By Ryan Martin On May 28th, shortly before midnight, a rare treasure was released to the public courtesy of Donnie Trumpet & The Social Experiment. Users of iTunes everywhere (including myself) woke up on May 29th, a Friday, to find a free download of Surf. the highly anticipated debut album of The Social Experiment. The Social Experiment is a band that makes music that is hard to categorize. Ranging from hip-hop to Jazz, to R&B, it’s tricky to put a label on this band’s sound other than it just feels good. Fronted by wildly popular independent artist, Chance the Rapper, the band consists of Donnie Trumpet doing exactly what his name hints at. Peter Cottontail, (Music Director/Keys), Greg “Stix” Landfair Jr. (Drummer) and Nate Fox (Keys).
Surf is consistent about keeping up good vibes throughout the album. It starts out with a song called ‘Miracle’ which begins with vocals that make you stop whatever you’re doing to listen to the beautiful harmony until the bass slaps you out of your daze and right back into the album. Chance fires rapid lyrics that are quick and thoughtful. The song is centered around a certain thought that we as humans fail to think of on a daily basis. The miracle of being alive. Of breathing, reacting and interacting and the beauty that is in our everyday lives that we don’t appreciate enough. Next up is Slip Slide in which the first thing you hear is the infectious trumpets followed up by Busta Rhymes hilariously positive intro in which he thanks Chance for the opportunity to be on the track before belting out a wildly enthusiastic “YEEEEAAH!” Interesting enough, this song does not contain any curses. As most of the album is without profanities, it leads you to wonder why Chance, whose last project Acid Rap had profanities on every track, chooses this new, (arguably unpopular in the genre of hip-hop) way to express himself.
Surf is consistent about keeping up good vibes throughout the album. It starts out with a song called ‘Miracle’ which begins with vocals that make you stop whatever you’re doing to listen to the beautiful harmony until the bass slaps you out of your daze and right back into the album. Chance fires rapid lyrics that are quick and thoughtful. The song is centered around a certain thought that we as humans fail to think of on a daily basis. The miracle of being alive. Of breathing, reacting and interacting and the beauty that is in our everyday lives that we don’t appreciate enough. Next up is Slip Slide in which the first thing you hear is the infectious trumpets followed up by Busta Rhymes hilariously positive intro in which he thanks Chance for the opportunity to be on the track before belting out a wildly enthusiastic “YEEEEAAH!” Interesting enough, this song does not contain any curses. As most of the album is without profanities, it leads you to wonder why Chance, whose last project Acid Rap had profanities on every track, chooses this new, (arguably unpopular in the genre of hip-hop) way to express himself.
Another mystery is why did The Social Experiment release their debut album completely free? They could have made thousands by selling the album on iTunes, physical copies, vinyls etc. And plus they are already fronted by a popular rapper so they wouldn’t have a problem with being found. But the answer is simple, perhaps too simple but refreshing. And that’s because with Surf, they weren’t looking for money. As you may remember, Chance announced the album back late last fall and said that it would be released before the end of 2014. Some may have been irritated at Chance for not keeping his word, but those people are so used to rappers that are signed to labels issuing a deadline to maximize profits. Chance The Rapper is not one of those. Chance The Rapper is a free rapper. Chance took those 6 months to make the music that he and his friends were creating absolutely perfect. And not perfect for a record label, perfect for themselves. Which is what every artist should be doing. The popular song ‘Wanna Be Cool’ perfectly deciphers this. It is about not wanting to be cool, but wanting to be yourself. Which (cheesy line approaching) is the coolest fucking thing you can be. In the high school of hip-hop. There are many rappers out there that make music that isn’t necessarily them. But what will maximize profits. Do you think Big Sean wrote “I Don’t Fuck With You” because it truly spoke from his heart? Fuck that.
With Surf, with almost every listen, you find a new favorite song. Every track offers something new, bright, and fun that only gets better with age. It might be one of the many diverse features, it might be Nico’s (Donnie Trumpet) impressive playing. Or it could also be Chance’s rapid lyrics or crooning harmonies. Not only is Surf a damn near perfect album, it’s a damn near perfect summer album. Meant to be blasted in a Jeep with the doors, windows and any other metal part that can be detached that separates you from the warm summer air. So whatever you are doing right now can be put on hold. Whether it’s blistering hot, or freezing cold, listen to this album with cold one in your hand and a smile on your face. Because this shit just feels fucking good.
With Surf, with almost every listen, you find a new favorite song. Every track offers something new, bright, and fun that only gets better with age. It might be one of the many diverse features, it might be Nico’s (Donnie Trumpet) impressive playing. Or it could also be Chance’s rapid lyrics or crooning harmonies. Not only is Surf a damn near perfect album, it’s a damn near perfect summer album. Meant to be blasted in a Jeep with the doors, windows and any other metal part that can be detached that separates you from the warm summer air. So whatever you are doing right now can be put on hold. Whether it’s blistering hot, or freezing cold, listen to this album with cold one in your hand and a smile on your face. Because this shit just feels fucking good.