Graymatter Helps Ty Farris Express Some “Sounds That Never Left My Soul” (Album Review)

This is the 10th full-length LP from Detroit veteran Ty Farris. Emerging up up under the name T-Flame being featuring on a lot of projects throughout the mid-2000’s until the very end of the decade, it was at that point where he started to put out solo stuff at a prolific rate by dropping 11 mixtapes, all 9 of his previous albums & 3 EPs. Standouts include the Room 39 duology & the No Cosign Just Cocaineseries, the 5th & final installment of which finally arrived earlier this year followed by the Machacha-produced Malice at the Palace a month later. However, Ty’s returning 7 months later by letting y’all hear some Sounds That Never Left My Soul with the help of Graymatter.

“The Vortex” is a 2-minute rap rock opener clocking in at almost 2 minutes staying humble with the help of God himself whereas an early standout “Everything They Not” continues forward on a more rugged note talking about how he’s everything that these motherfuckers wish they were. “Box of Bullets” goes for a psychedelic sound detailing that more problems arise when you earn more money just before another favorite “Lifetime of Misery” is a dreary boom bap follow-up feeling the menacing vibrations as their souls demise.

On the other hand, “Samples of My Soul” weaves a woodwind flip into the picture cautioning that he has a heart of gold although it then cold if you bringing danger his way while the eerie “Death Over Disagreements” talking about keeping his name out your mouth in funny ways since he’s from the 313. The solemn “Splashes of Tragedy” admits that part of his meditation process is polishing the heaters that he owns while the luxurious title track asks to close your eyes & envision. 

The song “Light the Corners of Ya Mind” hops on top of a soul sample to get into his specialty of giving haters to show their jealousy while the penultimate track “Kavanah” hauntingly talks about a soul with a hole in it. To round out the album though, we have T-Flame over a dark instrumental sending a clear message to all the “People Who Dead & Don’t Know It”.

Ty’s been known for his consistency, but he’s really been stepping up each year because dude just went on a threepeat here. Graymatter’s production is a slight step above Machacha’s on the last album Malice at the Palace that I found myself enjoying as much earlier this year & some of the concepts that T-Flame addresses resonated with me in relatability.

Score: 9/10