In the world of hardstyle, vocals are an almost essential part to making a track, which is why it is strange that MCs and original vocals get used rather sparingly compared to sampling an already existing song or remixing a popular EDM tune. There are of course vocalists and MCs that get used, but 80% of the time it’s not any better than what you can hear on the radio, and many times it’s not even sensible.
So, what do you get when you combine one of the most overplayed, overbooked and over-featured raw/hardcore MCs and a label who is open to any idea no matter how crazy it is? You get Nocturnolz, MC Nolz’ 2018 debut album. So without further ado, let’s jump right into this experiment of an album, to see if an MC is enough to give it identity and a unique sound.
Value
Nocturnolz features an Intro, fourteen tracks and an Outro, running 50 minutes in length. Full versions are available in sampler EPs, two of which already got released, but nonetheless, they are not on the album, which is a detriment. Also, a negative is that it doesn’t even have a proper continuous mix for you to pop in the car and just play & forget. Digital version runs €9.95 for 198 and 320 kbps, while .WAV goes for €16.95. I suggest picking up the 320-kbps version. Physical disc goes for €16 + shipping, unless you are a massive fan, I really don’t suggest you buy this version. Value Point: 0,5/2
Sound
The sound on Nocturnolz is a bag of mixed goods. It ranges from mostly good to bad to even abysmal and it is all because of a different producer on almost every single one of the tracks. Some insanely good productions include Alpha Rebel, Kingpin, Speak What You Know and The Aftermath, while the more lackluster ones are stuff like Mean Paw, Bring The Pain and 404 Error. This is strange because most of the times these producers put out stuff that sounds rather good or in the case of Warface, sublime, but 404 Error just lacks any sort of clarity or power and Mean Paw is uncharacteristically damp, with kicks overpowering leads and screeches in an unprecedented way. It is generally good, but it has its faults. Sound Point: 0,75/1
Artwork
So many people go for a reuse of their standard press-kit with a shitty photoshopped background and call it an album cover. Nolz is a bit different as the mugshot is at least custom made and the background isn’t full of cringe inducing, badly photoshopped desolate landscapes or something of the sort. However, it is way too minimalistic. It doesn’t convey a message, it’s not even symbolic. All it is good for is putting Nolz’ face out there. In that respect, it managed to do its work well. Artwork Point: 0,5/1
Tracks
I’ll be doing something different here than usual. I’ll leave the track details for each track in the background and mention them last, but I’ll go into analyzing and dismembering the lyricism. Nolz made an album centered around his lyrics? I’ll judge according to that. Additionally, I’d also like to critique the lyrics more or less based on 3 aspects. 1: lyrical content and substance. Do the lyrics makes sense at all? 2: Technique. Flow, rhymes and all that good shit. 3: Banger factor. This is the most subjective one. Does the package sound good even with how good or bad the other two sections are?
Let’s jump right in!
Intro:
Welcome to my lyrical blueprint. This is: Nocturnolz – The Album.
Before we start, let me explain why I came up with the idea to create an album.
Consider me interested, go on.
I’m progressive. And on this album I want to share my vision on how powerful a good vocal can be.
Progressive is a strong word boy, I hope you know what it means.
I know it’s all about the music and I’m with you on that but…
A good vocal can transform a track into so much more than music.
It can be the icing on top of the cake, it gives the track a face, a name, a name or a feeling.
No objections here, this is truth. Spit it my man. However, Nolz’ vocals are more hit or miss than any other artist and this is why it is kind of ironic that he talks about good vocals, when more often than not his vocals make no sense whatsoever.
So, that’s the reason why I did this album.
The album contains a high dose of, testosterone with a whole lot of rebel-poetry, sparring, bragging and boasting.
Well since there are no females on this album, an abundance of testosterone is given. Also, what in the world is ‘rebel-poetry’? That’s new. Also, Nolz mentions ‘boasting’. We’ll get back to that point later.
The vocals on the album are a mix of energetic vocals with strong, scream-along punchlines.
