Throughout his decade-long career, Falz has continuously demonstrated his range and ability to thrive in any musical environment. The Bahd guy has consistently delivered exceptional performances, regardless of genre or soundscape. He can be a lyrically dense MC and a melodic craftsman. It all depends on what he decides to be. His adaptability has made him one of the most commercially successful Nigerian rappers of the last decade.
His last album, ‘Bahd’, wasn’t particularly well received. To be honest, the music on that album isn’t particularly compelling, even though it houses some really solid records. ‘Bahd’ suffers from a lack of coherence that affects the enjoyment of the album.
Before We Feast’, is a precursor to his sixth studio album and offers a glimpse of the feast to come.
Across the six tracks, Falz delivers a potpourri of Afropop, Hip-Hop, Neo-Highlife, Afrobeat, and folk music touching on love, ostentatious living, and braggadocio.
He recruits Crayon on the opener ‘How Many’, an Afropop record that sees both artists asking their love interests how they can further prove their ardour for her. Crayon delivers a hook that fails to stick. Falz’s calm delivery attempts to salvage the situation. Overall, it’s a weak song.
‘Popping Tonight’ is a Trap record that employs a hypnotic bassline and crisp 808 kicks. The record features British-Nigerian rappers Shaybo and Phyno. The trio delivers smooth verses laced with braggadocio, with Phyno seemingly firing a shot at Wizkid.
‘Chop the Life’ reiterates the themes of the preceding record. The record leans towards Afrobeat, incorporating interlocking rhythms, brassy horns, and crisp underlying claps to create a funky instrumental that drives the record.
The groovy Lamba-driven ‘Who Go Pay’ sounds like a record that can become a hit record. Falz and Adekunle Gold (in particular) deliver mesmerizing verses on this catchy Chillz production.
’Shake Kaka’ is a fusion of Afrobeat and folk that employs horns and percussion. Falz delivers his verses using a familiar comedic rapping style. He doesn’t discuss anything sensible or say anything funny in the song, and that makes for a difficult listen and the Neo-Highlife ‘Ndi-Ike’ features the legendary Flavour and Odumodublvck, a fantastic record that inexplicably has failed to enjoy the mainstream attention it deserves.
Final thoughts
‘Before We Feast’ feels like an improvement on ‘Bahd’ and a glimpse into his next album, which I suspect would be similar to this EP.
While ‘Bahd’ lacked cohesion, ‘Before We Feast’ is seamless despite the repetitive themes, and that can be credited to the album’s sequence and also its length.
This project also has sonic depth and diversity in sound, although there’s no unifying emotional arc or a central theme.
Overall, it’s a project people would enjoy. ‘Who goes to pay’ should be a hit. If ‘Ndi-Ike’ suddenly respawns as a result of this project, even better.
However, This writer does not think this project is enough to get listeners excited for his next album.
Rating: /10
* 0-1.9: Trash
* 2.0-3.9: Flop
* 4.0–5.9: Average
* 6.0–7.9: Decent
* 8.0-10: Champion
Ratings /10.
Album Sequencing: 1.4/2
Songwriting and Topics: 1.0/2
Production: 1.5/2
Enjoyability and Satisfaction: 1.4/2
Execution: 1.4/2
Total: 6.7 Decent
