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Dubgee Truth Review by Gary Hill This new hip hop set has some strong music. It also has some numbers that miss the mark a bit. Then again, I'm probably not the target audience for this as I'm not a real hip hop fan, although I do have artists I like. As you might expect with hip hop, a lot of this earns parental advisories. This review is available in book (paperback and hardcover) in Music Street Journal: 2020 Volume 2. More information and purchase links can be found at: garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2020.

Track by Track Review

Truth There is a cool keyboard sort of sound at the start of this. The music has a retro soul groove. It's a good opener.

Let the Music Heal Me The vocals on this come in sung. The rap comes in after that. This is a less melodic and more percussive tune in terms of the musical arrangement. The sung parts of this are classic in tone. This number doesn't work as well for me as the opener did. It just feels a little awkward to me.

Coffee and C.R.E.A.M. There is a cool old school groove this thing. It's a bit bouncy and a lot of fun. It's an instrumental bit that's less than a minute-and-a-half long.

Hustle Harder (feat. Attikus) Starting with a rap with no music accompanying it, some music comes after a bit. The music arrangement on this is stripped back. This is another that doesn't work as well for me.

Gotta There is a cool energy to this thing. The music in the backdrop is a loop of some really old tune. This is another that feels just a bit awkward, but somehow that oddness is one of the charms of the tune.

Lunch Break I love the cool electronic groove on this thing. It has a great funk rock vibe to it. This is another short instrumental bit, and it's one of my favorite tunes here, really.

Maria Parts of this work really well. Other parts feel a bit out of sorts. The musical loops are pretty cool. The track gets better as it goes along.

Time for Some Action There are some fast paced bits in the back drop that feel like world music that's been sped up. It works really well. The raps are laid over the top of that concept. This is one of my favorite tunes here.

Not Enough A bouncy, keyboard sounding backdrop holds this cut down for the raps. This is another of the standout pieces here. It works so well.

Hittin My Stride Retro rocking sounds make up the groove on this killer cut. It's another instrumental bit and one of my favorite pieces of the whole set.

Off Duty A party cut, this is fun stuff. It has a good energy and groove to it.

Money's Worth Nothing The sample on this comes from Dire Straits' "Money for Nothing." Given the title and theme, that makes sense. This one doesn't work as well as some of the others, but it has its charms.

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