So where is the mix exactly? These two aren’t mutually exclusive.
However, I tried to create some more sensitive vocals that some of you can relate to.
I wrote so many sensitive vocals but… it just didn’t fit the music.
So I spiced it up a little and managed to pull it off anyways.
I disagree. Nolz didn’t do jack shit in this direction. All of the vocals are varying levels of aggressive, in your face vocals. None of them wield any deeper meaning than ‘I am boss, you are not, kiss my ass and suck my cock.’
Let’s just say I like my vocals rough, clean and profound.
That’s a contradictory statement.
Well, let’s get down to business. Listen to my vocals and enjoy the music.
Thank you for joining the Nocturnolz!
I’ll humor you.
This intro is basically the whole story of the album. It’s a noble idea, but execution is lacking. And what is also majorly disappointing is the fact that right at the end, the background music starts to pick up and you would expect the first track to flow into it and create a nice overarching feel in the tracks. But nope. Big major no-no from me. Fuck this tease.
Lecture of an Animal (prod. by D. Masseling & J.v. Ingen):
Verse 1:
Yeah (yeah), Nocturnolz, Lecture of an Animal, tryna blast this shit, yo!
You wanna label me? Give it a go! A rapper/MC, hell, I don’t even know!
Some say I’m phony, me just so horny, you will love me long time! (love me long time)
I’m not planning on leaving this game, I will make sure you remember my name!
It’s the capital N to the O L Z. Nocturnolz baby, yeah this is me!
I preach what I saw on the other side. My grass is greener and yours just died.
Envy’s a bitch get your act together, blowing your mind like an air compressor.
Sixteen bars, straight in your face. I flow with zero gravity. Outer space.
You got your boy scouts I have my strike team, you got fantasies, but I have a dream! (I have a dream!)
If you manage to get this far into the track without having an aneurysm from the amount of concentrated stupidity in the lyrics, I congratulate you. Worry not, your perseverance will be rewarded with an actually good and cool hook. But let’s try to break down the first verse, shall we?
The warmup line is standard representer crap, nothing special there. However, things get juicy right from the first line. Nolz’ states that people wanna label him while he himself is not knowing what he is. Cool, a rapper with identity crisis. If I want that I’d rather listen to Kanye. Spare me this pseudo-philosophical bullshit please.
Second line is so abysmal that I don’t even want to bother going into it. If you can’t figure out yourself why it has issues, there is little hope left for you. But you know what… how about I do it anywayyysss~~~. “Me so horny, you will love me long time” is a reference to Vietnamese prostitutes, more specifically from the movie Full Metal Jacket, as the echoing sample is directly from that. He’s not only stupid he’s cracking racist jokes too. Thanks to u/EpicStone and u/Patrick_the_Saint for helping me transcribe it (because it was otherwise almost unintelligible) and u/zman0728 who told me of its context.
Third line is again, representer shit together with the fourth line.
Line five is finally interesting and in a better way than line two. Albeit the question emerges what ‘side’ he’s referring to with ‘the other side’. However, twist on the classical proverb that follows it is a nice and witty one, albeit rather low-hanging fruit all things considered. Line six devolves into idiocy again, where the two halves of it make absolutely no sense and aren’t coherent together. It just feels like Nolz found two groups of words that happened to rhyme, and he packed them together. I get that it is a genuine tactic to forego actual substance in favor of a good rhyme and nice flow, but Nolz’ flow is so abysmal that he doesn’t even stay on the fucking beat half the time, so there is no excuse for him to not make sense in his lyrics.
The last two lines of the verse are filler garbage too. Telling us how many bars you’re spitting in the 7th line already is actually a sign of you not being able to come up with something more creative, and then that zero gravity line is just… Way too simple. Last line is basically again, representer line boiling down to ‘I’m better than you’ but it’s not even done in an imaginative way.
Hook:
Fake MCs I eat ‘em like a cannibal! Hannibal. Lecture (Lecter) of an animal (hurrrr)!
