Collaboration is at the heart of any good creative project, and it’s no different for DXNXLLIO and Lucretius, two trap artists merging their talents for their latest collaborative album RAVEN.
Taking on a strong thematic undertone, the album is based off of Luke 12:22, a bible verse that echoes paradigms of fulfillment and positive thinking. The premise, as Lucretius and DXNXLLIO put it, is that if God can feed the ravens, he can surely meet our daily needs too.
Recorded in the Greenhills suburb of Johannesburg, a stark neighbourhood bordering the rich and the poor, the record condenses issues of class, longing and despair into poetic hip-hop. “LONGMAYWEREiGN” is perhaps most emblematic of the album as a whole, with a synthesised trap sound that drives home ephemeral vocal frequencies.
The local rap talents of SON.of.ODIN, Rickmystersa and Blackheartedboy also feature throughout, and while their contributions reinforce the qualities of partnership that are at the core of RAVEN, the record does tend to feel quite repetitive after a while.
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Nothing jumps out at as me as particularly new or interesting, nevertheless I commend DXNXLLIO and Lucretius for taking a stab at the human condition. It’s often tough to set yourself apart from the crowd, especially in as saturated a genre as hip-hop, and so it’s only natural that it might take this duo a bit more time to find their footing.
Feature pic supplied by artist
