North London’s forward-thinking artist Osquello covering all ground with his limitless production and effortless rap abilities drops his highly anticipated EP, ‘Osqstock’. After the release of his 2019 debut ‘Good Morning Simulation’, momentum for the genre-blurring artist sparked, leaving his listeners wanting more of his distinctive sound.
Opening with a mellow, Roy Ayers-esque introduction, ‘Enter Osqstock & Terry Dexter’ brings beautiful, soulful-vocals over laid-back drums, flittering keys and subtle but euphoric bass-lines. Coming like a funk-infused, soul-classic building up its sound towards the end, it perfectly sets the scene for this incredibly detailed and brave project. Moving into ‘Alive Eye’, a much darker sound comes immediately along with sporadic bass-lines, enhanced with an intriguing melody on Osquello’s behalf, creating an indistinguishable sound. The dark atmosphere is quickly eradicated by the artists free-flowing rap and indie-infused hook.
Bringing the energy levels back up for ‘Paradigm City’, Osquello jumps straight in with his verse over Spanish-guitar licks and playful percussion before moving into a more hip-hop inspired instrumental. Heading into ‘Tarohut’, the distorted synths lead into heavy percussion with his melody dripping off of the production, perfectly weaving within the drums before the track is reinforced with its elevating bass-line and a verse of his imaginative lyricism.
Switching things up in ‘Luna the Lost Jungle’, Osquello lends his experimental touch to the production offering a variety of details before adding his melodic-rap verse over the boundary-crossing instrumental, creating a stand-alone atmosphere. The sixth-track ‘Piece of Shit’ holds an unnerving sound with its heavy synths, mixed with equally heavy percussion, hopping from rapping to singing, the musician keeps it interesting throughout.
Leading us towards the end of the project ‘Roxies Final Ride’ with a feature from fellow London artist Ella Knight, brings a slower pace with the singers soulful voice, full of her singular tone before heading into an experimental melody within the production, ridden out with Osquello’s delivery before Ella comes back in to create peace in the middle of this chaotic yet concise track. Ending this project with the tranquil ‘Lovers Fool’, Osquello places his harmonies and nonchalant verses over the easygoing instrumental. ‘Osqstock’ dares to walk on uncharted territory, creating something refreshing and unparalleled.