The un-unbeatable, mentally insane the un-untreatable!
Fake MCs I eat ‘em like a cannibal! Hannibal. Lecture (Lecter) of an animal (hurrrr)!
The un-unbeatable, mentally insane the un-untreatable!
So, if you made it through to this point, you have arrived at arguably the best part in the entire song: the hook. The hook is in rap usually what a climax/drop/anticlimax is for hardstyle. It is the grand finale, the release that the track builds up to. Now you can make it a catchy sing-along hook, or a banging anthemic hook, or maybe something with a witty punchline that people will remember, or you make it so abstract people don’t even know how to describe it.
This hook is insanely good compared to the rest of the track, which is a damn shame because this track would’ve been amazing were all of its bars on the same consistent quality as this one.The reason this hook is so great in my opinion, besides the ear-worm factor of it all is the double speak part, the witty pun of saying ‘Lecture’ but also having it sound ambiguous so it can be heard as ‘Lecter’ at the same time. And that’s it. It’s witty and it made me smile when I realized it but aside from that it’s just a mindless banger.
Verse 2:
I’ll make you freeze like a mannequin. You’ve never been… so star-struck by anything
I’m good and I’m evil, I’m Jekyll and Hyde and I kiss the Boogeyman goodnight!
Never afraid, and I can throw a punch, taking down your walls with the grimy bunch.
Get it to your dicks, go mothafucka, do not mess with me, before I come knock-ah.
I bring the fight to your doorstep to keep your item mine and I won’t stop until I cross a line.
Notebook is stained with blood, let me explain, the pencil just bleeds, the rhymes in my veins,
Call me the vocal barbarian, ruler of my own ‘fuck-you’ planetarium. Not a vegetarian…
cuz imma eat you raw. Salute your youngest lyrical veteran! Ooorah!
[Hook again]
Sadly Verse 2 doesn’t improve anything in terms of lyrical content, technique or creativity. It is yet again a goddamn blender of random rhyme passages chained together without giving it any second thought. The first two lines would be good, but there is literally no connection between the two so it’s not even coherent! What the hell was he trying to accomplish here, I have no idea.
The last three bars are decent. Mainly because the content of the lines actually make sense and is coherent with the lines that follow it. It flows nicely over into multiple bars and it is just one string of witty line after witty line. BUT. The last line. ‘youngest lyrical veteran’ just rubs me the wrong way. It sounds good with all of the context around but it’s meaningless and is just a big fat bullshitting of the audience. Then again it is what was written on the fucking tin. ‘Contains a lot of boasting’. It was right in the intro. But this fact will bite Nolz back in his ass a thousand-fold on track #3. But more on that later.
Production on this track is lackluster, as I’ve mentioned before. It is a generic beat that for some reason seems to be too fast even for Nolz and it just feels out of place most of the times. It is clear to me that Joey and Danny didn’t give two shits about producing this one. Banger factor is a solid 6/10. I can bob my head to it and I absolutely love the hook, but aside from that, nothing worth your while here.
Young Enough (w/Chain Reaction):
Verse 1:
Running against the grain?
Welcome to my domain!
I’m a rebel, that you all know.
Cuz only dead fish go with the flow!
Generic line 1, generic line 2, generic line 3, generic and stupid line 4. ‘only dead fish go with the flow’ implies fish always swim upstream. Does Nolz think all fish are Salmon? Besides that, his lyricism basically boils down to this ‘rebel’ image that Nolz is trying to build. Good luck selling that with a grey suit, black shirt and tie. Shit’s a classy look. It ain’t rebellious.
Verse 2:
I am strong, because I’ve been weak!
I am fearless, because I’ve been afraid!
And I am wise, because I’ve been foolish!
To hell with this, motherfuckers let’s do this!
I know what Nolz is trying to say here and in context it sounds cool. You can sing along or hum along or whatever. But once you take even the slightest look at the lyrics at hand, you realize that it is bullshit. Also, that last line is an atrocious filler line. It’s been done more times than yo mama and it’s just uninspired and unintuitive. I don’t pretend to be a lyrical genius but even I could come up with better lyrics than this. Like this:
I was weak, so I trained to be strong!
Cowering in fear, but I conquered it all!
I was played a fool, so I learned to be wise!
And because of that, now, I’m on the rise!
This is what I came up with in 3 minutes. (+a few edits a couple hours later). It conveys the same message, with a little less generic way of expression and a much better closing line. Given more time I’m pretty sure I could do even better.
[Repeat of Verse 1]
Verse 3:
Old enough to know better.
Young enough to do it anyway.
Old enough to know better.
’Forever young’ is what they say.
[Repeat of Verse 2]
The third verse is again, mediocre. Not much content aside from mindless banger material. Sure, it has its own atmosphere and charm in its simple ways, but it just doesn’t tick my boxes. However, the track itself is fantastic. Despite Nolz’ best efforts to drag this track down, Chain Reaction’s production shines through and elevates the track from mediocrity.
Speak What You Know (w/ D-Sturb): I feel sorry for D-Sturb on this track. Dude probably worked his ass off making this track to be as good as it is and then Nolz just comes in and ruins it. But not in the way you would expect.
Verse 1:
After hearing you run your mouth,
I realized you ain’t nothing but a thundercloud!
A whole lotta noise but nothing to say.
A whole lotta noise but nothing to say.
A whole lotta noise but nothing to say.
I just tipped my head and walked away.
A whole lotta noise but nothing to say.
I just tipped my head and walked away.
Yes, just like Nolz’ entire discography so far and people’s reaction to it? /s
Hook:
Fuck the drama, the liars, the haters, the hoes,
Never talk shit only speak what you know!
Base your words before you spit ‘em.
Fuck the negativity just feel the rhythm!
This here is the truth, as generic and ‘hippy’ it may sound, this is what should be the ideal way to look at things. But there is something fundamentally wrong with it. Remember how I specifically made note of that one line in the intro?
’The album contains a high dose of, testosterone with a whole lot of rebel-poetry, sparring, bragging and boasting.’
Aaaand there we go. Nolz’ credibility just sunk from 100 to 0. If I could laugh any harder at these lyrics I would. If you don’t realize instantly what’s wrong with this, let me help you.
This one line here makes the – on its own – rather good lyricism of Speak What You Know completely obsolete and come off as hypocritical. I cannot disagree with anything Nolz has to say on this track. It is the damn truth. But I’d rather try to cross a maelstrom caused by Poseidon having an orgy with syrens than try to justify Nolz’ hypocrisy on this track. Or more specifically, the intro. Because I’d rather want to keep SWYK a good track, and rather ridicule the Intro and by extension Nolz himself instead. These four lines in combination with the line from the Intro, make Nolz become the biggest hypocrite to grace the hardstyle scene. Like… how the fuck does he still have the skin on his face while stating that the album will be about boasting and bragging lyricism while completely denouncing that behavior in the third track all the while completely fucking over the message of this great track with his needlessly idiotic Intro. Fuck me this is stupid.
Musically and strictly musically however, this track is great. D-Sturb did a great job especially with the insane drive of the kicks in the climax. That and a pretty solid melody elevate this track from being complete and utter garbage to being listenable/good. And again, nothing against the lyrics on the track by themselves, but when put into context they become the single biggest spit in the listener’s face. Like, I know what your album is about man, don’t insult my intelligence like this.
The Aftermath (w/ D-Sturb & Digital Punk):
What the fuck happened? And where the fuck am I?
I wonder about the same thing myself while writing this at 3 in the morning.
Verse 1:
My wallet is empty and my phone just died.
Staring at the mirror, with blood shot eyes.
It’s the same old story every weekend yo!
Put down the party motherfucker, and ROCK THIS SHOW!
