Infinite Sounds UK: Album Review: Lost In The Loophole by Frisco Boogie

Lost In The Loophole

Frisco Boogie

Its great to have Nottingham emcee Frisco Boogie back on the blog. I last featured him back in October last year with 50 From The Cradle and since them things have definitely been moving forward for him. This year he signed to Montener The Menace’s Hidden Hobby Records and his first release for the label is this nine track album, Lost In The Loophole.

As always Frisco Boogie does almost everything himself on this one, from writing and production up to arranging and, obviously, performing. He even designed the artwork too; you can’t get much more multitalented than that! The only thing he does not do is mixing and mastering, which is handled here by Mark Gamble. There are also features from DJ Glibstylez and the Local Healers to spice things up a little.

So, join me as I get Lost In The Loophole with Frisco Boogie…

Our journey into the loophole begins with Frisco Boogie’s most recent single release Lost. This one is really the album’s title track and has a heavy drum beat that is backed by this nerve tingling piano loop that brings your focus directly into the music and the lyrics. As you nod your head to the beat you can easily get lost in the music, which is really the whole message here. We live in a society where getting lost in anything is a challenge as we are often connected to the world in some way, shape and form but, music is something you can truly get lost in, no matter your tastes. As we get further into the loophole, you realise that things will come back around, the Same ol’ Same. The beat here keeps the heavy head nod beat but, the keys and electronic vibes bring a lighter vibe. Frisco Boogie tells it as it is, which is the fact that life is a loophole. We go through life, day to day, experiencing the same things, in the same places, going round in circles. Even holidays are only a short respite from the same ol’ same ol’. Piano notes draw you into Silence, a nerve-jangling mix of piano, drums and flute that has you questioning what’s going on. Featuring DJ Glibstyles on the cut, here we find Frisco Boogie detailing the value of those moments of silence; these moments can be the most valuable thing for us as choosing what you feel inside over a snap decision of reaction, can be the one thing that changes the outcome of where things will lead you and those around you, it can be the difference between a positive or a negative outcome. Just think about it, shutting up might be the best thing you ever did…

The Local Healers feature on the next track, March which has an infectious sound of another head nod beat, alongside hand drums and more that give this the kind od vibe you can drift away to. There is powerful message behind this one too, it is a celebration of the women in your life and the strength of their feminine energy. We will all have a special woman in our lives who bring a strength and power that guides and lifts us up. For some, it is just their mother, and for others it could also be your wife, friends and more. For me there is also a deeper message here, you can go beyond the respect and love for those women and find the strength of your own feminine energy, just because you are a man does not mean that you do not have that energy within; let the women in your lives help you to find it and all it brings. With such a powerful message still raw in your mind, a heavy beat kicks in and the drums, keys, guitars and vocal samples, bring an uplifting sound that still keeps you moving with Karma. This is a short little track that looks at the outcomes of our choices when those choices are made with less than positive intentions. In fact, karma comes with all the choices we make, it is just our intentions that decide how the karma affects us. Violin notes bring in No Answer, with xylophone, guitars and a solid drum beat, the vibe is one with a reflective edge. This one looks at all those times we sit and question what’s going on around us, our mind swimming in a see of questions but, try as we might, there seems to be to answers forthcoming from inside, even as we look externally for something that will help form those answers, nothing comes and those questions continue to float around, deep in our mind awaiting the time when an answer may be forthcoming. There is a short jazzy skit at the end of the track that is different to the vibe of the track and it kind of jumps out and surprises you, just like an old question arising or the sudden answer to an old question finally falling into place…

Field Of Crows hits with a pounding drum beat and sampled vocal sounds that give this one a questioning vibe, following on quite nicely from the last track. Frisco Boogie muses over questions of what it would be like to see through the eyes of a crow or even to be a crow. These are questions that scientific study of these birds is only beginning to give us insights to. Crows exhibit many of the traits that we humans do so, perhaps we are not that different? Maybe it would be a good thing to be able to experience how animals and birds see humans and how we treat them, as it might teach us a thing or two and help us treat them and each other in a better way? With those interesting thoughts in our heads, we move into the penultimate track of the album Turmoil In The Trenches. Horns, bass and keys compliment the beat, bringing with it a contemplative vibe. We find Frisco Boogie sat on a park bench, taking time out to watch as the loophole continues around him. Here he watches as life passes by and sees the turmoil that exists in the flow of the moment; a place where we all live, side-by-side but, not passing like ships in the night but, with a tension between us that brings with it a sense of not knowing what’s coming, either from other person directly but, also from outside, indirectly, with so much turmoil around us, sometimes you just have to sit on that park bench and take some time, just for you. The final track of the album is also the first single that was released, One Question. Eerie keys bring us into this one with some vocals that pose the one question we all come back to at some time in our lives; as the beat kicks in Frisco Boogie opens up in depth about not just that one question but, all the things that bring you to that moment, that question, go back over all those moments that brought you here to this single most important question and ask yourself, if you could relive one moment that would express everything about you before this point, where would you take yourself…

After listening to this album, you kind of find yourself thinking about things, questioning if you are really living in a loophole, and if you are is there really going to be a moment in which you come back to the beginning once more or will you reach a moment in which the loophole appears to end with one final question? In fact, is this life, this loophole just an on-going series of questions, some with answers and some without? Perhaps that is the purpose of this album and it’s a very ingenious concept, to leave the listener with more questions. It is also a very healthy energy, the more we keep our mind active the healthier it remains and if we have to question everything; then perhaps that what we do?

I love music and I do enjoy that listening to music allows you to get lost anywhere you want, there are no borders when it comes to getting lost in music, and more than that, I love it when the music I listen to gives me something to get my mind buzzing with thoughts and questions because that allows me to become creative with my words and Lost In The Loophole is one of those albums that does that, leaving you questioning everything long after the last beat and the last word have passed by.

I mean, even if you set aside how this album may affect you, you are left with an enjoyable album that has Hip Hop music at its core. Every beat is for those that enjoy the head nod style boom bap sound and will keep you moving from top to bottom, even if you chose not to immerse yourself in the deeper meaning of the tracks. You will also find that Frisco Boogie has an adept way of using his wordplay and insightful lyrics to good effect across the entire album. The appearances by DJ Glibstylez and Local Healers add the icing to the cake or the jam in the sponge, if you will, giving the album an extra dose of flavour that works so well but, first and foremost this is crafted by Frisco Boogie who knows exactly what he wants and expertly crafts it from words and music.

Overall, however you chose to listen to the album and whether you chose to immerse yourself in it or not, just enjoy it. This is a superb album for Frisco Boogie to bring as his debut on Hidden Hobby Records and shows why he is such a great signing for the label. Lost In The Loophole is most definitely one not to sleep on, in my humble opinion.

Lost In The Loophole is out now.

I’ll see ya next time, maybe with more questions, maybe not…

Steve.

LINKS

Get Lost in the Loophole on Bandcamp Here:

https://hiddenhobbyrecords.bandcamp.com/album/lost-in-the-loophole

https://friscoboogie.bandcamp.com/album/lost-in-the-loophole

Stream on Spotify Here:

https://open.spotify.com/album/

Hidden Hobby Records Socials:

https://www.instagram.com/hidden_hobby_records/

Frisco Boogie Socials: