Rapper Vinxen is back with his first full album ‘유사인간 (Boy to Man)’. In the album introduction he writes that last year, when he wrote 13 of the 14 songs, he wanted to be anything but human. He was going through a rough time and thought it’d be easier to be a robot.
We have been following all of his releases closely, so, let’s dive right in because we’ve been expecting quality!
유사인간 (Boy To Man)
The opening song is ‘불시착 (Crash)’, this song starts off with Vinxen’s signature rapping style and it slowly changes to autotune enhanced vocals and some interesting tonal play. It clocks in just over two minutes and fades out nicely to the next track.
‘BLIND’ starts off with some excellent lofi tunes that mix flawlessly with Vinxen’s delivery, he pre-released this track a few weeks ago. I really like how experimental he is getting with his music. ‘BLIND’ has a very interesting layering and mixing and I am here for it. Check the MV below.
Next up is ‘바다는 왜 (Why does Ocean)’, this song reminds me a lot of his times in High School Rapper 2, the beat, delivery and flow scream Vinxen. With this track he went back to basics somewhat but also included a more modern style he has been introducing in his latest releases.
‘Stupid Night’ enters the circle and leaves a strong first impression with Vinxen’s vocal autotune. This song combines Vinxen and his feature Sik-K perfectly and it gets even better with the electric guitar. It won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but this track definitely shows a newer side of him as an artist.
An electric guitar solo kicks off ‘IMOK’ and follows the delivery and tempo of ‘BLIND’ more or less but with an instrumental touch that I totally dig.
‘Wind (바람)’ follows it so flawlessly that for a second I thought they were the same song. The electronic beats mixed with the drums and the guitar are fascinating to listen to.
Next on the list we have ‘Blossom (꽃봉오리)’ and from the get go, this song is incredible. We get Vinxen’s raw, heavy and fast rap, mixed with synths and beats that build up and drop leaving listeners (like me) shook with so much happening in just one track.
Calming down the heart rush that ‘Blossom’ leaves we get ‘SINK’ featuring IM SOO. One thing that got me into Vinxen’s music is the way his delivery is full of emotion and as a listener you are able to perceive what he feels. ‘SINK’ falls into this category, it’s emotional, raw, and every single beat played will have you emotionally worked up by the end of this song.
Emotional whiplash hits with ‘i’ which is also the title track of this release. And I’m shook, he went for a more up-beat, kinda modern and groovy style that I did not expect but thoroughly enjoyed. He is growing as an artist and tracks like these show a different and youthful side of him.
Watch the MV below.
‘Sunset’ was pre-released in May featuring label mate Ovan. These two artists working together will always result in a fantastic song regardless of the genre. Ovan’s vocals are soft and soulful, and Vinxen is just full of emotion. Listen to this release here.
This one is followed by the also pre-released track ‘Empty’ featuring Haon. If you watched High School Rapper 2, you know these two together are a killer duo. They are both incredible artists and their styles really complement each other extremely well.
Watch the MV Below.
‘Clown (광대)’ is next on the list with a deep bass sound and a lot of autotune, that overpowered at times the beat but somehow worked well with the full vibe of this track.
The electric guitar in ‘Will (바래)’ is absolutely stunning, the way it is played enhances and builds up with the emotional delivery in Vinxen’s rapping. It feels desperate at times but in a good way, as if you were getting away from very deep and dark thoughts.
Ending this album we have ‘Memoirs (회고록)’ and I have to say that the last few songs of this album are just emotional from start to end. I would have loved listening to this song without the autotune and just Vinxen’s raw vocals, however, it is still a pretty solid and good end for this album.
If you want to know more about Vinxen make sure to check out his feature in our segment ‘Rapper In The Spotlight’, and you can listen to this album here.
(Writers Note: As soon as is available in Spotify we will update the link)
Also, go check out his performance on Dingo Freestyle! He just killed it.