Aside from its content being a rather generic and seriously overused theme, the execution isn’t lacking for once. Verse 1 is solid with okay rhymes and it helps that D-Sturb and Digital Punk’s collaborative effort is amazing. Their music really helps to give the lyrics some much needed atmospheric support.
Verse 2:
Bruised muscles, feet hurt,
Ears ringing, shoes covered in dirt,
Mind is blurry, knees are weak,
But I’m living the dream with no sleep!
This Verse is unlike anything on the album so far in terms of quality and theme. I am seriously impressed. Of course, it’s pretty easy to impress when 80% of your other content is dogshit, but this one is pretty cool. It gives you the perfect ‘I just survived that hell of a party and I’m ready to jump back again’ vibe. It also has a nice ending line with the wordplay on sleep and dream. Production is fantastic as I said, D-Sturb and Digital Punk delivered a great track. Top 3 track on this album.
Fck The Average (w/ Crypsis):
Verse 1:
Average is not good enough for us.
We aiming top notch.
Time to do this!
Okay. Pretty vague statements, let’s see what the rest of the track has to offer. So far so good it seems.
Verse 2:
Fuck the average, shit is tragic.
I’ll be top notch rockin’ bringing you the magic!
Still pretty vague. Where is the context?!
Verse 3:
I’m a born motherfucker, flirting with disaster,
A rebel, poet, a night blooded hunter!
A night blooded hunter,
I can make this thing go boom!
Verse 4:
I’m a born motherfucker, flirting with disaster,
A rebel, poet, a night blooded hunter!
I have the skills of a renaissance master,
If you wanna keep up you better run faster!
Okay, so you just threw away the original thematic, brought in shitty representer rap lines and uhhh… yeah you know what. I can’t even be bothered. Like if it isn’t obvious to anyone how ironic the first part of the lyrics is and how idiotic Verse 3 and Verse 4 are, then you should just stop, no offense, pick up a book, maybe retake grade 10-11 literature class and come back to listen to music with lyrics once you have enough understanding to see. I can’t be arsed to try and dive deep into a shallow puddle on the wayside.
Musically it is decent. Crypsis delivers an average track by his standards, but it really misses any of the magic that was promised in the lyrics.
Alpha Rebel (w/ Act of Rage):
This is Nolz’ strength. This is where he works best. Aggressive, banging lyrics with banging music underneath. Menacing and growling punchlines with the classic 1-2 buildup before it.
Verse 1:
I was born with the warning sign,
Got that true rebel blood in my veins,
I look down with the warning sign,
Cuz I was never meant to be tamed!
Verse 2:
I got the true rebel blood in my veins,
No need to resist us stuck in your brains,
Reaching sky high from an underground level
The voice of an outlaw, the ALPHA REBEL!
These verses are sublime. They are simple, don’t try to be deep but also not falling into the trap of being shallower than the puddle of piss in the alleyway that the hobo sleeps on. They are catchy, aggressive, menacing, on fucking point, going straight to the fucking point and best of all, have a good amount of witticism. And by good amount I mean one single line, but that is amazing considering the rest of the vocal work on this record. The first line in particular, referring to the zodiac sign that people are born into and Nolz claims to be born into the zodiac ‘Warning Sign’. Which is a cool metaphor for ‘I’m a daredevil in character’. I like it.
Couple that with Act of Rage’s sublime and absolutely filthy production, this track is by far my favorite on the album. The mid-intro alone is like… holy fuck. I had the pleasure of hearing that kick live at Defqon.1 and it blew me away. It’s much better than it has any right to be. Second kick and second drop is… okay but nothing too special. Still energetic. Absolute banger here.
Grow A Pair (w/ Regain):
Verse 1:
Pull out your Mac 10 and make ‘em disappear!
Inhale courage, exhale fear. x4
INHALE COURAGE, EXHALE FEAR,
PULL OUT YOUR MAC 10 AND MAKE ‘EM DISAPPEAR!
