GOD HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS LEAVE HIM OUT OF IT review - Bewitching horrorcore
(Reviewed by Melody Werner)
God Has Nothing...'s production is so thick, bassy, and chilling, it grants the album this potent sense of atmosphere. This album feels like you're being sacrificed by Satanic cultists, which is something I had always wondered about. The journey throughout has a nice flow to it, even if the ending of the title track/opener doesn't really transition too well into "Black Magic." Speaking of the title track--the Ozzy Osborne sample is handled really nicely. The closer, "Redemption" with Will Owen Bennett, has a more R&B vibe to it, which I wouldn't have expected to have gone so well, considering how the preceding tracks hew much more aggressive. That doesn't mean that "Redemption" is a soft, airy track--but more on it later. What cannot be understated is just how imposing the instrumentals are with this thing, like goddamn. There are metal albums with less bass. So badass.
Backxwash's vocals are incredibly caustic and impassioned, I love the hell outta 'em. She has a great voice that suits this kinda degeneracy perfectly. Want something squeaky clean and radio-friendly? Lol, fuck that when it comes to this album. It's so incredibly raw and sincere. But what of her rapping? Her flows are varied and cut through the industrial beats like a jagged blade. If you're someone who prioritizes "fast-raps," give her some credit, will ya? Cuz she can spit real quick. I mean, that's like the vainest reason to appreciate such a talented musician, but whatever. If she gets more respect, that'd be nice to see. If I had any gripes in this respect, it'd be the chorus of "Amen." The verses and instrumental kick ass, but the chorus is so abrasive and repetitive that it's grating enough that I foresee myself skipping it frequently when I'm listening to this album for pleasure (which I will be doing).
But quality rap music is not all about technique. How are the bars, how are the lyrics? In a word: fantastic. It's all very consistent with the theme of God Has Nothing..., grappling with harrowing themes of guilt, being disowned by family after transition, and depression. There are also some conscious lyrics scattered throughout, including one in "Amen" that's a nice middle finger to fash trash. Tonally, the album is relentlessly bleak, and it can get genuinely creepy listening to this. Less in an "Abooga!" way, and more of an encroaching dread that comes in listening along with such a personal album. To hear such dour themes, hurt emotions of someone who I found so quickly endearing is always chilling in a way that no jump scare ever could be.
Let's talk highlights. "Spells" is an intoxicating blast to turn up. The feature by Devi McCallion of Black Dresses (sucks that they broke up, even though I have yet to listen to their work; the reasoning is understandable, but even more disheartening) is mesmerizing and surprisingly catchy, cathartic. One could honestly say that it's... spell-binding. Backxwash and Devi's magnetic chemistry seems weird when I think about it, but on first listen it just felt so natural that I didn't even notice how dissonant the two "should" be back-to-back. This song was a single for a good reason; it's an honest to god banger. "Black Magic" kicks ass, "Black Sheep" is candid and crushing, the title track is an excellent tone-setter, "Into the Void" and "Adolescence" are also awesome--but heartbreakingly sincere too. "Redemption" has some beautiful lyrics, so many great "fuck you's." There is something holding the album back as a whole, which is that--as cool as these songs are, some feel like they could've been built out more. The album is short and sweet at a little over 20 minutes, but I'd have liked to see some meat on tracks like the title one and "Redemption." I must reiterate so that I'm very clear, "Spells" is perfect. Don't be surprised when it's very high up on my end of the year list.
God Has Nothing to Do With This Leave Him Out of It is a tight album. As skeletal as it may feel, I think it'll serve as a fine stepping stone for Backxwash, who I'm really quite taken with as an artist. I'll be digging through her past projects and see about dropping reviews of those at some point. Do yourself a favor and give this one a bash, I highly recommend. God Has Nothing to Do With This Leave Him Out of It gets a 9/10 from this boy.
Awesome
Summary:
Astounding, haunting, based horrorcore with A L L O F T H E B A S S.
