BarAlarm :: Welcome to the World :: Branch Out Collective
as reviewed by Steve 'Flash' Juon
In music as well as in life, one thing leads to another,
and Drapetomania led
to BarAlarm. It's yet another project from the incredibly
diverse and talented Branch Out Collective, who never fail to
impress me with their abilities nor their willingness to
break from the lock step of the national hip-hop mindset.
I think that may be in part because of their roots in
Ann Arbor, Michigan - a place I can tell you from personal
experience is the closest thing to a hippie enclave
outside of Southern California. What I can't tell you is
why they vow that "BarAlarm('s) Back Now," because before
I was sent this album I didn't even know they were gone.
So far as I can tell, this branch of the tree consists of
Ashod the God, Clavius Crates and Professor Megablown. This
is a pretty quick album by Branch Out standards, clocking in
at less than 30 minutes, but they take full advantage of that
time. Clavius produces the majority of the 10 tracks and his
talents are put to their full use. The reverberating boom
bap of "Ruff Blades" featuring The Blaine Nash is a swinging
toe-tapper that's very hard to resist. "Olympic Habits" has
a snappy bass that sets off the bars lovely. The whistling
melody opening "Welcome to the World" f/ Drapetomania is
addictive - you hear it once and it's stuck in your head.
Even when Clavius is not behind the boards, the rest of the
crew step up and put in work, such as Megablown's jazzy
Hiero-esque backdrop for "Land Lords." The song also features
one of my favorite punchlines of the entire release: "I know
I got game like the Unreal engine/don't mention it, when I
render it."
This one is being released digitally with the "Name Your Own
Price" option, but as I often like to do with such albums, I'm
going to suggest a price for you. Since this is a relatively
short album, and there are many other worthwhile albums in the
collective to pay for, I think $7.99 is the ball park figure.
Higher would be diminishing returns for a half hour of music,
and lower would be an insult. This one's worth the investment.
Music Vibes: 8.5 of 10
Lyric Vibes: 7.5 of 10TOTAL Vibes: 8 of 10
![[Welcome to the World]](../coverart/baralarm-Welcome.jpg)
In music as well as in life, one thing leads to another,
and Drapetomania led
to BarAlarm. It's yet another project from the incredibly
diverse and talented Branch Out Collective, who never fail to
impress me with their abilities nor their willingness to
break from the lock step of the national hip-hop mindset.
I think that may be in part because of their roots in
Ann Arbor, Michigan - a place I can tell you from personal
experience is the closest thing to a hippie enclave
outside of Southern California. What I can't tell you is
why they vow that "BarAlarm('s) Back Now," because before
I was sent this album I didn't even know they were gone.