‘State of Surprise’ :
YSG Entertainment 2010
Vector Tha Viper has shown great
rhyming abilities over the past years while making guest appearances on
a couple of numbers including Bigiano’s ‘Shayo’ remix and the General
Pype’s ‘Champion’ remix as well. His quick and smooth rap style with
decent wordplay abilities, caught attention of Hip-Hop heads such that
a couple of fans flattered him by comparing him to multiple Grammy
Awards winning American rapper, Jay-Z. However the buzz eventually got
him labeled a Jay-Z wannabe after he took forever, it seemed, for him
to come up with a full body of work to show he deserved the attention
he garnered. In the end, he released this 16 tracker debut, ‘State Of
Surprise’ giving fans and critics alike an LP with which an informed
inference can be made about his rap and music making credentials.
The teasers
Typical of many musicians, he preceded
the ‘State of surprise’ with two singles, ‘Kilode’ and ‘Get Down’. The
former features buddy Emmsong and the latter is assisted by Tuface
Idibia. With both singles he proved that he actually has some
similarities, only in style though, to Jay-Z as he effortlessly
replicates the aura of calmness while rhyming, a feat that got the
comparison on in the first place. He also showed on the singles how
much depth he has with a good blend of decent enough lyrics with
appropriate rhythm to catch the fancy of non-rap enthusiasts. He also,
on ‘Kilode’, did not sugar coat or sensor his lyrics as he rightly
called out, Timaya, Terry G and P-Square for being monotonous,
uninspired and imitative respectively. So with two good singles and
previous accolades, the album is met with great expectations even
though the album’s cover art is less than impressive.
The main dish
The intro rides on ominous sequences
as he takes shots at an unnamed adversary. “He’s alright but not
real/…what’s the beefing about? /…heard you talk without opening
your mouth/…it’s my time, it’s your watch” he raps on the track
leaving a grudging taste on his opening track. The next track, ‘Sha Ma
Wa Wa Lo’ comes on a mid tempo and fires up on the grudge, now at some
perceived wannabies: “Big boys in the club, hungry boys in their
houses/raising more BP than they raise blouses/…too much rappers
under one roof…I’m talking about him, him, you, you and most of
y’all”. With two successive tracks toeing the grudge mongering lane,
you will almost expect an album smeared by attitude, however the
reminder of the album went without much reference or direct disparaging
lines; save for some braggadocios.
Vector continues to find a balance
between lyrics and rhythm on the album adding different flavours to
different tracks. He employed Reggae percussions on ‘Mary Jane’ with
dance music rave, General Pype and newbie, Ade Piper jumping on the
track’s remix. He got Shogon on the disco infused ‘Di Mi Mu’ with the
Shogon penned hook and bridge adding more dance properties to the
track. ‘Denge Pose’ has a bit of techno influence while ‘Down Town’
featuring Chuddy K yet again borrowed elements from the reggae genre
but retained more of the urbane feel. Although most of the tracks
refuse to measure up to the quality of his singles, the poetic ‘I Love
You Nigeria’ stands out from the ‘State of Surprise’. The delivery over
mild beats is nothing short of excellence. Unfortunately the album
jacket refuses to acknowledge the soothing backup voice on the track.
To close, there is definitely nothing surprising on the ‘State of
Surprise’. You’ll most likely never find that one track that will ‘wow’
you but it is no doubt a collection of decent rap songs with borrowed
elements from many genres to earn it some dynamics.