‘How to Fire Up a Mentally Instable Bullied Student to Shoot Up his School’ – a musical guide by MC Nolz.
Track is absolute banger, but the lyrics are dogshit, even if the ‘inhale courage, exhale fear’ part is creative. NEXT!
Kingpin (w/ Radical Redemption):
Verse 1:
I’m the King of this jungle, the beast of the wildness,
I’m the top of the food chain I’m the preacher of darkness.
Verse 2:
I’m the motherfucking Kingpin on this block,
Problem with me? Come answer my Glock!
You really sure you wanna rattle my cage?
Cuz you’re one step away from being capped in the face!
Again, just like with Alpha Rebel, this is Nolz’ strength. He can go dark, aggressive and senseless but still tie it all cohesively together and not just randomly rhyme around or try to bullshit me with aneurysm inducing, small-minded lyricism. Track itself is an absolute banger, even if I’m a bit salty that Radical basically recycled the first half of Day of Reckoning’s melody. Can’t blame him though, it’s a cool melody and it would’ve otherwise gone to waste on that mediocre track. My second favorite track personally on the album.
Bring The Pain (w/ Minus Militia):
Verse 1:
Bring the pain motherfucker!
WE. ARE.
THE MILITIA.
THE MILITIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Seriously what the fuck is this garbage. Get this out of my ears. NOW.
However, the track lends itself nicely for an intro/outro, because both the mid-intro and the main anti are identical. Or at least they would be if it weren’t for the break which has a second verse.
Verse 2:
You know the name.
We raise the game. - no you fucking don’t lmao
You know the fame.
We bring the pain. - yes, tons of it, mainly affecting my ears
Garbage track and the only case where it has a justified place in a set is, as I said earlier if you start with it and cut to a different track once the mid-intro is done.
Mean Paw (w/ Warface):
I got that mean right paw. x3 (<this being separate makes more sense if you listen to the tracks while reading the review)
I got that mean right paw,
That can land from any angle, right on your jaw.
I was raised like a fight dog, so do understand,
To win this, the fuckers, they die by my hand!
I slice.
I spit.
I bite.
I growl.
I’m about to land that mean paw right on your jaw!
Verse 2:
I’m the talk of the town,
I’m still wearin’ the crown,
You wanna take it from me?
Only you’re going down!
The lyrics are again pretty mediocre. There is almost no substance to it. Whole lotta bark and no bite. It has the aggressive vibe down but there is a part in it that is just completely unintelligible and unclear – took me a good 10-15 passes on maximum volume to get a rough idea what he might have wanted to say – and in general it’s just too much of a hyperbole in the lyricism. Believability is key if you wanna boast. Nobody gives a shit about people who clearly talk out of their asses, a certain level of it feeling grounded must always stay. Of course, this doesn’t apply to parodying lyrics.
Musically this is also one of the weaker entries. Warface really didn’t give a shit about this track it seems, as the mix is a total mess, the kick muddies the lead and it isn’t even powerful enough. It’s just a mess of a track. I don’t like it one bit.
Rauwdouwer (w/ Killshot):
Met de deur binnenvallen, specialiteit,
Rauw op je dak als ik die deur open smijt.
Probeer me niet te stoppen, ben dynamiet,
TNT overdosis als mijn slof uitshiet.
Ik kom rauw op je dak, rauw op je dak
Ik kom rauw op je dak, motherfuckers what up
Mijn kicks zijn rauwer dan de jouwe,
Ben een rauwdouwer,
STANDJE FULL POWER!
I’m now going to attempt to translate it. With the help of Pepper, gaojia and Miss from the discord and a few comments under the YouTube video of this track, here’s my interpretation of what this could sound like in English.
I am straight to the point, it’s my specialty,
Knock you over ya head while I bust the door in,
Don’t try to stop me I’m dynamite,
TNT overdose when I freak the fuck out.
I come knocking on your head yo … Knock! Knock!
I come knocking on your head, motherfuckers what up.
