A melody that evokes the scene, a track that feels a story like a scene from a movie. This music provides a little stimulus and comfort from everyday and connected places. In the morning when you wake up early, after noon when you enjoy a coffee break, when you indulge in reading while feeling comfortable fatigue, on holidays when you go out for a drive… This work that gently changes the tone for each song is a common everyday life. It’s a soundtrack that blends into. Malus & Lyrical Waterside’s second album, “Connectivity,” is amazing.

About 10 years ago, Malus & Lyrical Waterside, a track-making unit in downtown Tokyo, was formed by the encounter between Malus and Lyrical, who were active as track makers and DJs, respectively. Malus recalled that time, “when breakbeats and abstract music were in vogue, Lyrical was happy to make beats with phrases even on single notes on the keyboard.” Of course, the bases of activities in East Tokyo overlapped, and I think they felt that they were in tune with each other musically.　The two hit it off immediately

While participating in the compilation “Listening Is Believing Vol.2” and supervising the Japanese rap project “OLD TO THE NEW” series, he released his first album “One Day In Our Life” in 2011. Not to mention the conceptual work that depicts the flow of the day, the most talked about was the gorgeous guest performance. The two, who spent a sensitive time in the 90’s, offered to rappers who they respected.
Big names such as Diamond D, Grand Puba, and Tash have been added to the list.

After that, in the “OLD TO THE NEW” series, which shifted to activities focusing on domestic rappers and continued to release until vol.3, ZONE THE DARKNESS (currently ZORN), DOWN NORTH CAMP, Dengaryu, Cypress Ueno and others participated. They left a solid mark on the scene, such as announcing “RE: BIRTH + CREATION”, which was planned with the theme of reviving the atmosphere of the 90’s. They continued to create under the surface in parallel with these projects. Ten years after the previous work, “Connectivity” has once again realized a fulfilling collaboration with overseas artists. The release is from <RE: CREATION>.

From “Intro” where you can hear oriental tones and fascinating voices, “No Borders” featuring Jurassic 5’s Akil is highlighted. While watching the sunset, Akil’s sophisticated rap and sweet chorus that heals the heart overlap with the mellow sound that reminds us of the past and future. Combined with the soft tone that wraps around and the lyric of <Music is No Borders>, it can be said that it has become the most universal song in this work.

The weight of “song” is an element that was not found in the previous work. It captures the trends of the scene over the last few years, and at the same time reflects the creators’ intention to “make it reachable to listeners who don’t usually listen to hip-hop.” And it’s the perfect way for Malus & Lyrical Waterside music, which has a strong lyric melody.
In the production that Malus brings in the seeds of the music and Lyrical handles the arrangement, Lyrical says that “dirty sound” is his role. It’s an image of adding a rough flavor to a truck with a smart texture. This work, which says, “I was conscious of the variety to keep you from getting bored,” is also attractive because the scene changes with each song. “Language” featuring Hi-Rez, which was a hot topic in “Uber Rap”, a video that Uber drivers rap to customers, was based in Detroit with an impressive keyboard sound that creates a mysterious atmosphere. “Equalizer”, which invited 4MC’s and Clear Soul Forces, has a comfortable floating track. It is a precious sound source that was recorded just before their dissolution, and the mic relay that rides on a fluffy tone that makes you feel like you are in a dream while taking a nap is fresh.

As you can see from the guests who color the album, Lyrical’s intention to “tell the hip-hop of the 90’s when he grew up” is a common theme in their works.

Malus said “I love A Tribe Called Quest, for example, when I listened to some fashionable songs sampled from jazz, I thought that it wasn’t just hip-hop that was rough at the time. That’s what led to my work now. I think that the stimuli and ideas that we experienced in real time are dwelling in the sound with modern tones and technology. In addition, the “legend frame” that is the attraction of this project, and in addition to Akil at the beginning, Artifacts who were active in the 90’s participated in “Outside Looking In” of M5. The previous work also featured member El Da Sensei, but this is the first time that a Japanese work has been credited under the name “Artifacts”.

“Woo Sah”, in which KOTA The Friend participated, received a fresh feeling as a song. The number is characterized by a track with a scent of Latin and a song with a passion, and it is one song that you can hear his charm different from the soft and nostalgic “EVERYTHING” released last year. Regarding this work, he explained, “Because I collaborate with you, I wanted to make a song that I wouldn’t do in my own work.” It will be interesting.

The flow from the twilight instrumental “Out mix” to “More Peace and More Love” featuring female MC Steph Pockets from Philly seems to condense the charm of this work. When she came to Japan for an event held in Odaiba, Malus, who was appearing at the event, offered it on the spot. The melancholic keyboard that makes tears spill, the powerful flow that pushes your back, and the chorus of male guests who give scale to the music lead the listener’s mood to a peaceful climax.

This positive energy is the feeling that symbolizes this work. Lyrics, who left it to the guests in the previous work, said that he offered it after telling the theme of the song in this album. Although the songs themselves have variety, there must be a reason why I feel some continuity through the work. From the composition that starts with “No Borders” and ends with “More Peace and More Love” and the moist tone, you can feel the gentle mood thrown in the dark times.

They said that they were “not so conscious”, but their activities are cultural exchange points where they unexpectedly find contact with various music. “I like the word” records travel Malus said “as BOSS THE MC of THA BLUE HERB said, and I hope our music will be like that,”. Their activity, “call out to the people you want to play music with from time to time, that is, we’re just doing the most fun for us,” is therefore free and fly everywhere. I will be able to go.

Text by Ryutaro Kuroda (Digle Magazine)
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