so much for closure by iamjakehill review

iamjakehill is somebody that I have been a big fan of for years. Ever since the first time I listened to him, I fell in love with his style and his production. Such a variety of music that all sounds incredible. Whether he gets more into a dark metal sound like his songs Kratos or Die a King, his more somber and introspective songs like Rip X or Stay, or his more pop sounding songs like by your side or Use Me, Haunt Me. Now, I will be reviewing a album of his that I have not listened to all the way through. I usually put his music on shuffle and just enjoy, but now I am going to see how well he is able to craft a single album and tell a story.

Track 1: little pretender

Firstly, this song sounds very much in the vein of pop hit. The guitar strums, the danceable bass that is quite high in the register, his fast and light vocals full of air, and then the high energy and speed drum beat that feels like it was made to move your body to. This song feels very happy and energetic, with the tone so light hearted and full of fun and joy. A great song to get you into a fun and happy mood. A great vibe full of awesome elements that come together perfectly well. I am especially a huge fan of the retro sounding synth bass and the drum beat. Could honestly listen to them alone for hours.

Track 2: waste my time

The only song I can fully remember listening to. The crazy distorted guitars in the beginning sound so cool and sounds a lot like a hyperpop melody. A awesome sound to get it started. The drums are quite interesting, especially the snare with its strange tone that they used. His vocals are great and another free flowing, happy sound over the very nice and bubbly beat. A great showcase of his happiness and ability to tell his emotions and stories so incredibly well and smooth through some amazing lyrical play and some awesome vocal production. Really one of the best I know of in terms of production.

Track 3: meany

A much more hip hop sounding start with a bass melody that sounds similar to little pretender. The drums are much more basic and cliche sounding, along with a vocal sample from internet meme culture and a chiptune sounding melody with synths and bloops. The vocals are not as great on this one, and the entire vibe of the song is quite a interesting one. The synth melody is quite far back in the mix while the bass is right at the forefront. The melody honestly gets lost sometimes. And I mentioned the drums and not being a huge fan of them. They sound rather basic and not produced as well as other tracks on this album. A strange decline, and I especially am not big on the chorus. Sure it fits the title and theme of the song, but it just sounds strange.

Track 4: running to you

A great start with a lovely guitar melody that has been hooked in my ear since I heard this song. The drums come in reminding me of Kid Laroi type production, and a great energy to keep the pace up. Another pop sounding song with more free flowing happiness in a lovely soundscape of sounds. The change ups in the beat, no matter how small or how quickly, keep the song evolving and sounding great. The drums give me a subtle synthwave/pop vibe that is something that I am a huge fan of. An awesome song that sounds seriously incredible. Great work, if a bit on the long side for me. It runs out of steam by the end and could've used a super different beat switch or bridge to make it keep going in a great way. Honestly, by about half way I looked how much time was left and was shocked and a little worried. He doesn't completely drop the ball, but it could've done with being a minute shorter.

Track 5: bitter pill

Another great neo-soul like guitar opening that I very much enjoy. More great production with so much cool filtering and fx on the guitar tones. The drums started off filtered but then slowly come in bit by bit, creating an awesome sound of ever evolving and changing tones. The vocals are heavily produced, which sounds good but quite pitchy in certain spots. Almost too artificial or clean in points with strange things that stick out to me in a weird way.

The music is infectious and lovely, but the vocals are perhaps the weak point of the song. I don't have too many large problems with it, just some personal stuff.

Track 6: eyelids We get some incredible sounding acoustic guitar and a much more personal, closer look. Much more intimate and vulnerable in a great way. An amazing vocal performance that has very laid back music. The addition of the autotune choir (is what I'm assuming it is when he harmonizes in the chorus) is not my favorite, as having him keep the personal vulnerability in that moment would hit so much harder, but it isn't egregious. It really is a lovely song that has some beautiful, poetic lyrics that I went on to fully read because they are so heart wrenching and honest. A great sounding piece of music. So lovely. Also this song being the longest of the album is perfect. Don't know how planned it was, but this really is the star of the show and one of my favorite songs I have ever heard from iamjakehill.

Track 7: december 23rd

We go into a very different direction, starting off with some static and a strange audio recording like sample. It honestly took me a while to realize that this was a skit and not a long sample into a song. I am not personally big on skits in albums, but they typically only last a few seconds so I don't have too many complaints. THIS however, is 3 minutes and 22 seconds of...nothing. This album is far too small to have a skit in the first place, but having one this long just annoyed me. Sorry for being harsh over a minor, petty thing but...yeah I did not like it.

Track 8: let you go

This song is one that sounds very much like iamjakehill's older music. The stuff I first listened to by him, and he continues to show his mastery over the emo hip hop type of music with his awesome drums, infectous bass sounds, and a lovely melody that sadly gets lost in the mix. A awesome sounding rush of emotion and awesome vocal production with beautiful, bittersweet lyrics. Very rarely stopping or letting himself breathe is cool for the vibe, but it does hide the music a bit. The outro of the song is honestly my favorite, with an amazing sounding piano or synth melody that fades away.

Overall, this album was good. There were only 2 tracks that I had serious issues with, and about 3 that I absolutely loved. The problem for me is that wen you have an album with only 8 tracks, I feel like it is even more important to have them all be as good as possible. Having a giant skit towards the end is something that I can not agree with, but it really does weigh the whole album down for me. But still, iamjakehill is incredible and seriously one of the best rappers that exists. He is awesome. And this album shows that, even if it isn't the most varied or unique project he has ever made. I guess that's more due to my love for his harder, darker music.

Overall Rating: 8/10 (almost all of the down is from december 23rd and a mixed bag of production on some tracks)