The Daily Spin, December 26
Mura Masa | Soundtrack to a Death
Welcome back to the Daily Spin, the series in which I review 365 albums during 2023.
Each album will be given a rating on a scale from 0 to 10. You can look at the entire set here. Additionally, you can check out a list of my favorite songs from each album right here.
Album: Soundtrack To A Death (2014)
Artist: Mura Masa
Link:
I realize that this may be a strange album title to perceive the day after Christmas, but you get what you get with me.
This last week is about albums from artists that I really love - most of these old favorites in some regard or another, classics widely beloved and sleeper picks alike.
Today’s is not technically an album, by the strictest definition of the word, but it is the debut mixtape from British artist Mura Masa, Soundtrack to a Death. We already spoke about his 2017 work, his self-titled, but this came three years earlier and showcased the burgeoning talent coming from the at-the-time teenage producer.
Full of island-influenced melodies, vocal chops, and the trap beats that would later become somewhat of a stylistic giveaway, Soundtrack to a Death is full of some of my favorite Mura Masa sounds - indeed, the sort of noise that I wish he had kept with throughout his career. Though his migration towards garage, house, and now experimental trap is intriguing to watch, there’s something about this sound that just sparkles - brimming with potential. It’s energetic but knows how to be lithe, formless at peak moments - and though there are rarely ever lyrics, the album speaks. That’s talent.
Rating: 8.8/10
Best Tracks: Shibuya; …Girl; Suicide Blades
Worst Tracks: Lotus Eater