4.0 out of 5
Interdependent Media
I'll let you in on a little secret: 3/4 of the rap songs I've played for months have been from this guy. It's not that I'm obsessed, or anything, just curious. A year ago I had no idea who Donwill was. I hadn't even heard of his rap group, Tanya Morgan - three '90s minded dudes carrying the torch for hip-hop trios without much blog attention. But at CMJ I heard their name dropped, and a few days later I stumbled across "Laura's Song" on the Internet. "Laura's Song" is the kind of track you hear and immediately get. If there was ever a single for marketing a heady, introverted dude with a penchant for rapping about girls and breakups, "Laura's Song" is it. The ecstatic, soul-dipped beat; the playful, clever chorus; Don's gummy delivery and storytelling - it's a great song... the kind that could make you want to listen to his back catalog almost exclusively until you figure out what it is you've been missing all this time.
Don Cusack in High Fidelity, Donwill's unabashed homage to the Nick Hornby-based, John Cusack and Jack Black-starring indie classic, is not a great album. But it is impressive and richly layered - a suitable platform for an idiosyncratic hip-hop underdog to latch onto while working out his own sounds and ideas.On the occasions when the album resorts to rote recitation of the movie's dialogue, it suffers. But whenever some generously talented producer or collaborator inspires Don to tell his own story, the thing shines.
Top 5 things about Don Cusack in High Fidelity
1. Laura's Song: This is the gem among gems. Thankfully, It's not the only great song on the album, but as elaborated above, this track is where it all comes together. Like the album, it's high concept, but the concept isn't really necessary: the themes are universal. The sound is warm and infectious. Bonus points: The video features the cute lab assistant from Fringe.
2. Sequencing/Cohesion: The best thing that a concept album can do for an artist is keep them focused. Here, the tracks all have their own voice/point-of-view but perfectly flow in terms of tempo. Don's sense of narrative really does make you feel like you're going along for a ride.
3. Tracks 9-12: To that end, the album has strengths in every act. Whenever it starts to trend toward mediocrity, there's usually a strong, crowd pleasing moment around the corner. Late in the game, when you start to really mourn the passing of "Laura," 4 gorgeous hip-hop songs come a long - "Breathe," "I See You," "Good" and "Leading Lady" - and make you forget all about her.
4. The Production: I don't know who they are, to be honest. Donwill doesn't even have a Wikipedia page and I can only imagine what the liner notes look like. But this is good shit. Soulful, sample-heavy, jazzy, Dilla-esque - pick your adjective. I love when "Ian's Song" flips into an angry, Public Enemy-style siren loop and Donwill starts rapping like he's furious with a guy named Ian who's fucking his ex girlfriend.
5. The Love Thing: These are songs about girls. But unlike Will.i.Am, Donwill can actually rap and is charming. And unlike 808s and Heartbreak, Don Cusack in High Fidelity is a straight-up East Coast hip-hop record - boom bap for the modern man. What can make music vital in this age of a seemingly endless supply of new artists is relatability - the kind of personableness that says a record was crafted lovingly by a human being who thought and cared about his product - even despite the nebulous issue of its monetary value, or even legality (Royalties? What royalties?). Take this line from "Leading Lady" for instance: "A great film takes years to make, and I've been working on my opus since my first heartbreak." On his debut, Donwill shows us he's a romantic. Those willing to take the chance should find more than enough to love.
- Reggie Ugwu
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