Verbz & Mr. Slipz – “Radio Waves” (Album Review)
This is the sophomore effort & High Focus Records debut from Croydon, South London, England, United Kingdom emcee Verbz. Introducing himself in 2017 off the full-length debut Lessons of Adolescence produced by Brighton beatsmith Mr. Slipz, he would later put out the debut mixtape Pathways a little over 52 weeks ago & that interested the Hove, East Sussex imprint enough to bring them on board in an attempt of shocking the Radio Waves despite the COVID-19 pandemic going 7 months strong.
“2202 FM” begins with a boom bap instrumental nostalgically reminiscent of 90s east coast hip hop talking about always walking right way maintaining an irate mindset & after the “Radio” skit, “Changed” blends cloud rap & boom bap realizing the time’s now for him to right all of his wrongs. “Falling” featuring Melanin 9 finds the 2 talking about being a product of more than simply smoking weed staying on the come up while the jazzy “Summer in the Bits” spending late nights & early mornings in the place he loves.
Preceding another “Radio” skit, “Scenes” cherishes each remnant of growth later confessing he isn’t sure where this road will take him leading into “Decline of Self” featuring Confucius MC & Coops finds the trio jumping over a piano-driven beat keeping it real to themselves & picking up the cards they’ve been dealt for years. “Piece of Shit” keeps the old school boom bap vibes going talking about never having a plan & simply making it work while “Hold Ur Own” makes it a mission to do his crew out in the Cronx proud.
“Know tha Status” featuring Axel Holy, Datkid & Upfront brings the keys back in the fold combining it with some kicks & snares talking about being selfish by default while “The Rain” succeeding a 3rd “Radio” skit refers back to the phrase “when it rains, it’s pours” after another life was lost in vein. “Weekend Blues” jazzily suggests everyone keeps their heads High to Focus on more demonstrating some clever wordplay just before “Men Can Breathe” featuring Benaddict dustily advises artists to find their balance & stay grinding until they get the chance of making money off their music.
Preceding the penultimate “Radio” skit, “Limitless” instrumentally reminds me of Nas’ iconic debut illmatic talking about there being nothing left other than the stains of what once was while “My Wonders” featuring Fliptrix comes together to burn skunk & pour liquor for their loved ones left. “The Feeling” explains burdens of the mind planting the roots of a new person while “Hope” featuring Nelson Dialect talking about only a few appreciating this. “In My Mind” excluding the “Radio” outro finishes by describing the only place he can find his peace.
I still prefer Lessons of Adolescence by a slight margin, but Verbz & Mr. Slipz still make an exciting High Focus Records debut out of Radio Waves & it gives me the impression they’ll put out some of the best material through the label as the decade goes on. Other than the skits kinda draggin’ it on a bit longer than it should’ve been, the unrivaled chemistry of Slipz’ cloudier yet denser boom bap production paired with Verbz’ introspective lyricism exposes what everything that makes them one of the UK hip hop movement’s most exciting acts in recent memory & the beginning of something greater for each of them.
Score: 8/10
