It was only a few years ago that Dequincy Coleman-McRae (a.k.a. Moosh) and Oliver Feighan (a.k.a. Twist) would rendezvous at a friend’s house after school to make music in the basement. They would spend hours perfecting beats and rhymes in private, mastering their art in a certain comfort that only the basement could provide. For their newest mixtape, Back To The Basement, OCD: Moosh & Twist try to bring those experiences to life for their fans.
The energy of the album is reflected in their lead single, “Casino Girl.” More often than not, the duo opts for synthesizers and choruses that are a bit sing-songy. “This High,” and “Cupid’s Funeral” can be categorized as such. The lyrics on these tracks are strong, but seem out of place due to their being paired up with lagging hooks. Producer TyTyAmerica’s impressive work on “Top Of The World” for instance, falls by the wayside to an overpowering multi-tracked chorus. Fortunately, the ineffective song structure, while indicative of the mixtape’s shortcomings, is often alleviated by impressive lyrical performances from both Moosh and Twist. It’s obvious that they have talent, but they’re still learning to put the pieces together consistently, which is noticeable at times throughout the mixtape.
The upside of Back To The Basement’s unpredictability is that for each track that lags, like the aforementioned, there are great ones that balance it all out. While the high-energy, uptempo tracks seem to be the preferred flavor for Moosh & Twist, they demonstrate an adept ability to switch things up accordingly. On “Break It Down” and “Butterfly” they deliver lyrics that are representative of the positive content they prefer without sounding overly preachy or corny. The beats mellow out and the energy slows down, but most importantly, strong hooks accompany these tracks. Instability may plague a portion of the mixtape, but greatness tends to follow quickly, which makes for a welcome surprise and keeps the listener interested.
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Back To The Basement is a solid collection of tracks that displays an array of varying sounds. While their command of the production and positive lyricism are worthy praise, the most notable thing about OCD: Moosh & Twist is that their craft contains a distinctly human element. Both artists are masters of communication, as demonstrated by their abilities to capture a vibe, be it for the party-people or the conscious Hip Hop fans. Their personae have made the duo extremely endearing to audiences everywhere, and should assure them continued success in future endeavors.
DX Consensus: “EP Worthy”
