Hodgy Beats - Untitled EP Review
The Future may or may not be Odd, but there’s going to be a future for Hodgy Beats eitherway.
rating: 4
Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All. MellowHype. Hodgy Beats. Gerard Damien Long. So goes the transgression and separation from collective to duo to stage persona to man. Everyone is pretty aware of and well introduced to the collective (though mostly a certain The Creator and Sweatshirt), up to speed with the duo (Hodgy and Left Brain, both of OFWGKA) and aware of the stage persona; volatile aggressor, thanks in no part Odd Futures live shows and Tyler, The Creators television debut performance of Sandwiches featuring Hodgy Beats on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. So thats three out of four pretty well established and pretty well documented, not so much the latter though. Though with this solo outing in Untitled EP we start to get more of an idea, even if its still under the Hodgy Beats moniker. Disregarding The Dena Tape (its not good) in the early Odd Future mixtape days, this Hodgy Beats first outing proper solo.
Featuring no OFWGKTA collaborators, instead roping in some impressive producers (Juicy J, The Alchemist, Flying Lotus, Jonti Danimals, Thelonius Martin and Rodnae) to help realise what he wants his solo work to sound like, and that is one thing clear from the off; he knows what sound he likes and what sound he wants. This results in a really cohesive sounding record, theres a clear boost from the quality of the name producers hes brought in, but you can tell this is the sound Hodgy wants. Being a notorious smoker of forests of weed, is a clear influence on that sound as well as fondness for classic rap and hip hop. Each track and the record as a whole offers up laidback beats, stoner summer breeze production, soul samples and Hodgys lethargic Kanye-esque flow. Its quite a contrast to his day job and the collective he calls home, in a good way though, especially in its cohesion and consistency. As despite what the hype and notoriety might dictate OF is inconsistent as its still finding its multiple feet. http://youtu.be/8u8IcroCIJM Bullshittin kicks things off with a soulful and beat driven production pushing an equally driven delivery from Hodgy himself as he vents steam and frustration as the vocal sample leads with if you dont give it, you wont get it, I gave her all my love. This isnt the controversy courting couplets that most think of when Odd Future come to mind, whats on display is a bit more romantic and bit more classic rap. Theres flows on how good he is and your usual aesthetic narcissism, frustrations of the heart, his collective day job, the image hes perceived to be, who he actually is and relationships. He even stretches out to the three biggest subjects of all; life, death and where the weed at? All this wrapped up with the style and feel of the EP, its no surprise when he namedrops two clear influences, and perhaps aspirations, on final track Higashi Loves You with the line Imma be a fucking legend like 2Pac and Biggie/sendin smoke signals to the heavens, tell the lord to come and get me. That line kind of helps to formulate that latter we mentioned earlier, that of Gerard Damien Long, a young kid who grew up on 2Pac, Biggie and smoking weed, aspiring to be, or equal heroes. http://youtu.be/yqwxx9PJNn8 Now those are some pretty big shoes to fill, unlikely to be filled by anyone, especially seeing as with each new rapstar that goes global or does something new with the craft, theres another idol to aspire too, equal or better. Theres something endearing about his love for rap and what he likes, and its that passion thats going to see him go some way to really making a name for himself. This isnt a perfect EP and hes not a perfect rapper yet, but his lyrics and flow are getting tighter and he clearly knows his direction. So with the collective Odd Future Tape Vol. 2 released, another MellowHype release scheduled for release this year and another two solo efforts (possibly albums, titled but as yet no further information) lined up. Hes got plenty ahead of him to mature and hone his chops, plus this is free download from the Odd Future site so itd be rude not too. The Future may or may not be Odd, but theres going to be a future for Hodgy Beats eitherway.