Album of The Week: oddCouple’s “Liberation” Comes Out Exactly When We Need It
In a time where music might be our only alleviation, oddCouple’s Liberation comes out like a beacon of light in what feels like dark, confusing times. Many might call the release of this Chicago producer’s new record an episode of kismet, which is a power that occurs from or in control of destiny. With lyrics, sonics, and unbelievable harmonies, oddCouple’s Liberation is my pick for album of the week.
If Liberation were a film it would be a black and white look into the emotional clashes between fun, love, unity, hope, and social/ self- destruction. Both instrumentally and lyrically, the album lends itself to be a musical, magic mirror, where there is not one wrinkle or beauty mark that is hidden from society’s reflection. The album reflectiveness comes from featuring some of the hottest, most introspective artists currently rising in the music industry: Joey Purp, Kweku, Jamila, Mick Jenkins, GLC, Webster X and more. These artists are growing in culture clout due to their ability to look inwards and analyze the paradoxical ugliness and radiance of being human. Thus, their work with oddCouple feels like a match made in Heaven. From the violin driven melody/madness of “Love Above”, a gorgeous track featuring Jamila Woods singing on how you can passionately love someone, to the fun Trap- Hip Hop track “Slept On” with a dangerously charming rap by Mike Golden and a saxophone melody makes you wonder lyrics can literally fall in love with a beat, Liberation is 9 tracks that you can hear again and again.
Not every record has a complete set of songs that stand in distinction from each other and what it offers to the audience, but it makes sense that oddCouple would deliver such an album as he is the “go-to” for artists seeking instrumentals that reflect the depth of their creativity. Each song on Liberation feels different from the other in the sonic scope it offers the artist it features and also the the emotional stimulus it stirs in listeners. For a Hip Hop track that sounds like it was composed, in part by Mozart, and has visionary words from GLC and Kipp Stone on the difficulties to rise with so many hateful, social odds against you, “Hereditary” is the perfect song for spiritual company when disappointed by your surroundings. Even its title is emblematic of how we all feel when we inherit social ills through generations. Meanwhile, oddCouple has given a master platform for Joey Purp to provide another earth-shattering rap on the needs that can underwhelm a spirit when it has been socially outcasted due to class, race, and any other man-made constructions of division. When it comes to Hip Hop/ R&B, oddCouple has an uncanny talent to bring out the whimsical of these genres. His instrumentals are not simply about dancing in the club, but dancing in awareness. As his features drop lyrical “truth bombs”, he uses synthetic, brass, percussive, and string instruments to create a majestic path that twists and turns as much as the humanity it symbolizes. The result is stunning, and worth a listen/buy.
It is in times of division that music reminds us that there is something universal to the human spirit. There is a singular light that connects everyone in woes and whims, and Liberation is a record that has managed to capture that unifying light in sound. oddCouple has created a wonderfully impressive album that clutches your heart and leaves an indelible handprint upon it. You will not forget this album, but, more importantly, you will not want to because, in-between sounds that hold your mind like it were a kaleidoscope of intellectual thoughts, you will both grow and witness your own wisdom. For More Information on oddCouple and to buy Liberation on November 11 click Here.
