A REVIEW OF 'BLUE'
*****
After consistent drops of great singles and EPs A2 finally blessed us with his first album BLUE on November 30th last year.
This post has taken a while to come out. However, I have been bumping BLUE every week since it was released. Now, I could have wrote a review from the day that I listened to it because from the first listen I just knew what greatness A2 had created. But, I wanted the time to truly yake the album in as a whole, really take in the lyrics, have the time to appreciate the beats. Take in every little transition the album threw at me.
I also felt that giving a little time, would be a slight testimony to why A2 is the GOAT. The album dropped late November last year and months later I'm bumping it, it's not like those albums that are THE TING for a minute, have you pumped and hooked for a while but lose out in the rotation because something new has come around. New stuff has dropped since this album and it sill remains in my recently played.
I got all of A2 in BLUE. I got the bars and I got the feels. A2 balanced the two so well I don't think there is a way to categorise it. It's just simply A2. Not many artists have the ability to make an album that will last. I'm talking the type of album you still have on rotation today and know will still be there years from now. I believe this is exactly what A2 has achieved with BLUE. The whole album sets a mood, from his ability to paint a picture through his words, the precise feature picks to the beat selection - everything was spot on.
As a long time A2 fan I have been waiting for an album for ages, qway back from when we didn't even know the title. So to be given an album that is so special, I know now that it was worth the wait. Maybe if he had released what he thought was a finished album those years back wouldn't have been what it was today, perhaps it wouldn't of been the same. I guess it really is albout timing with music.
A2 always paints a picture so effortlessly, he's honest and he's not afraid to express feelings. He sings about love, both the highs and lows of life and as a listener you are able to relate what is he is saying or take something in as advice.
I have to take time to commend the beat selection 10x, you know those smooth types. The type that sound good on some speakers and in a pair of headphones. A2 produced majority of the alum and some were also produced by WondaGurl, Clonez and G.Tank. A2 produces most of the beats of songs he releases. That on its own is a skill, being in charge of what your whole sound will be is great talent. Perhaps I could even say that is great control, because he is able to create a tone and path for the track from scratch. I guess that is why I get such a strong sense of feels when I listen to the album as I can feel the powers that went into them.
What I also love about the album is the fact I can enjoy it as a while piece on a train journey (Well, minus Harley Quinne #FreeHarleyQuinne); track at a time in a music queue I have made whilst I run shop. Or even a random track at a random time because that is just my vibe at that moment.
I loved the soft poetry by Thea Gajic on From London With Love it reminded me of the first time I heard her on Jasmine Tea. The pair complement each other so naturally on a track and it's always a gift to hear what they have created together. 6LACK! A2 spun him on Southern Comfort but still large up his little cotton socks , he done his thing.
As I write this I am still trying to pick a favourite song and I'm not even able to. Firstly, because who chooses just one when the album is sweet? Impossible. And secondly, my choices change depending on my mood and practically day to day. But I will say Once Bitten is my sh*t, that transition at the end just reminds me why I love A2 so much, Only he can rhyme on the breakdown of a track like that. Also, can we have a round of applause for the second verse on Below Zero please. Is your fav catching the beat like A2 does? Can he rap that real on a lil slow vibe with finesse?
When A2 said "I don't give a f*ck if they love me, I'm living real comfy, getting chubby" on The Feels I felt that. Isssssa Mood.
So, I will end this by saying if you haven't already listened to BLUE, I don't know where you been at. Nevertheless, better late than never. Cop or stream BLUE now, on all major platforms. Get yourself a bottle of wine, bill up your little vibes and let the album soak in.