abnormal norman – “Overture” EP (Review)

In a genre plagued by over the top trap beats, excessive auto tune, and bad writing, abnormal norman is here to bring you back to the good old days with the UK-based producer’s EP, “Overture”

norman employed the use of some samples of classic hip hop songs for this six track EP, meant to resonate with the old heads; “Raedawn” and “Meat Grinder” by MF Doom and his alter egos, “Just Don’t Give a F***” by Eminem, “Made You Look” by Nas, “N****s Bleed” by Notorious B.I.G., Raekwon’s hook and verse on “Three Bricks” by Ghostface Killah, and both Redman and Method Man from their track “Tear It Off.”

All six songs have this mellow and melodic sound. Five out of six have some sort of piano or keyboard loop, and while it’s very appealing, I can’t imagine anyone putting the EP on repeat and truly enjoying it for long stretches of time. The production is really good, it just sounds kind of similar track to track. There’s no variety. On top of that, there are samples that don’t really match the mood of the instrumental, namely Eminem’s, and possibly Biggie’s. That’s not to say it can’t work or be good, I just don’t think it’s the perfect fit.

abnormal norman has a dope vibe. He can clearly put together instrumentals, but I think the lack of sonic diversity is holding this EP back a bit. The sampling is good, the beats are good, but give us more and flex your creativity.

Rating: 6/10

Highlights: Production

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