Faster Than a Speedy Bullet

Sovereign Soul is Myka 9 & Factor’s second collaboration and these 13 tracks are as unique as it’s contributors. Myka 9 has been around since the heyday of hip hop. He was a cornerstone of the early 1990s West Coast underground scene and, along with his work with the group Freestyle Fellowship, helped establish the sub-genre of jazz rap. Factor is a Canadian hip hop producer and founder of Side Road Records whose knack for funky old school beats and a keen ear for detail has made him a hot commodity for some of the best MCs in the business.

From the press of the play button, Myka 9 & Factor waste no time. The title track “Sovereign Soul” starts out with a ’70s sounding guitar riff, leading to Myka switching between singing the hook and rapping the chorus as if he is two separate entities. “You are Free” picks up the pace quiet a bit and introduces listeners to the tongue twisting talents this rhyme sayer possesses. “Mind Heights” finds a middle ground in-between the two styles. The chorus highlights his more laid back vocal harmonies, while the verses demonstrate his contortionist-like ability to twist words and syllables in ways that seem inhuman.

Ending the album is the track “In So Far As We Know.” If one were to travel in time to the year 2063 via Doc Brown’s Delorean, this would be the music playing when you arrived. To merely say it’s ahead of it’s time is an understatement. Sovereign Soul is filled with profound lyrics that resonate long after the music stops. Some songs seem out of place when listened to alongside the rest of the album, yet every track standing on it’s own merits deserves a listen. Myka 9 may be a veteran to the genre but this is proof that he is still a long way from retirement.