Giving us a taste of trap from down under, Samuel Jr. shares their latest single, ‘M92’ with RGM.
As with the majority of standard trap tunes, we can expect some sort of anticipated build up to set the scene for the rest of the song. In ‘M92’s case, we get a condensed, reverberated voice over doomy electric bass pads, thickened out by Samuel Jr.’s lead auto-tuned vocals joining the mix. Admittedly, at first listen I wasn’t expecting much more than your tried-and-true stylistic choices of trap but it’s safe to say I was pleasantly surprised. That’s not to say ‘M92’ is a ground-breaking, never-before-done piece, but it does carry enough of a spark to trigger something a little more exciting.
It’s pretty obvious that Samuel Jr. has paid significant attention to the kind of ambiance they’re wanting to radiate from the instrumentation; imposing, atmospheric and forceful. Though each element of the composition is drowned within some sort of electronic effect, the clashy electronica adds a sort of ambience that is sometimes lacking in trap music, suitably expanding the gravity of the music.
The vocal phrasing, however, does feel particularly jolty in certain areas of the track. There are places within the verse in particular where Samuel Jr. struggles to condense the number of syllables into the designated triplet beats, leaving the lead sounding a little cluttered. The articulation too struggles in certain places; though mumble-rap is a notorious sound in this specific genre, there still needs to be some element of pronunciation to keep the lead in a powerful position.
‘M92’ is a decent endeavour into trap music- it’s exciting, the production is aesthetic and the use of texture within the music is certainly creditable. With this being the single to kickstart their career, Samuel Jr. has shown themselves to be a musician worthy of the genre.
Also on RGM 👇