Inside Out

By Kyle Kiekintveld

GENRE: HIP-HOP/RAP
LABEL: ONE ROUTE ENTERTAINMENT
RELEASE DATE: JUNE 29, 2010
RATING: 4 OUT OF 5

D-Maub’s newest album Inside Out is the perfect example of a nearly perfect album. Lyrically D-Maub has the skills to drop a classic album, his style doesn’t rely on gimmicks like Auto-Tune or accents but honest emotion and passion for the game. He comes off as a very blue collar artist who is always hungry, always writing and always ready to spit, which makes the artist and the album an easy thing to love.

The most apparently flaw of the album is while the beats are not low quality many feel a bit incomplete. Modern rap music lean towards heavily complex beats that transition from pattern to pattern or have additional effects but these beats are left feeling flat. This is a minor flaw but it does put D-Maub’s style into clearer focus, and it does prevent the album from being perfect or classic.

“I Want Money” has one of the funkier beats on the album and one of the more enjoyable songs. The song is about the desire for money but also the desire to manage and master money. To be able to live life charitably and always be able to help others through having money. The song also speaks volumes on the destructive darker nature of money and the desire to have money. It is a breathe of fresh air when much of the rap game focuses on material resources, not financial responsibility.

“Inside Out” is another great song on the album. The song focuses on the desire to live life inside out, being a representative of truth and disregarding the counterfeit. It is also about recognizing that even when life is good God can provide challenges. Like many songs on this album the beat is good on the surface but it feels like it could use some more time in the production booth but this is a minor flaw for this particular song.

“People Crazy” is the epitome of the D-Maub’s style on this album. It has a very blue collar, every man feeling as he raps about all the trouble in the world. It centers around the very real fact that it is hard to sometimes not question when the world can be so dark and people can act so crazy. The song ends with the idea that one most see themselves as an example to others and have comfort in the fact God will reveal himself.

Overall this is an album that falls short of being classic but D-Maub has a ton of heart and his sincerity comes through in this album. He is reminiscent to the working class style of a Royce 5’9 without the gangster mannerism. With a few quick samples from this album he is sure to win numerous new fans and some listeners will no doubt see this as an instant classic.

Review title provided courtesy of One Route Entertainment