Delorean – No More Heroes
Delorean: 2009
Hello new world. Let me introduce you to Delorean – a one-emcee one producer duo hailing from Sacramento, California. Jon Reyes & 5th Ave dropped their project No More Heroes earlier this year in case you haven’t heard it. The opening track “No More Heroes”, which features D. Scott and is part-conversation part-spoken word, was decent but a bit lengthy for almost three and half minutes. Overall, their music reminds me of The Pharcyde in the sense that it doesn’t take itself too seriously. The average listener can connect to that becomes it’s coming from an honest place. Like a lot of West Coast artists you can hear the soul influence in the production. Especially on tracks like “Needy Girl” and “Dear Langston”.
The album ranges from introspective to lighthearted yet soulful. With Jon Reyes on the boards, 5th Ave spits verses about coming up in Sacramento, trying to make into music business and failed relationships. Lyrically it’s good to above-average and you can hear that in punchlines like, “My clique spit like Virgins, we all tight.” “Chapter Seven” is probably the best song on the album along with “Chillin”, which features C Plus, Dahlak and Dj Flow and is a dope posse cut I enjoyed. One complaint I had was opening and ending tracks which are more spoken word rather than actual songs. I wish they would have incorporated those as shorter intros or outros. However, I respect the vision.
My other complaint was the album length. I wish it was a bit longer than the eight tracks, because with it being shorter it plays more like an EP. But the the album does provide enough bright spots to make it a worthy listen. I’m interested to see what they do next with upcoming projects, because if the last few years have proven anything the Left Coast is definitely releasing some of the best hip-hop right now.
3 out of 5
