demo previews (stay tuned)

* hip-hop album review Gino - "The Prelude"
Genre: Independent Hip-Hop
Review Date: February 28, 2006
Website: Gino Website
Label: Infamous Players
Purchase "The Prelude"
Rating: Album Rating: 3 of 5
Comment on this review "the prelude" by gino
Album Review - "The Prelude":
There is one major thing that immediately impressed me about Gino Lispi and his debut album "The Prelude." And that is potential. Now this album is obviously the 20-year-old's first release. It is in no way perfect. But throughout the entire album, it became clear that this kid has skills, drive and the potential to be a dope and successful emcee.
This album is basically about two things: girls and parties. Half of the tracks are about Gino's experiences with women, and the other half are party tracks that are pretty basic displays of verbal skill. But I can appreciate that because this kid isn't trying to be something he's not. Being just 20 years old, Gino's life is probably all about partying and girls. And I'm tired of hearing cats talk about things they don't know.
Still, what makes these tracks special is Gino's ability to put his own twist on events all of us have experienced. He has a certain knack for expression, and possesses the ability to demonstrate a wide range of expressions verbally through his music.
The beats are simple but nice, and contain a lot of horns, strings or other single instruments as the cores of production. And Gino does a great job flowing over the beats, showcasing his verbal ability, which is quite nice as well. Some cats can just naturally flow over a beat, and Gino is one of them. It's really a laid back and enjoyable listen.
A prelude is something that comes before a main event of some sort. In music, a prelude is a short piece of music that is often without structure or major purpose intended to serve as an introduction to succeeding movements. In this sense, I feel that Gino picked the perfect title for his debut album. While "The Prelude" might lack a concrete purpose or direction, it shows the potential of a young emcee who's still working to figure out where he fits in the culture of hip-hop. I look forward to seeing where Gino goes in the future.
- Hip-Hop Linguistics------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------