III KWOLLEM - C2C
catalog ref: CB0002
SKU: 002-CB00/02
RATING: 8/10
RATING: 8/10
Five years after his debut of Mellow EP, KwolleM’s latest project - c2c - remains true to its London/Essex roots. With almost all of the tracks being names of train stations as well as the beautiful cover art featured at Grays station, Essex, this album takes us on a mellow journey.
The final track Never Invited remixes Manga Saint Hilare’s Never Invited but of course flipped with a Mellow beat. With co-production from soon-to-be legendary producer Jay Trench, Never Invited (Mellow Mix) is the perfect track to conclude the album. It brings his dated tracks to light, homaging his early Soundcloud/Bandcamp mixes.
c2c’s sound is typical of what you’d expect from KwolleM, yet his production and his stance on ‘mellow’ remains timeless. KwolleM calls it ‘the perfect juxtaposition of maturity and innovation’. This statement definitely carries weight when looking back in to the early to mid 2010s of his music. Recollecting his early mixes on Soundcloud, KwolleM began to put his ‘mellow’ spin on numerous tracks and this theme has remained prevalent ever since. Notable tracks include First Degree, Boy Better Know and Paper Plans.
The opening of SSS already foreshadows the project's whole as we are questioned in the producer tag ‘Why Mellow? Why do they call you Mellow?’. Although many fans and followers of KwolleM have been aware of the mellow route he takes, the intro gives some reassurance to the listener allowing them sit back, relax and enjoy the pleasurable journey.
One thing which KwolleM always executes to perfection are his intricate use of samples. Anyone who has familiarity with KwolleM knows that he frequently uses dated samples in his songs and c2c doesn’t shy away from this. To name a few, Basildon samples Love Will Find You by Natalie Cole and Peabo Bryson, Barking (& Dagenham) samples Scratchlin by Devlin and 1 Step Further by Wiley. Fenchurch St samples Love Me Or Leave Me by Band of Thieves. When comparing the songs to each other, it’s clear that with the refined ‘KwolleM touch’ accompanied by Joe James’ carefully crafted rhymes, c2c proves its greatness.