Aakash Ravikrishnan, an EMMY Award-winning sound engineer, has released his full length, multilingual hip-hop album on September 1st, 2019. The album recorded, produced, mixed and mastered by Aakash in his bedroom is a collection of unique tracks which sonically sounds parallel to
Aakash, who is in the EMMY Awards Judicial Committee and has judged three EMMY Awards, after moving to Mumbai, brought together the up and coming talented hip-hop artists of Mumbai to record an authentic, Mumbai styled hip-hop album. The album is a medley of the iconic Mumbai hip-hop stars such as Sahir, Bombay Lokal, Dopeadelicz, D’Evil, Ace aka Mumbai, Dogz Music, MC Altaf, Jay Kila, Illah, Maharya, November, Gravity, Mumbai’s Finest, Poetik Justis, Dee MC, Sid J and Bonznribz. A hypnotic album packed with the most diverse yet cohesive songs, stylistically, it has a broad soundscape and is rich in all its complexity. Although not a concept album, each song has a different featured artist singing and rapping about what’s important to each one of them.
The songs, rather than talking about glitz and pomp, tell us about the groundbreaking realities and hustles of the bourgeoisie class. Each song is richly textured and warrants its place on the album by talking about a different issue. While some discuss the struggles, monotony and tastelessness of everyday life, others are slander on people who are influenced and too caught up in materialism and religion and some are just songs to chill to.
Lyrically, the songs are a work of extraordinary genius. The lyrics are earnest and very down to earth, the songs are sung and written with ardent passion. With every consequent listen, one finds a new meaning hidden in the songs. The artists have done a commendable job combining loquacious rapping with smooth flow and outstandingly experimental beats. The writing, on the other hand, seems very effortless and fresh with ebullience. The entire record is rife with all artistic values. The socially conscious and revolutionary lyrics only add up to the ultra-edgy factor of the record.
With melodies that seep deep into your brain, the album is as much of an introspective delight. It is deftly produced and entertaining right from the beginning to the end. That being said, this is the perfect album to be your soundtrack to accompany that angst and anguish.
It is not everyday that you come across a record that is lyrically and harmonically profound and when you do, you feel like you are floating on a cloud in slow motion leaving behind the world moving at its own pace, and that is exactly the kind of experience that Over Seas provides.
One can’t say enough about the genius of this album, words just fail to justify it. The record, although being stylistically and musically diverse, holds its songs together and no disparities are seen among the songs. Not one song feels out of place and it has to be said for that reason that the album is finely calibrated. The first single from this album Wazan Hai received viral success by clocking 700k+ streams in the first 4 months of its release and was also featured on BBC1 Radio/BBC Asian Network Primetime. Needless to say, the bar for future hip-hop releases has been inordinately raised.
The fact that AAKASH collaborated with the finest of Mumbai’s hip-hop scene is just as charming as it gets. These unique collaborations make it a treasure trove of fans of hip-hop not only nationwide but all over the world. It is one of the most intriguing releases of the year and has the potential to become an instant classic!
Hear the album below:
