It’s been a little hectic at Wordplay HQ of late so on this one, rarefied occasion; I need you to cast your minds back to the end of August for me. Imagine it’s time for that Monday, fresh music fix and then……ahh, fuck the long talk, K-LASH IS BACK! First and foremost, this has most definitely not been slept on; I’ve been bumping this like crazy since it dropped. Originally billed as the latest instalment of British artists teaming up with G-Unit affiliated DJ Whoo Kid, we’re thankfully spared the Westwood-worthy sound effects and shout outs and instead blessed with 18 tracks of the raw, potent delivery that has become synonymous with one of the scene’s stalwarts.
From open to close, K-lash’s innate ability to switch from spewing venomous verbal barrages one minute to then offering a more reserved, thought-provoking outlay keeps FTLT (or Fuck The Long Talk if you prefer) an engrossing listen throughout. After drawing for the legendary Sir Trevor McWaffle on the introduction, Beat Butcha’s monstrous “Dat Time” makes an absolute mess of your speakers, along with your neck muscles, as the emphatic drums & bass line serve as the perfect backdrop for K’s relentless flows. Following in a similar fashion, tracks like “Do It Like”, “FTLT”, “Battle”, the Whoo Kid produced “Stick & Move” and “Clear My Throat”, his twist on The 45 King’s classic “The 45 Number”, all thrive on Lash’s energetic verbals.
K’s always been a ridiculously respected narrator, and tracks like “Brand New Day”, “Got To Be Right”, “Life In The Bits” and “Heed My Words” maintain that high level of story-telling and weaving vivid imagery. My personal favourite, “In At Deep End” finds K-lash as his most open and honest; talking about his love for his craft…
“This is straight from the heart/ I know a lot of rappers say that in their bars when they start/ but I’ve got passion like Picasso, I’m about my art…”
Since the arrival of “The Sagas…”, Klashnekoff has been noted as nothing short of a lyrical genius. Perhaps it’s the glaring time-gaps between his albums/ mixtapes but a new body of work from one of the scene’s pioneers is always highly anticipated. Whilst I really want to avoid labelling this as a comeback, K-lash’s latest venture with beats and bars carries the same essence as his classic debut whilst obviously being a much more mature and diverse addition to his discography. The production selections are on point and the wordplay is second to none; K-lash has further cemented his foothold as one of Hip Hop’s finest wordsmiths. If you consider yourself to have any sort of love for the scene, this should already be fully inducted into your collection. If you’ve been slipping or just extremely foolish, don’t do anything else until you’ve got your grubby little mitts on it…
Download “FTLT” from iTunes HERE.
Review by Mike Pattemore @beats_n_pieces
