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David Dallas - Source: ONE News
Who: David Dallas
What: Something Awesome
Genre: Hip Hop
Rating: 9/10
Some may know David Dallas by his former alias Con Psy, one half of
Auckland Hip Hop duo Frontline. Others may know him as the skinny
guy who wasn't Scribe or Savage on the Not Many remix. But those
who have got to know his music beyond that flash point will know
him as a gifted lyricist who's not afraid to address some very real
issues.
Dallas has just released his solo album Something Awesome.
I felt duty bound when I had Dallas on the phone to get the inevitable question out of the way first ... what happened to Frontline? There was a slight sigh which he tried to contain (indicative maybe of how many times he's been asked this question) but he simply informed me that his former partner in crime, Nick Maclaren, is still a partner in crime of sorts. Maclaren, aka 41, took a behind the scenes role on Something Awesome, handling the production of half of the songs.
With Something Awesome, Dallas has created an album reflective of his own personal taste.
LISTEN: Dallas
talks about his goals for the album and his influences.
(1.48)
But while he sights many of the big Hip Hop albums from the mid to
late 90's (The Blueprint, Doggy Style) as influences, after giving
the album a few listens it is clear that Dallas has not forgotten
the roots of Hip Hop in funk and soul. First single Indulge Me
which has been getting some serious airplay over the last few
months is a perfect example of that.
Something Awesome is a true hip hop diamond in an increasingly watered down rough.
One of David Dallas' greatest assets is the ability to take real life and make it interesting. This trait was obvious on Frontline's Borrowed Time and he carries it through on this offering.
However, Something Awesome will be more widely accessible than Borrowed Time due to the fact that Dallas appears to have dealt with the heaviest of his personal issues on the previous project.
Add in to the mix the production by Fire and Ice, who do a fantastic job of producing beats ready to ignite any club, and the result is the perfect balance of thought and movement.
Something Awesome is currently sitting at number 20 on the New Zealand album charts and number 6 on the iTunes Hip Hop charts. But Dallas is not in the music game for chart position alone.
He had some pretty humble goals at the beginning of his musical career.
"It'd be cool if I could get my song played on (student radio station) bfm once," he once thought.
LISTEN: Dallas talks about his early goals and current balance (2.22)
All too often NZ hip hop artists are labelled as being 'good for New Zealanders'. With Something Awesome, David Dallas, is proving he's world class and can stand up to any worldwide release. The only reason it's not getting a 10/10 is that I'm too stingy, have a nine Dave.
