London based spoken word artist AMD Speaks wants to defy hate and encourage his listeners to speak love on his new album ‘BLACK HOLES II‘.
Spoken word but be an acquired taste; a genre of music that you’ve yet to explore or that you think you’ll dislike because you didn’t enjoy studying poetry at school. If you’re picturing someone dully reciting a poem into the mic with zero atmosphere or rhythm then let AMD Speaks destroy this misconception within these nine smooth as silk tracks.
AMD puts his spoken word poetry over some of the slickest, most chilled R&B and hip-hop beats and delivers them with finesse. His poetic story telling paints such vivid pictures that are made that much more vibrant with the soundscape complimenting them. Like I said earlier, these tracks are more than just poems put to music – they’re fully formed songs in their own right.
Take “Summer Shade” for example, our favourite track from the album. The upbeat chanting sample paired with AMD’s descriptive lyrics instantly takes you to an African savannah, sat under a tree with a drink watching an entire village party in the distance. Then there’s the hook – yes, we’ve still got hooks in spoken word tracks! The etheral repeating of the track name “summer shade” surrounds you as you relax into the warm lo-fi beat.
AMD Speaks is pushing the boundaries of what spoken word artistry is all about. ‘Black Holes II’ is a warm, blissful and thoughtful listen. I recommend anyone that hasn’t given spoken word a try in the past to give this incredible album a spin!
RIDE MUSIC 