EP Review: Mars & Barzini live their most robust lives on “In Spirit”

The two young men, turn up, feel the rush, and savour what it means to possess youth, and be plugged into the Nigerian dream.

If any music group epitomises the cross-pollination that makes Nigerian Hip-hop become so diverse and interesting, it is the duo of Mars and Barzini. The Afro-Groove duo combines so well to hop between subgenres, becoming sonic chameleons with each new record.

Signed to TGIF Music, their new EP, “In Spirit”, is an entertaining journey through diverse music formations, ranging from Afrobeat to Trap. The end result is an appealing body of work that works the sweet spot between experimental ‘cool kids’ leanings, and pop music indulgence.

It’s a project made by two young men, turning up, feeling the rush, and savouring what it means to possess youth, and be plugged into the Nigerian dream. They lack a care in the world, and it is reflected in the consumerism and whelming consumerism that they serve.

 

Opener ‘More songs’ is a chest-thumping offering which hides their fundamental braggadocio under a comic delivery, “For the club we jam them, Instagram girls that are janded,” they brag in a manner that amuses with a mellow ginger. The title track carries an insistent Trap beat underlining their grass-to-grace story. ‘Slow mo’, a record about woman-wooing, has Phizbarz bringing a little something extra. They extend this into ‘Thank you’, showing gratitude with “the way your body move, girl I thank you.” Although this isn’t the run-of-the-mill ode, she’s got to operate on a level where her lover is a proud ‘Marijuana smoker’. The laziness is ‘Shege’ should be turned into art, borders on psychedelic, which isn’t surprising. It’s a song about drugs.

 

“In Spirit” also contains a fresh take on the Mars-Barzini chemistry. They complement each other to a level where you can almost feel the pair of them driving each other on, good-naturedly trying to outwit each other with unexpected stylistic switch-ups. With each record, the pair continue to grow both in the industry, musically, and interestingly, in spirit.

Listen to "In Spirit" EP on Soundcloud.

SOURCE - PULSE.NG posted by Campus94