Mixtape of the Week: “Soul like Khan”

Soul Khan is a battle rapper trying to break into the rap world, and if not the mainstream, at least the underground stream that runs right below the attention of the general populace. His first major effort is his tape, “Soul Like Khan.”

What he served up is an interesting fusion of jazzy self-aware rap that sees itself as part of a larger society of hip-hop and straight up battle rhymes. Khan’s flow is pretty much unchanging, but this isn’t really a bad thing. He machine guns through every track, his mesmerizing voice pounding through bar after tongue-twisting bar. It is a verbal barrage, and you can either let it flow over your ears or try to pick it apart to see what is really going on.

The production matches Khan’s rapping, mixing booming bass with piano and horn loops. It is music both subtle and remarkably upfront, perfectly suited to Khan’s brand of lyricism.

But at the end of the day, Khan is a battler, so everything on the tape comes with the same tongue-in-cheek, punchline-heavy attitude that accompanies that brand of rap. This might best be captured by the intro to one of the songs, in which Khan requests that, “Ladies and gentleman, let’s get on some deep, intellectual, superscientific shit!” before giving way to the song’s hook (and title): “Suck my dick!”

At 41 minutes, and for a price of $Free.99, there’s no reason anyone interested in double-time rhymes and the battle aesthetic shouldn’t check out Khan.

Songs to get it for:

“Shot Glass Magnified feat. Sene” (the tape’s best track, and worth getting if you don’t get the rest), “For That, Soul Like Khan”

Incredibly creepy music video for “Fahrenheit” in which Khan kills evil clowns with a crowbar before going home to his wife who is, surprise, a clown:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6vNFqGz7RU

Get the tape:

http://www.mediafire.com/?gnxhyxeztpgox24

--Trap Yates '14