Compared to yours, my kicks are all harder,
I’m a fucking loudmouth,
Charged to FULL POWER!
Obviously not perfect, but it gets the job done. Lyrics are nothingness again, but they are cool and groovy in Dutch and… acceptable in English. It’s a party track, made to be played live and have a crowd interaction. Can confirm, works like a charm. Pretty good track. Killshot just nails the production too.
Nocturnolz (w/ Angerfist & Radical Redemption):
Verse 1:
Unlike others. Progressive. Nocturnal.
Those are the ABCs that make me. Join!
Day is over, night has come,
Today is gone, what’s done is done.
I am nocturnal I belong to the night!
Join the Nocturnolz on the dark side!
So, the first issue with this is that Nolz is anything but ‘progressive’. He doesn’t use new or fresh techniques. It’s all bog-standard rap that he can’t even do properly half the time. He doesn’t include other genres or other elements into his music, he doesn’t have a fucking clue about writing compelling texts that are anything other than various expressions of ‘I am better than you’ in variably qualitative execution. He doesn’t have a voice fit for anything but rough and abrasive vocal work, and even that he doesn’t use to its fullest potential.
Want proof of all this? Look no further than this text. First 4 lines especially the 3rd and 4th are complete and UTTER TRASH. There is zero redeeming quality to them, they are there because they need to fill out the empty space in the music.
Last two lines are really good though. They flow well, they actually make sense, they are coherent without being overly simplistic. They are a proper 1-2 punchline.
Music wise, the title track is on the same level as Kingpin and Alpha Rebel are. Crunchy and potent kicks, aggressive melody, loads of bass. Good track, one of the better ones.
Trickster (w/ Noize Suppressor):
Verse 1:
I get into your ear with a whisper,
Twisting your mind like a nasty trickster,
Pull your strings and watch the puppet play,
Invading your mind like Normandy on D-Day.
Yeah motherfucker, this is D-Day!!!
What can I say about these lyrics. Again, generic is the best word. It is what it is, there is no real way of saying it nicer than that. It’s painfully obvious that he hasn’t thought too much about actual lyricism and just threw together strings of rhymes that marginally sounded good when chained together. Also, I don’t see why you would use ‘Trickster’ as your title when ‘D-Day’ is the punchline. Dumbass title is dumbass.
Track itself is well produced but SO. FUCKING. BORING. Overused Dogfight lead, mind-numbingly simple 2bit melody. The only good thing is the fat kick. Nothing else is good. Moving the fuck on.
404 Error (w/ Destructive Tendencies):
Punchline:
Lost and never found like the 404 Error.
Verse 1:
I can make ya disappear like Abra-Kadabra,
Lost and never found like the 404 Error.
Got you on the run being chased by a killer,
Do this for the fun, yes do this for the thrilla.
Guns in my glovebox, shovel in the trunk. x3
Think again before you mess with me punk!
Straight up aggression, in your face mindless rap. Again, a little generic, but not as bad as the previous one. Also, there is just immense earworm potential with this one. The production is rather dirty by Destructive Tendencies, but infinitely more creative than Trickster, also has more vibes and atmosphere going on in it rather just a blank slate that Trickster is in the musical sense. I like this a lot, and I can’t explain it all too well. Fact is tho that the mix is terrible compared to Trickster, which drags it down a bit.
Outro:
You have just immersed yourself in Nocturnolz.
My vision, my sound, my passion is what this album was all about.
I hope you all enjoyed listening to Nocturnolz as much as I enjoyed creating it alongside my friends!
Thank you all for your ongoing support and joining me on this crazy ride!
I’ll see you soon, but for now:
Nolz.
Out.
Speaking over the melody of ‘Nocturnolz’, Nolz is basically saying his final goodbye. Nothing to analyze here.
