A Lackluster Attempt

Young Dangerous Heart is Subtitle’s newest venture, which, while having strong production values and style, isn’t an album that really deserves more than a few listens before it can be forgotten.One would think at first glance that this album would be amazing. Listing production credits by Deeskee, Alias, Octavius the album initially sounds promising. On first listen, it is a decent album. Subtitle’s distinct, flat-toned rapping is adorned with beats and rhythms spanning a mix of styles including trip-hop and house amongst others, meshing to help create a stark contrast. His lyrics are off-beat, with a large amount of subject matter dealing with technology and computers.

The problem with Young Dangerous Heart is that it loses its luster. After a few listens, there is nothing new to find, the lack of emotion in his voice becomes a drone, boring the listener with beats that don’t seem strong enough to stand on their own. Besides the boredom factor, the other problem seems to be that Subtitle’s lyrics sound very similar to Deltron 3030 and Dr. Octagon. Phrases like “All of this going on within my neural interface/while I’m rocking wet works in a cyberspace place/different type of time/now linear stretch”, could easily be seen on Deltron’s or Kool Keith’s albums, with better execution.

It’s nice to find an artist who is trying to do something different when most of the hip-hop community is trying to copy each other. However, if the execution isn’t there, and the tracks don’t help to keep the listener interested, then it’s a problem. Young Dangerous Heart is a mediocre album, but some people will find it amazing.