Much has been written about the emergence of the high-school musician, almost to the point that the news of an artists’ age, no matter how young, has slowly become non-news.
The world of hip-hop couldn’t be more littered with young things; OF, Spaceghost, ASAP Rocky and Pac Div, (to name just a few), all sport small digits next to their names. Each artist also sports a remarkable level of maturity, not that I’m trying to be patronizing, more that their ability to explore concepts to the same level as their seemingly elderly counter-parts, is at the very least notable.
Haleek Maul is yet another artist who’s name has been the subject of endless blog posts, ours included. In no uncertain terms, in this case it’s kind of justified. Haleek spits like a young man not trying to emulate maturity, but more like a young man already drowned in the pains of maturity. Sex, relationships, death and Maul’s bubbling disturbing unconsciousness, all become mediums for expressing discomfort and anxiety. At times it’s eye-widening in the most grotesque and disturbing of ways, but it’s always engrossing.
I’ll say it again; the most exciting thing I’ve heard all year.