Murs – “A Strange Journey Into the Unimaginable” (Album Review)
On the day of his 40th birthday, former Living Legends member Murs is celebrating by delivering his 11th full-length album & he has enlisted Seven to produce it in it’s entirety. The album starts off with “The Unimaginable”, where Murs vents about his recent divorce & the death of his newborn son over a gloomy acoustic guitar with some militant drums added halfway through. The next song “Melancholy” touches down on the titular feeling over a somber acoustic guitar & some live drumming while the track “‘Midtown” reflects on coming up from South Los Angeles over a twangy guitar. The song “Same Way” with Tech N9ne sees both MCs telling their loved ones they know that their families don’t like them over a laidback beat while the song “Powerful” takes a jab at the current state of hip hop over a woodwind-infused boom bap beat.
The song “G Lollipops” with Fashawn & Prof is a humble brag about their talents over an fun instrumental fit for the clubs & then the track “Superhero Pool Party” sees Murs telling a bedtime story to his son where he was at the fictitious titular party. It is filled with creative references to iconic superheroes such as Superman, Wonder Woman & The Incredible Hulk just to name a few. Also, Kanye West & Jean Grae are both mentioned as well. The song “Whiskey & Patron” with XV is a fun liquor tune with a druggy beat while the track “A Lean Story” recalls a time where he tried lean before a show in 2000 over a gloomy beat.
The song “Lo-Fi Nights” touches down on internal conflict & finding inner peace over a beautiful instrumental while the track “So Close So Far” is a heartfelt message to his ex-wife Kate over some somber yet jazzy instrumental. The song “Celebrate” is a smooth ode to all of the good memories in Murs’ life while the penultimate track “Vows” tells us how he met who I presume to be his new wife & where they are now over a beautiful piano instrumental. To be honest with all of you, this song almost made me cry the first time I heard it. The album finishes with “God Is the Greatest”, where Murs is getting in the faces of his critics over an eerie boom bap beat.
As a whole, I think this was a beautiful way to celebrate the Murs’ birthday. He gets at his most personal lyrically & Seven’s production suits him near perfectly. I’ve always wanted the two to work on a whole album together ever since Murs signed to Strange Music in 2014 & the end result is his best album with the label as well as being tied with …The End of the Beginning as the magnum opus in his solo discography
Score: 9/10
