Monday, July 11, 2016

Fair Shake Review: Bobby Tarantino - Logic

Bobby Tarantino - Logic
(Genre: Hip Hop/Rap/Trap Rap)

I was introduced to Logic through one of my favorite review YouTube channels almost 5 years ago. Ever since then, I looked forward to his yearly release schedule as it ranges from boom bap to trap rap. As a student of the game, his growth has been evident as you can hear his influences from the 90's greats and his contemporaries blend into the incredible emcee he is today. Therefore, I've been an avid fan of his versatility and knew he was working on two projects through his social media. He mentioned that one would be to turn up to, while the other would be more classic hip hop and conceptual. To much people's surprise though, he released the party-oriented mixtape after premiering 3 singles in a three week period.

This mixtape, Bobby Tarantino, definitely captures exactly what he intended to do. Logic's producer, 6ix, created a spectacular soundscape to fit the house party vibe of the radio today. This set the stage for Logic to write tracks to make you want to bounce and even catch some witty lines in between. He also manages to fit in some meaningful lyrics on tracks like "Slave I" and "Slave II" and be introspective on "44 Bars" & "Deeper Than Money".  It breaks it up with some comedy and set pieces with an "unintentional" preview of the concept album. Also the comedic return of his mixtape character, "Marty Randolph", makes for a funny break from the tracks that you want to dance on "A Word from Our Sponsor".

I really enjoyed this entire project, save for "Wrist" featuring Pusha T. This track is a conceptual turn up track where both Logic and Push take the roles of drug dealers (though that's not a stretch for Push). That's mainly my small gripe with the song as it has Logic describing this character, even if he's not necessarily glorifying the lifestyle. It just felt slightly out of place, like when Drake tries to play the tough guy. Other than that, the mostly trap rap production throughout the project was enjoyable. But I was extremely pleased with the A Tribe Called Quest-esque ending with "Deeper Than Money".

I'd like to say that Logic is a very accessible hip hop artist and this project doesn't hurt my thoughts on that. Though this mixtape, more than others, leans more to listeners who prefer more hype hip hop akin to Travis Scott, current Kanye, & Childish Gambino. Yet, he certainly brings lyrics in a palette closer to J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar on their less conscious material. Also if any of you got a kick out my Pryde recommendation from before, give this project a listen and I'm sure you won't be disappointed by Logic's "Flexicution"!

Links to the man behind "The Jam":
Flexicution (The first single)
The Making of Flexicution (Ooh...the process)
Logic on Bobby Tarantino (Interview with HardKnockTV)
DEHH's Young Sinatra Review (My introduction to Logic)
Eff with him on SnapChat (Lol. @youngsinatra301)

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