A proper starting point for those not familiar with him, Fly Anakin's 'Frank' showcases consistent swaths of bursts of personality and swampy murky production... That may require some varied tune-ups along the way.
Before this debut record, Fly Anakin had already contributed enough work on the projects that he has input on for the past dozen years. Contribution as a producer and as a rapper himself, working with other underground artists from Pink Siifu, Big Kahuna OG, and other musicians that tap into murky and abstract soundscapes and texture blurs. It might feel weird for cases like this where putting out a debut record after going through production and collaboration works for years can feel like a rehash or a retread of what they’ve explored in the past, but for Fly Anakin, it’s a buildup of his own unique identity as a musician, and this “debut” record certainly mirrors that.
To note the quotations there, while it feels contradicting to call ‘Frank’ his debut record given his past contributions and projects, it certainly makes sense as a proper introduction to his already stacked portfolio. It lays the familiar soulful yet underground drapes that Fly Anakin already splashed upon in his past projects, but the inclusion of different producers outside of his mutant academy collective, focus on hooks, and the fact that he called it his debut because he has to pay costs for the mixing and mastering of the record certainly shows a shift in creative decisions and a nifty starting point for those who are not familiar with the style of underground, whirling hip-hop music that Fly Anakin and the rest of the mutant collective are creating.
As a result, it does make a mark on what Fly Anakin as a lyricist, producer, and rapper that has procured his inspirations from R&B and 90s hip-hop. His delivery is sharp and confrontational, but not exactly aggressive and rowdy which allows his flows to slip through the rumbling, soul-inflected samples without throwing away the warm colors of the production. Speaking of, there is a consistency towards the production that doesn’t melt away its hypnotic loops front the front to the back half of the record, especially helped out by the mixing and mastering that allows the vocals and the samples to be heard just right. This expresses some quality on the record, with ‘Bag Man’ due to the whirling vocal sample, ‘Black Be The Source’ with the wondeful features from Pink Siifu and Billz Egypt as they perform on top of a swampy, piano cascading beat, ‘No Dough’ with a swinging beat from Madlib that works wondrously for Fly Anakin, and ‘Underdog Theme’ with its slow and drolling soundscape.
On the other hand, the record struggles to keep its intrigue in longer bursts, and most of the blame comes from the lyricism, the chorus melodies, and Fly Anakin himself as a rapper. While Fly Anakin’s delivery is commendable for being consistent, he doesn’t bring a bit of variety with the flows besides his usual multisyllabic phrases that can run up short and doesn’t allow the songs to breathe due to how this kind of flow that he locks into the entire record blurs together and doesn’t bring up a memorable melody on those songs, especially to the songs that already run for a minute. Mentioning the lack of memorable melodies, while the additions of hooks are very welcome to make these songs stick, it’s mostly underwhelming and gets underpowered and blurred to no good due to Fly Anakin’s flow. And it really comes down to the lyrical content that feels confrontational towards the modern rap scene that he is in, which makes sense towards the attitude that he brings on his delivery. Problem is that even if there are subtle insights in his writing, they don’t come to the surface because they don't work well with his flow that rams through that insight too quickly, and the insight itself can pigeonhole into straightforward bluntness, which is a frustrating aspect of the record as the pieces of insights do have something to say even if it relies too much on confronting the scenes and limiting the aspect of introspection on Fly Anakin’s self.
This makes the record a cohesive yet frustrating project to go through. It’s a proper introduction to what Fly Anakin has achieved as a rapper and producer, now going through different rules from his usual isolated comfort zone that gives the record some well-needed mixing, choruses, and vigor on these songs. But that consistent vigor and flows from Fly Anakin himself fail to give more variety and dimensions to his rapping, which fails to process through the lyricism that glimmers but also limits its glimmer through confrontational statements and less introspective musings. But to state Fly Anakin himself, he has improved his skills past this record, and while this record decently puts up a spark towards Fly Anakin’s work, it does not represent his best explorations just yet.
Favorite Tracks: Bag Man, Black Be The Source, Underdog Theme, No Dough
Least Favorite Track: Grammy Snubnose