This is part of a semi-daily series of reviews as a project throughout the month of November.
For the third year in a row, Southern Hip Hop powerhouse Denzel Curry has dropped a record, this time teaming up with renowned rap producer Kenny Beats, known for his beats on tracks by JPEGMAFIA and Zack Fox. In just seventeen minutes they pull together one of the most enjoyable and airtight records of either of their careers.
Right out the gate, it’s obvious that Kenny Beats is taking a lot of inspiration from classic hip hop producers on this record, particularly Madlib, and giving it his own glitchy flair. Pitch-shifted vocals are abundant throughout, and skipping beats are basically a given. Songs like Take_it_Back_v2, Lay_Up.m4a, and DIET_ show his talent at crafting hard-hitting, memorable tracks with jarring basslines, vibrant samplework, and timely use of vocal manipulation. On the other hand, So.Incredible.pkg, Track07, and the climactic ‘Cosmic’.m4a show off his ability to build more reserved and intricate beats, with lo-fi samples over smooth bass and sampled jazz drumwork. Every track ties into the next while still being divided into very obvious tracks, and lays the groundwork for Denzel to do his thing.
And boy does he ever. The delivery on UNLOCKED is some of the most hard, aggressive, and varied he’s laid down to date. At times he sounds like if DMX rapped on Madvillainy, and that’s absolutely a positive in my book. With the help of some pitch shifting shaking it up he gets away with practically nonstop aggression practically unnoticed, and lends to an exhilarating listening experience front to back. The fifth track, DIET_, is one of the most obvious examples of Denzel’s tonal range on the record, building from a low-energy spoken flow all the way to practically screaming like on his Bulls on Parade cover.
Lyrically Denzel is on the top of his game with some of his best wordplay to date. I could fill a whole review with one-liners from the record, but instead I’ll just include a few of my favorites here:
Overall if I had to make one gripe with the record it would be that it could have been fleshed out a little bit more. At only 17 minutes in length it’s an incredibly tight and consistent listening experience, but some of the tracks feel like there’s more that could have been done to build them into full tracks rather than a collection of good ideas. Despite that I can’t deny how great of a time I’ve had and continue to have with the record, and with banger after banger it’s hard to hold much against it.
Favorite Tracks: DIET_, Lay_Up.m4a, Take_it_Back_v2
Least Favorite Track: Track 01
Rating: 9/10
Buy the album here: https://denzelcurrymusic.bandcamp.com/album/unlocked
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