Tag: lofi

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Music

Artist to watch in 2021: redveil

Redveil, a Twitter sensation in 2020, showed us exactly why he’s a star in the making.

At only 16 years old, Maryland rapper redveil is already showing glimpses of greatness by borrowing a lo-fi aesthetic, and improving with every single and project he puts out.

He stands out from all his peers with mature and introspective lyricism, a somber and depressing delivery while flowing over a lot of chopped up sample based beats with tons of layers. 

He has drawn plenty of comparisons with former Odd Future member Earl Sweatshirt. Despite not being as dark, depressing and deep as Earl lyrically, they both rap with this monotonous and cold voice that makes you shiver to the depths of your being. Redveil also surfs over more laid back and moody instrumentals than Earl does.

His last project Niagara, released in 2020, received a lot of praise in the underground rap scene and helped put his name on the map. The first two songs on the album, “Campbell” and “Weight,” are close to having two million streams each. On Niagara, redveil is in a rather celebratory mood throughout much of the album affirming that he has made it. He also raps about his dreams, ambitions and money for another large portion of the record. He does it while producing the majority of the album, combining two sounds he is most comfortable with:  looped samples like on “Badnews” and “Grass,” the latter sampling “You Don’t Know My Name” by Alicia Keys, and the chill and lowkey trap-flavoured instrumentals as seen on “5500” and “Drown.”

One of his recent follow-up singles, “how 2 find hope,” released in December 2020, sees redveil in a rare form, unquestionably showcasing why he has so much hype around his name. He jumps on a beautiful sample combining looped horns, drums and vocals. He flows on the verses and sings on the chorus, aggravating a deep feeling of desperately searching for hope.

Fans should expect a project from the rapper in 2021 as he has dropped a project every year since he started in 2019.

At 16, redveil is young and has a lot of time to refine his sound and to experiment with it, but his talent is undeniable and he is certainly heading in the right direction. Be on the lookout for this rapper because he has the potential to be the next big thing in hip hop.

 

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Music

A conversation with Montreal’s genre-bending Ivytide

We spoke to Ivytide about their past, present and what’s to come

Ivytide is one of those bands you can’t put into a box. The Montreal-based group is made up of Concordia alumni Nathan Gagné, Kyle Ruggiero and McGill’s Jamie Snytte – none of whom ever had any formal music training or education.

Having learned everything via YouTube and lessons as children, Ivytide debuted in 2018 with their self-produced EP, Bloom. As far as debuts go, their sound was something bordering on experimental, which was telling of their promise as artists. With its languid psychedelic sound and crisp production play, Bloom has become a springboard for Ivytide’s sound.

In the years since, Ivytide has stayed steadfast in their release of singles, and even signed with Higher Reign Music Group, a distributed label of Sony Music.

Last year came the band’s sophomore project, Pardon Our Distance. Instead of succumbing to the sophomore slump that some musicians may encounter, the project leans more into the blending of genres. Compared to the woozy sound of Bloom, Pardon Our Distance sees an Ivytide that blends the genres of lo-fi, indie, R&B and bedroom pop, into something that has become a sound that is uniquely theirs.

Most recently, Ivytide made their debut to the new year with the single “talk about it.”

TC: Who are some people you admire in the Montreal music scene?

Nathan: Montreal is full of super talented artists, like Edwin Raphael, wordsbyjuni, Oscar Louis, Common Holly and Fleece. We’re lucky to work with some of them, and be inspired by their art, as well as learn from them about how to navigate the music industry.

TC: Now that you’re coming up on three years together, is it safe to say you have a vision for the future of Ivytide?

Jamie: We’re just trying to keep making the music we love, and we’ll see where that takes us.

TC: What was your favourite song to work on for the last EP?

Jamie: “Undone” was probably the most fun song to work on from the last EP because we got to make lots of cool weird noises. Nathan rubbed nails together in his palms next to a microphone to get a cool shaker sound, and it came together really quickly and naturally.

Nathan: “Blurr” was probably the least fun song to work on, because Jamie made the original beat in a tuning that was impossible to replicate. Adding other instruments to the arrangement quickly became implausible, and we had to be creative to get things going (tuning different bass strings to individually “off” pitches).

TC: As a band, what’s that feeling like when you’re finally signed?

Nathan: It was an exciting moment for us, and it gave us the motivation to work even harder.

TC: In a band of multiple members there can be a lot of creative clashing, is there potential for collaborations between Ivytide and other artists or bands?

Jamie: I think if everyone’s ideas lined up perfectly, then there’d be no creativity. So usually different opinions and ideas are conducive to creating the best work. Sometimes ideas can clash, but as long as we try things and explain our reasoning then usually we can come to an agreement pretty quickly. In terms of collaborations, we’re looking forward to working with a bunch of our Montreal homies.

TC: Can you describe the conception of a song from thought to finished product?

Nathan: Usually starts off with a demo that either I or Jamie work on and send out. And then we get together and the creative process really starts. This means there’s usually a guitar (or keyboard or sample) plus a vocal melody, or just a beat, and then we add more elements and adjust melodies, rhythms and percussion elements to make it fit. Sometimes the song will emerge relatively quickly, and sometimes it takes many days, weeks, and sometimes months of tweaking the tempo, key, and arrangement until it’s just right.

TC: Can you tell me anything about what’s next for you guys?

Jamie: We’re working on a string of new singles for 2021. We’re really excited about these songs, we really think they’re our best work yet. We think people who dig our music will dig these tunes, and hopefully we’ll hand out more shovels so more people can keep digging the songs.

 

 

Images courtesy of Ivytide

Categories
Quickspins

QUICKSPINS: Earl Sweatshirt – FEET OF CLAY

Earl Sweatshirt - Feet of Clay

The former Odd Future member delves deeper into the abstract sounds explored on 2018’s Some Rap Songs

At this point in his career, Earl Sweatshirt has fully exceeded any expectations that were set during his early career with Odd Future. The 25-year-old rapper has been turning heads for nearly a decade, continually growing as a lyricist and an artist. With FEET OF CLAY, Earl continues to raise the bar, delivering his second masterful collection of abstract hip-hop tracks in under a year.

While sonically this isn’t too far from the raw, lo-fi sound of his fantastic 2018 LP Some Rap Songs, it still feels fresh. Most of the songs here barely eclipse the two-minute-mark, and don’t have a semblance of traditional song structure. In fact, most are just a single verse, with the occasional outro, feature or chorus throughout. Earl is marching to the beat of his own off-kilter drums and warped horn samples, creating a musical identity that is uniquely his.

Handling most of the album’s production, he has built the backdrop for what feels like the stream of consciousness of an emotionally wounded young man. Throughout the album he opens up about his alcoholism and his depression in the wake of losing his father and grandmother. This is a poetic portrait of grief wrapped in warm but ominous, distorted, sample-based instrumentals.

Serving as the perfect companion piece to Some Rap Songs, FEET OF CLAY showcases a man looking back and trying to come to terms with loss, heartbreak and addiction. Earl’s growth as both a man and an artist are apparent, and this is another great entry into his already phenomenal catalogue.

8.8/10

Trial Track: “MTOMB”

Star Bar:

“Sellin’ kids culture with death, circlin’ like carrion

The more the merrier, phone got you livin’ vicarious

Ice melting ‘cause it’s so hot

The veil lifts, the pain salient” (Earl Sweatshirt on “74”)

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