It might seem biased that I open my blog with a review of a rapper from my hometown Warrington, but there's a few good reasons. One, Evila's a very talented rapper, two, there are rumours of a signing happening three, and I've listened to this mixtape enough to confidently recommend it.
You might recognise Evila from Don't Flop and various other battle rap leagues as he's gone head to head with the likes of Pamflit, Calcium Kid and Baron Myndz in which he's known for spitting clever and witty verses that are always specific about their opponent, as opposed to pages of indirect mum jokes as some other battlers get by using. However, while he may be known on youtube and at events for battle rhymes, his recorded material often goes in a much more conscious direction. Earlier mixtapes like Alive in the Mirror show a younger Evila pouring out his heart in emotional songs about previous life experiences and lessons learned. However, conscious hip hop is a risky game, while a great MC can write bars their audience can relate to and reach them on a level most other music cannot, too many times they can just come off as rappers that have nothing better to write about whining about everyday life over mopey piano beats. So, can Evila overcome these common pitfalls and make music that can reach the listeners in a very real, moving way?
Yes, I'd say so. First thing that should be mentioned is that on 'I Ain't Crazy as I'm Aware' Evila doesn't necessarily stick to his usual conscious theme. He does for the most part, but on tracks like Play the Game and White Coats he deals with stress and insanity in a more witty, more compact manner, which seems to be a minor underlying theme in the mixtape as evidenced by the (admittedly rather cheaply put together) cover art, as well as a few recurring interludes about perspective and the way the universe works. The beats are more quirky during these tracks, which brings me to another point about this mixtape - the production. The whole of 'I Ain't Crazy...' is self-produced, and very impressive for an underground solo artist that is also taking care of all lyrics. No guest rappers here, although there are a few guest singers, including singer/songwriter Mr. Critic who collaborated on vocals and guitar for Wonder Woman and Take the Blame, two of the better tracks here. These are way more in line with what we've come to expect from Evila, deep and introspective tracks about atypical subjects like teen pregnancy - Evila isn't the type of MC to pretend to be from the roads or anything like that, he simply spits about what he knows and does it with a passion.
Highlight for most people, including myself, is opening track Life Isn't All Roses, where Evila covers the whole fucking map - birth, life, death, the mind, the universe, the other side and the meaning of life. I guess the main standout point I can make about 'I Ain't Crazy...' the sheer naked emotion on display, Evila is very open about his emotions and isn't afraid of showing who he really is ("to be honest I ain't so brave and iconic, I'm a kid afraid of chronic cause I think I'll die from it, hydrocondriac, see every illness I think I've got it") as it's not about appearing cool or looking like a don but about releasing penned-up feelings and turning them into art. And when Evila's on, he's dead on, and that connection between artist and audience is established, demonstrating that Evila really has the ability to create conscious rap that rises above most of his peers. Couple this with very skillful rapping (as you may have heard in his Don't Flop battles, continuous use of multis, clever wordplay, wide vocabulary etc.) and a nicely put together package (the interludes really do contribute to the flow of this nicely) and the fact that it's quite a short, to the point mixtape that doesn't overstay it's welcome this is well worth the listen.
I'm not saying it's perfect, the instrumental for Memories for instance is a little TOO cheesy for my tastes and steps more into the sappy, mushier side of conscious rap which I don't care so much for, but that's only a small misstep on an otherwise strong mixtape. This was released for free download, so there's no reasons not to check this out, and once you have, you'll surely be wanting to keep an eye on this Warrington MC's future endeavours, aswell as the work of his crew Tri Cypha, if this is a sign of things to come then the future's looking sweet.
Download 'I Ain't Crazy, As I'm Aware' Here