So. Was it worth it to subject myself and others to listen to this? Probably? I mean, in my opinion, yes. Because if you ever needed the perfect negative example, if you ever needed guidance as to how not to create a vocal-centric hardstyle album, this was it. Plain and simple as that. Having mentioned that, I still found enjoyment in this album. Despite all its weaknesses Lecture of an Animal was mostly enjoyable, then all the tracks following it until Kingpin are good to great, with the dishonorable exception of Fck The Average. Ironic, it could save others from mediocrity but not itself.
After Kingpin it starts to fall apart with tracks like Mean Paw, Bring The Pain and Trickster, but there remain enough tracks that I could enjoy. Despite me absolutely going ballistic over the lyricism in some tracks, the tracks themselves don’t necessarily suffer from it as much as you might think. They are still enjoyable… just expect accelerated brain degradation as a result of those terribly written lyrics. I liked 10 of the 15 tracks on the album (I count ‘Intro’ and ‘Outro’ as one track to remain fair), thus the album has a ratio of 66% tracks liked by me. Going by my own metric where 90% is needed for full score and a point being taken away for every 15%, I can technically award this album a 4/5. But I won’t. Because it simply doesn’t deserve it. The lyrics are too bad for that. Track Score: 3/5
Bonus Point
So. Bonus point. To give, or not to give. There are a good handful of bangers on this album and at least just as many good songs and sadly at least just as many garbage tracks. It is perfectly balanced as all things should be. But this fragile balance also brings with itself the fact that some factors, whether they are good or bad, can flip the balance very easily. Sadly, for me the ‘love me long time’ line just flipped it into the negative territory. Bonus Point: 0/1
Ambition vs Execution
To have ambition is to have a vision of how a certain product, story or piece of art should look like once it is finished, and to execute on that is a hard task and a hard time. There will be many interferences from others criticizing the work as it is being built and many who will write it off. More often than not, this type of criticism leads to a better product, but of course sometimes it leads to the product being increasingly worse with each interference, for reference see Hollywood Movies.
However, what happens when you remove any interference, give the artist your trust and blind faith, remove any form of feedback loop from the system and thus inevitably creating an echo chamber? What’s an echo chamber you might ask? It’s when an artist works on an album basically all alone or, with others who all have a similar vision or, support them no matter what and never dare to stand in their way. Never urge and move you to improve on your production skill, your writing skill, your voice, your technique. Never making you go back to things and reconsider, never making you actually think about anything twice.
This is the curse side of the apparent blessing that Minus is More’s ‘up for everything’ mentality entails. Sure, they are down to back you for any crazy project, but they seemingly never give their artists any constructive criticism. This also means that Nolz never got the reality check he needed to realize that he drifted from the course and didn’t stay consistent with his own set of rules and thematic elements he set up in the intro of the album. Thus, he got punished for it by having one of his tracks feel completely out of place and idiotic in the context of the album and its Intro speech.
There is also a very important thing for rappers and that is ‘authenticity’ and ‘credibility’. If you wanna boast, go ahead and do so, nothing wrong with that. But you have to know that you’re always treading a fine line between going overboard and being too lukewarm. Going overboard is fine if your image revolves around hyperboles and being a parody act, but once you actually seem like you mean the things you say or want to create the illusion of meaning those things, you have to have credibility and authenticity to it. It needs to stay grounded and never fly off too far or else you’ll get burnt and well… die. Or in Nolz’ case, being criticized by an overly analytical cunt.
Overall Score: 4,75/10
Personal Recommendation: Skip it. It’s just not worth it unless Alpha Rebel, Nocturnolz, The Aftermath, Kingpin or Rauwdouwer click with you. It’s just not worth the pain.
Buy
Stream
Final Thoughts: Fuck this album, it’s been a pain in the ass to work on and I hope you all had fun while reading it. Certainly hope more than I did writing it. May my misery not be in vain. I’ll turn off inbox, don’t @ me for at least a day. This album triggers me. Good fucking day to y’all, and I’m out of here. I need a drink… or five.
~Cheers!
Submitted August 05, 2018 at 11:07PM by Album_Dude https://ift.tt/2AJOggV
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