by Christopher Zeller
Lushlife, and his affiliates, are probably going to draw many half-hearted comparisons in their rise through the alternative rap game, as the style of their music is quite different from the norm. Their recently released mixtape, End of the Golden Years, is likely to become an alternative hip hop favorite, should it ever gain traction with its target audience. With Scott Mescudi-esque innovation, and with harder flows, the rap over Lushlife’s beats are as unique as the performer is different on each track. While some verses lack creativity, others make up for them in plenty with some flows slightly reminiscent of Nas, or Jurassic 5. The music on No More Golden Days differs from these groups, however, in its message. Using innovative beats (The Beach Boys are sampled on Meridian Sound III) and local rappers, Philadelphia’s Lushlife wholeheartedly embraces the urban struggle and sends subtle, yet positive messages to his listeners. Not lacking in talent lyrically, rhythmically, nor creatively, Lushlife and “his rappers” will need to continue to innovate in order to keep up the raw, psychedelic image and to avoid fading into alternative-obscurity.
For those of you looking for something new, exciting, and real in your hip hop library, the tracks on Lushlife’s No More Golden Days are available for free download and, as an added touch, cassettes are available for ten dollars. This stuff’s certainly worth taking a long look at; with a little more experience, and a bit of polish around the edges, Philly’s Lushlife will soon be making moves upward in the game, and maybe, just maybe, put Philadelphia on the map with regards to modern hip hop.
I wonder if Mac, Dennis, Charlie, Frank, and Dee have heard this…
Rating: 8.0/10
