Music Review // Drezus "Nagamo"

This album by Drezus is called "Nagamo" and if you're interested in listening I feel like you should also be interested in what that word means.  "Nagamo" is an Ojibwe word meaning "sing" or "sing your song" and that sets the entire pace for this album because it is hip hop through the eyes of a Native American.   I don't really feel like Native Americans are represented a lot in music, especially in hip hop, so hearing these songs from that point of view is going to make them stand out right away for you.  The first track begins with this almost organ drone sound as words are spoken about what is to come.  Big beats kick and the vocals follow, the rest of the album rarely letting up.

One of thie aspects of this album that I really like is how it can feel interactive.  There are ways in which pieces of it can get stuck in your head, bringing you back for more listens.   The second song, "Burn", has a hook which says "I got fire in my eye" and then after that "Let it burn / Let it burn" is sort of echoed back.  This is one of those little things that artists do that may not seem like a big deal, but as soon as you hear that line "I got fire in my eye" and you respond back, then you're basically a part of this album and it becomes a part of you.

With features, this takes on sounds which can feel like that bliss of Post Malone on "Cover My Shoulders" to the acoustics on "Ballad of Bobby Jones".  "Breathe" has a bit more singing on it and my favorite track remains "Stolen" for both the unique sound and the lyrics.  Right away the first song has the line "Give me peace so I can make it through the war", which feels like something you could write an entire book about, and by the end you'll have the line stuck in your head which says "I made up my mind to win".

The idea of storytelling in music, which is a lot of what hip hop is, just feels like it is at its best when you can hear it from a different perspective.  Too many people want to be like somebody else, so that's how they end up sounding.  Drezus has a way of bringing these songs into stories all their own and rather than feeling like they are influenced by other rappers it feels more like they will begin influencing other rappers.   Put this one on, play it loud and before you know it you'll be singing along.