TogetherAsOne - Palms, Vol. 1 (review)
This conventional hip-hop collective’s first streaming album is joyous, prideful, and as fierce as they are stoned.
Score 6/10
The Rio Grande Valley can be years behind on everything — technology, industry, commercial development — with independent art and entertainment being no exception. The latest release from this popular hip-hop collective is an example of music reflecting the environment. While there are occasions of modern trap bass, the album usually sticks with 90’s boom-bap/hardcore backdrops and vocal performances. It’s more than having derivative flows and instrumentals, it’s the hierarchy of values. Raps over hooks, scattered punchlines over linear narrative, and the more syllables you can fit in each bar, the better. However, this record by TAO shows us that this isn’t always a bad thing.
For an album that’s mostly about weed and representing the RGV, this group knows how to make a huge statement out of it, especially on the opening song. The local scenery, socio-economic issues, pride, and machismo are exhibited on Ghost Town through percussive flows over a lethargic beat that sounds like it’s being incapacitated by the RGV heat. With lines like “Ghost town, hold it down for the underground. Palms trees, low trucks, and we smoking loud,” both locals and outsiders can appreciate the scene-setting here and throughout the album.
Their vocal delivery comes with clear cut enunciation, strong melody, and stern control. The squad chants and double-time raps are reminiscent of legendary groups like Bone Thugs-N-Harmony and Three 6 Mafia. The boastful punchlines come with a wide range of pop culture references (“I’m hip-hop’s Ginobili, better hide your trophies”) and a million fun ways to say they smoke weed (“Puff puff pass, take your turn, No Sanders but feel the burn.”)
There’s a strong mixtape feel due to the thin instrumentation, but the atmospheric synth lines — like in the spooky Not Enough, the smokey 42.0, and the icy desolation of Pull Up — fill the air and add theme. The double bass in Jaws is obviously inspired by the movie, but the loose theme falls flat when there’s nothing menacing about the raps. It teases a cartoony horrorcore song, then fails to materialize.
The big voice of Roll$ may be distinct, even bringing a slight Killer Mike vibe here and there, but too often the rappers are interchangeable. The moods don’t change and the personalities don’t stand out enough, but the aggression, humor, and seemingly effortless approach blend so well.
While the styles are a bit dated and the beats too bare, it’s a simple album with some fire while also being a fun time with the boys. It’s a worthy celebration of hip-hop, marijuana, and culture.
Score: 6/10
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Listen to Palms, Vol. 1 below, also streaming on Apple Music and YouTube