EZE (ease), the twenty-two year rhymer from Baltimore, Maryland began rapping at the tender age of thirteen. Now, with two mixtapes under his belt, he releases his debut full-length project by the name of Abnormal Normality.
EZE takes "full length project" to new meanings with this nineteen track album. Though, many of the tracks are either bonuses, or skits inserted to the album. The skits do dilute the listening experience to a degree, but not to any extent that would justify labeling Abnormal Normality as a bad release. In fact, Abnormal Normality is surprisingly solid, and EZE is genuinely a very good rapper.
Without any debate, EZE is a lyricist. He has some great thought-provoking rhymes all throughout the project his flow is also nothing to sneeze at. One of the qualities that EZE possesses is his innate ability to tell stories, and to write a thematic song. For instance, on the track "Cliche'" which features Pyron, EZE raps about all the things that are cliche' in hip-hop. If you're reading this and thinking, "don't most underground guys do that anyway" well you'd be right, but not too many underground guys actually make a "cliche'" rap song fort listeners to hear just how simple it really sounds. It's really quite genius by EZE, and that is definitely a standout track on the album.
Another track that painted a vivid picture using imagery as a literary device, is the song "Am I Dreamin" which is a love story, and it has quite an interesting twist ending that may really catch some listeners by surprise. EZE can rap, simple as that. He can write some strong lyrics and turn some heads with his lyrical talents too.
Often times when people discover a new album from an artist they haven't previously heard of, they will see a lot of features from other artists they aren't familiar with. Well, Abnormal Normality falls into that classification. That doesn't, however, take away from the finished product at all, because most every feature seemed to add something to the album rather than take away. Though, that may turn listeners away at first glance.
The production isn't anything to rave about unlike EZE's rhyming ability. The beats aren't poor, nor are they are they anything that will blow listeners away. They add to the message being presented, and in a lyrics first album, that's about all you can ask for. The overall sound can be described as a more modern style of hip-hop. Not really boom-bap, but the heavy drum kicks are evident throughout the album.
In all, Abnormal Normality had a few too many skits on it, and that hurt the listening experience. However, EZE will really surprise people with his ability to rap and make good, lyrical songs. The beats aren't anything too crazy, but they serve their purpose. This is a fairly decent summer album, and hopefully people will take notice of it. Check out the album below, and comment your thoughts!
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