There’s something immediately entrancing about the music of NUFFJAH. In a very short amount of time, the Melbourne-based artist Ben Arthur has developed a sound that’s all-consuming; it’s rooted in dark hip-hop but stretches into far more experimental and unexpected sonic territories.
With the release of his debut album, Gin Habits, Arthur has quickly built himself as one of the Australian hip-hop scene’s most exciting and promising emerging talents. If you’re not already across this artist, now is a perfect time fo you to change that.
On his debut album Gin Habits, Melbourne-based artist NUFFJAH delivers a woozy and gloomy slice of hip-hop brilliance.
All throughout the new album, NUFFJAH glides through a concoction of slick hip-hop and sparing electronica, delivering something uniquely his own. With gloomy, effortless lyrical flow and immersive beats, Gin Habits is oozing with imagination and inventiveness.
The album’s opening track, