A native of Binghamton, Jonathan Shapiro has been making waves in the industry lately with his brand of chill, relaxed hip-hop music; with smooth flows and even smoother beats, he presents his latest EP, “Flatliner Bounce” — keep reading for my thoughts!
Right from the opener, “No Plans”, the atmosphere of the track charms with its lo-fi, 90s hip-hop sound blended rather nicely with modern trap hip hop elements; with Jonathan’s vocals stealing the limelight quite effortlessly as he raps bars like “Life is what you make it, so I make it like no other man”. The flow is smooth like butter with his delivery and vocal layers and ad-libs adding a spritz of life to this already engaging track.
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Segueing into the second track on “Flatliner Bounce” , “Off Da Chain” really shows off Shapiro’s ability to write engaging stories with infectious chorus sections; and the production is brimming with life and personality; be it the bouncy low-end, or the sharp, precise hi-hats on either sides of your head, the production on this album, courtesy of Butterworld, is simply sublime; and that plays excellently into Shapiro’s vocals.
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We bring the 3-piece “Flatliner Bounce” to a close with the slightly more uptempo “FLAT LINE”, with Shapiro shifting the gears to a faster flow, while still retaining his signature smoothness all throughout the track. There’s also much to appreciate about the tasteful flow breaks, as well as the sound design on this track, making it a fitting close to the album.
The production on “Flatliner Bounce”, as I may have earlier alluded to, retains the laid-back nature of lo-fi chill hip-hop, while still creating enough jive in the high-end to keep your head moving in a slow shuffle to the tune of the percussion elements, and the mixes are gently and expertly managed. With excellent expressiveness in terms of the ad-libs to the positively great sampling choices throughout the album, it has a pleasing, soothing organic sound that would steal the heart of anybody listening to it.
So, all in all, “Flatliner Bounce”; Jonathan Shapiro really comes into his own on this one! With the catchy rhythms, the soothing melodies and the tasteful vocal performances across all three tracks, you’d be hard pressed to find anything to crib about on this one. Take a listen the album here!
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