When intentionality meets with time and dedication, the result is excellence.
Artistic brilliance does not just end with the music alone. It must resonate to everything employed to present the music to the audience. To create a great body of work – an EP or a full length album – requires great curative skill and intentionality not only in the music, but it extends to the visuals, aesthetics and everything attached to its release. When Rema released “Ravage EP“, you just know the creative direction is different from what we have ever gotten from him. From the art cover of the project and the video teasers, the element of chaos was so visible just as the name implies. When we got to unbox the music, the tracks were just as chaotic in their rendition as expected. This is exactly what it means for everything attached to the project being held down by a central creative direction it all flows down to.
On “Heartbreak On A Full Moon“, the intention is quite clear from the title, and even the art is apt to dictate what listener’s should expect from the project with Turph Kako’s gloomy figure glaring over the wide arid land on the tape’s cover. From there, it was an obvious call to a soul stirring collection of songs. On the project, Turph Kako does exactly as expected as he retains the sensitive elements which has made him a beautiful soul singer with an amazing yearn to pierce the listener’s soul with his transcendental themes and soul barring deliveries.
“It is all about heartbreak, toxic relationships, self gain, insecurities, feeling of emptiness, all in the context of a romantic relationship.”
Turph Kako on his debut project.
On the opener, “Hypnotize“, it sounds exactly like the 90’s RnB due to the delivery and vocal texture used by Turph Kako. The production is stripped back and chilled with the vocals given priority. Sambee, who also doubles as the producer of the track, his contributions added a much needed dynamism to the overall track with his baritone voice.
While “Hypnotize” centers on a request for love, its follow up “Mr Romantic” seeks to keep a relationship together. The production is soft and chill as usual and Turph Kako’s approach is smooth with his lover boy persona taking center stage as he gleefully reels out his emotions. This sounds like some vintage RnB cut sending soothing vibes through the listener’s body.
“Come Down To My Place” sounds refreshingly different with its trap synth production. While RnB in recent times has caught up in a thin line with Hip-Hop elements, this is one of the beautiful instances we have seen it blend so well with each other. On this track, Turph Kako’s vocals is more smooth than on previous tracks. The piano keys gives the production a melodic edge, the bounce is elite and the artist’s flow is impeccable.
The guitars that opens “Holiday” are captivating. It’s an instant one that sticks with you, even when it was stripped down to accommodate the artist’s vocals, it still doesn’t lose it alluring essence. It contains the right amount elements needed to make a soundtrack for the holidays with a partner as it transcends listeners to a chilly realm with its balmy nature.
Turph Kako: The making of a superstar (Interivew).
“English Girl” sums up the fact that as the tape progresses, there is much more intentionality in the artist’s songwriting. In the words of the artist, “English girl is about professing your love and affection, insisting that despite of the shortcomings and wrong doings, that the love you have for them is genuine and real“. On the five minutes long track, Turph Kako wrote with much an aura of genuineness in his words that if there was an actual live rendition, it will spin around the emotions of who it’s been rendered to.
In recent times, RnB tapes which has been regarded as “finely executed and delivered” have satisfied the two main conditions of not just having great deliveries by the artist but also appropriate production choices to back up the musings of the artist. RnB mostly relies on the production to set the mood for the song with the artist trying as much to align perfectly to the created mood with their songwriting and deliveries. RnB tapes can be so great and easily underwhelming too once there is a little mismatch in the way they are created. The balance between the mood and delivery is important and must be gotten right.
On “Heartbreak On A Full Moon“, Turph Kako is over-achiever. Having set out to make a project with heartbreak as it central themes, there was a need for much intentionality in his pen game, and he achieved that much ingenuity and sometimes avant-garde measures. Each song resonates its apportioned theme and explores various topical aspects in a relationship.
When intentionality meets with time and dedication, the result is excellence. Turph Kako’s vision is well represented on his debut EP and sets him well apart as one of the most brilliant and overly dedicated artist to the quality of their arts the public are offered. It’s not so common that we are presented with projects with much intentionality gone into their preparation as this one, but it is important to appreciate the few ones who come around and tick all boxes. Kudos to Turph Kako for such masterclass offering.
[LISTEN]: Heartbreak On A Full Moon by Turph Kako.
– This review is written by Adebayo Boluwatife, an Album Talks writer. ( Twitter: @BIG_BOLUWATIFE).
