brown team up as Oblique Strategies to give you "Raw Pastiche" - 11 tracks of Boom Bap backed desolation with heavy, Notts infused, swagbasco smothered bars.

Guest Features:

Confucius MC

Juga-Naut

Vandal Savage

Recommended Tracks:

Bar Cardio

Cognoscenti

Black Out Numbers Up

Tooth & Nail

Cappo is unquestionably your favourite rapper's, favourite rapper and even though the Notts City veteran has been in the game for over 20 years he still shows no sign of slowing down or levelling out and truth be told i don't think he's even reached his peak. He sounds absolutely ravenous this time around, he always delivers his chaotic bars methodically and with absolute pinpoint accuracy but the refreshing factor here is that he really seems to bring it with a ferocity and hunger that's been almost unheard since his debut "Spaz the World". He is a phenomenal wordsmith and his technical ability is second to none. The replay value here is priceless, like he spits on "Bar Cardio" his words will sink in for Months, Days and Minutes after he lets them loose, leaving you mulling them over and over trying to connect all the dots. I love the obscure references he always seems to slip into the tracks as well as the more localised imagery.

When it comes to the features, Confucius sounds at the top of his game and adds such a nice contrast with his cadence and laid back flow while the criminally underrated Vandal Savage and the bar behemoth Juga-Naut bring their distinctive Notts narrative's to once more ignite the VVV fire and leave you craving a follow-up to 2017's Bozo Boyz.

Mr Brown brings some absolutely sublime and varied beats to the table here which are perfect for Cappo to do what he does best. Dusty, hazy deconstructed loops with crackling vinyl pops blended together with drums hard enough to give you a seizure, he's truly underrated within the scene for his sampling style and the intricacy of his production as well as his design work and dedication to running the We Stay True brand.

This is seriously an Album of the Year contender from the emcee/producer combination, this one is for the Hip Hop purists, listeners who appreciate upper echelon lyrically ability, mountains of metaphors and unparalleled style being delivered effortlessly over exquisite, thumping beats.

You do NOT want to miss out on this.

Order the limited edition vinyl from We Stay True or grab a digital copy here

Notts in the building...

Words by One9Ate7 - Exclusively for www.BoomBop.co.uk

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