Migos - Culture

Migos
Culture
2017
Spotify

Donald Glover recently called Migos "The Beatles of this generation", which as crazy as it sounds very well be true. What is the most interesting thing about that statement however is how seemingly unknown Migos have been until very recently. They have never cracked the top 40 until last month but Quavo, Offset and Takeoff have featured on tons of tracks and released their own stuff to much acclaim. This new record Culture however has the Atlanta rappers poised for an explosion. What the trio manage to do for the most part is take trap music from a purely dark exercise into one that is more melodic and more open for different sounds to creep in. "Call Casting" one of the singles, has a piano line that sounds just like a simple standup piano somehow perfectly crafting the beat. Migos' rapid fire rapping allows them to "skrrrt" and "chirp" their way through each track while still leaving a barrage of savage in their wake. The trio's stories mostly focus on life living in Atlanta, the crack game, the trap game and coming up from nothing. Some of their lines are even childish but that just makes them all the more appealing. Migos never feel like they are taking themselves all that seriously, like even when they are talking about crime there is still this sly wink to the crowd, that they know what is going on. Yet it still bangs from start to finish, Migos truly have their fingers on the pulse of what's happening.

What you realize pretty early is that Glover is right about Migos, but perhaps not in the obvious way. Clearly as musicians The Beatles are far superior to Migos, no question, but in terms of seizing a moment or being the soundtrack to a whole generation of people they both did and are doing that. The Beatles spoke to their generation of fans in the same way that Migos speaks to theirs. 2 Chainz has yet another great feature on the record, and his is actually the best of the very few. The album really does stay at one level throughout which can at times become a bit boring, but there is so much going on in the background of these tracks that there is always some new fun element in the background. The production this time around is also more slick a product of Migos working with some of the beat producers Atlanta has to offer. What is very clear is that Migos can turn almost anything into a party with their vibe alone and that really does translate to Cultures. You can also see elements on this record where Migo have tried something new showing how willing they are to really go out there to find a sound that suits them. Culture is a special record and one steeped in being in the moment. Only time will tell if it lasts.

8.4 out of 10