Starklove taps a palette loaded with anguish and emotional psycho-turmoil to compose “Desiderata.” Like many Hip Hop albums, this release is stacked with guest artists, however, that’s where the similarities between this Bartleby Records’ release and most of the genre ends. On his debut, the producer/composer serves up a heaping dose of ambient soundscapes, soothing beats, and a barrage of extreme textures that compliment each other impressively well on this distinct audio canvas called “Desiderata.”
“BK is the Tundra” is a new era throwback that features rugged rhymes with a cadence reminiscent of old-school bass music orators mashed with an eerie loop and rapid scratches that add up to rap bliss. On “Backfloat with Submerged Ears,” Starklove delivers a new-age ambient vibe featuring a haunting Theremin-laced melody that flows more like soundbite from a surrealist film than a track on a Hip Hop record.
Damage Twinz help out to create a moving mood enhancer called “blissfreedomindivisable.” The track boasts solid percussion, intense keys, and melodic orchestration that make this a great audio bed for “Bladerunner” if it were ever to be remade. Conversely, “Kuckledragger’s” heavy electronic drums and distorted rhymes sound like an experiment gone awry (in a good way) with its dusted beats intertwined with guitar.
“Life in Samara” with Dirty Elegance is another dark cinematic and nightmarish song dispersed with postapocalyptic rhymes; sounding as if it were created by descendants of Company Flow. “The Most Dangerous Thing in the Word” features a “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” melody with haunting female vocals and impactful prose, including the memorable line, “your death will be twice as fast as your birth.”
The 20 track album is loaded with solid production. Other worthwhile mentions include, “Snakes in the Grass,” which is complimented by Big Pep’s slick rhymes, and features sly scratching by D Styles. These guests come back on the infectious “Insufficient Funds.” “Static and Signal” brings the moon bap, and boasts impressive soulful vocals from Sarah Tracey. A medley comprised of piano, scratches, samples, and breaks adds up to a hypnotic tune called, “The Way Things Work.”
Starklove throws his weight around both lyrically and production-wise on “Desiderata.” Sometimes he’s smooth, other times, such as on “They Chat Breeze,” he gets aggressive- either way, it makes for interesting music. His concoction of electronic soundscapes, dope beats and scratches provides plenty to be appreciated by fans of experimental and quality indie Hip Hop. The songs run the gamut from spacey, to funky and soulful, and even doses that could have been played straight out of a horror flick’s score. There’s no question, those who enjoy adventurous music that obliterates boundaries should be pleased with Starklove’s new album.
This review was sponsored by Bartleby Records.