God Has Nothing to Do With This Leave Him Out of It is a 2020 horrorcore album by Backxwash (pronounced as Backwash). Released by Grimalkin Records, it is Backxwash's fourth record, after her albums F.R.E.A.K.S., Black Sailor Moon, and DEVIANCY. For those unfamiliar with horrorcore, it is basically horror-themed rap which tends to have a dark theme lyrically and/or instrumentally. And dark sure is a way of describing God Has Nothing... in short. I must confess once again, that I heard about this through theneedledrop's review of the album, which sold me on giving it a bash. As always when I pick up recommendations from Melon, this review is not me regurgitating his opinions at you. Promise. Okay, so are there any chuds reading? Let's remedy that just in case: trans rights, motherfuckers.
God Has Nothing...'s production is so thick, bassy, and chilling, it grants the album this potent sense of atmosphere. This album feels like you're being sacrificed by Satanic cultists, which is something I had always wondered about. The journey throughout has a nice flow to it, even if the ending of the title track/opener doesn't really transition too well into "Black Magic." Speaking of the title track--the Ozzy Osborne sample is handled really nicely. The closer, "Redemption" with Will Owen Bennett, has a more R&B vibe to it, which I wouldn't have expected to have gone so well, considering how the preceding tracks hew much more aggressive. That doesn't mean that "Redemption" is a soft, airy track--but more on it later. What cannot be understated is just how imposing the instrumentals are with this thing, like goddamn. There are metal albums with less bass. So badass.
Backxwash's vocals are incredibly caustic and impassioned, I love the hell outta 'em. She has a great voice that suits this kinda degeneracy perfectly. Want something squeaky clean and radio-friendly? Lol, fuck that when it comes to this album. It's so incredibly raw and sincere. But what of her rapping? Her flows are varied and cut through the industrial beats like a jagged blade. If you're someone who prioritizes "fast-raps," give her some credit, will ya? Cuz she can spit real quick. I mean, that's like the vainest reason to appreciate such a talented musician, but whatever. If she gets more respect, that'd be nice to see. If I had any gripes in this respect, it'd be the chorus of "Amen." The verses and instrumental kick ass, but the chorus is so abrasive and repetitive that it's grating enough that I foresee myself skipping it frequently when I'm listening to this album for pleasure (which I will be doing).
But quality rap music is not all about technique. How are the bars, how are the lyrics? In a word: fantastic. It's all very consistent with the theme of God Has Nothing..., grappling with harrowing themes of guilt, being disowned by family after transition, and depression. There are also some conscious lyrics scattered throughout, including one in "Amen" that's a nice middle finger to fash trash. Tonally, the album is relentlessly bleak, and it can get genuinely creepy listening to this. Less in an "Abooga!" way, and more of an encroaching dread that comes in listening along with such a personal album. To hear such dour themes, hurt emotions of someone who I found so quickly endearing is always chilling in a way that no jump scare ever could be.
Let's talk highlights. "Spells" is an intoxicating blast to turn up. The feature by Devi McCallion of Black Dresses (sucks that they broke up, even though I have yet to listen to their work; the reasoning is understandable, but even more disheartening) is mesmerizing and surprisingly catchy, cathartic. One could honestly say that it's... spell-binding. Backxwash and Devi's magnetic chemistry seems weird when I think about it, but on first listen it just felt so natural that I didn't even notice how dissonant the two "should" be back-to-back. This song was a single for a good reason; it's an honest to god banger. "Black Magic" kicks ass, "Black Sheep" is candid and crushing, the title track is an excellent tone-setter, "Into the Void" and "Adolescence" are also awesome--but heartbreakingly sincere too. "Redemption" has some beautiful lyrics, so many great "fuck you's." There is something holding the album back as a whole, which is that--as cool as these songs are, some feel like they could've been built out more. The album is short and sweet at a little over 20 minutes, but I'd have liked to see some meat on tracks like the title one and "Redemption." I must reiterate so that I'm very clear, "Spells" is perfect. Don't be surprised when it's very high up on my end of the year list.
God Has Nothing to Do With This Leave Him Out of It is a tight album. As skeletal as it may feel, I think it'll serve as a fine stepping stone for Backxwash, who I'm really quite taken with as an artist. I'll be digging through her past projects and see about dropping reviews of those at some point. Do yourself a favor and give this one a bash, I highly recommend. God Has Nothing to Do With This Leave Him Out of It gets a 9/10 from this boy.
Awesome
Summary:
Astounding, haunting, based horrorcore with A L L O F T H E B A S S.
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