Two names most people probably haven’t heard before are Bladee and Ecco2k, a British-Swedish music duo consisting of a rapper and singer respectively. With a combined total monthly listeners of 1.6 million, the duo has been creating music since 2007. Their style has been unofficially coined as “Cloud Rap.” I was approached by a student to review their most recent album, which was released in March of this year. The album, Crest, runs for around 31 minutes and contains 9 songs, each featuring Bladee and Ecco2k. Before I listened to this album, I wanted some perspective on the duo’s music, having never listened to it before.

To get that perspective, I approached the student who requested the album review, Cooper Lessard, a senior at Green Hope. Cooper gave me some insight on the artists behind the album and his general opinion of the album itself.

Q: According to Wikipedia: Bladee’s music “is characterized by heavily Auto-Tuned vocals, ethereal textures, and experimental qualities.” Would you agree with that characterization? If not, why?

A: I would agree with that characterization, but I think that is a dumbed down way to describe his music. I believe it to be life-defining. I think there are themes of spirituality and Christianity in his lyrics, especially on this album. I think the Wikipedia description is too simplified.

Q: To you, what is the main draw of his music, and how do you think Crest stacks up to the rest of his work?

A: Me personally, I think Bladee has some of the best production in hip hop history, shout-out Whitearmor. I also think that his lyricism, while not complex, gets to the point. I would put Crest very high in his discography, just behind “Gluee” and a couple others. I also don’t believe Crest to Ecco2k’s best album, that would be “e”.

Q: Given the fanbases of Bladee and Ecco2k are relatively small ones, how would you introduce someone to their type of music?

A: I think Crest is the perfect entry point to their music given its combination of accessibility and high quality. 

Q: Anything else to add?

A: I’ll let the music speak for itself. 

After that glowing praise for the album, I was excited to give it a listen and see if it lived up to Cooper’s words.

The album itself was a quick listen and relatively well-paced. I say relatively because while most songs in Crest are generally two to three minutes in length, the second track stretches for almost nine minutes.

As for the actual music, I’m very sorry to say that this album did not live up to the expectations Cooper set for it. Not to say it was bad; in fact, it is impressive how good the production is and how cohesive the album sounds. You can definitely tell how long Bladee and Ecco2k have worked together. The sound itself though is not for me, I did not enjoy the voices of either artist, and found some of the songs grating. Of the songs I liked though, those being White Meadow, Desire is a Trap, and Chaos Follows, they felt more distinct from the rest of the songs.

Even though I would give this album a far lower rating than what Cooper may give it, that doesn’t mean the album is without merit, and I think that if you enjoyed the sound of Bladee already or if you like the genre itself, this album would be right up your alley. For that reason, I can’t recommend against it because it might not be something you like until you try listening to it. Crest was a surprise for me and it will most likely be a surprise for you, whether that is a good or bad surprise is up to your taste.