Album Review: Big Grams – Big Grams
2 min read
For those of you who are unsure who Big Grams is it’s the genre breaking collaboration between rapper Big Boi (Outkast) and electronica rock duo Phantogram. Big Grams sees this unlikely trio come together to create a 7-track collection of finely crafted, high-energy songs that seamlessly marry these two starkly different musical styles.
Introducing us to Big Grams is Run For You Life and it sees Big Boi spitting an effortless rap verse that fades into a soft electronica chorus. The soft, sweet voice of Sarah Barthel provides divergence to the harsher rap tones, while the electric keyboard melody ties it all together. Big Grams also enlisted some big names to lend their talents to their debut. Track Born To Shine features NYC based hip-hop duo Run The Jewels. It’s a song full of rap verses with subtle electronica that makes the soft vocals of “It’s not your fault baby, we were just here born to shine” stand out while Drum Machine showcases a big collaboration with dubstep aficionado Skrillex. Skrillex brings a strong bass energy that emphasizes the metallic melody and repetitive lyrics from Phatogram while Big Boi brings an impressive rap that works to take this track to a new level.
Unfortunately though when you’ve got an album with so much fire and intensity bubbling within some tracks get lost when you listen and make minimal lyrical impact. Fell In The Sun and Put It On Her, while great on their own merit just miss the mark in direct comparison to the rest. Overall though the formation of Big Grams is one that we should all be thankful for, Big Grams is a fresh and new collaborative piece that takes hip-hop and electronica to new heights. Big Grams proves once and for all that opposites do attract.
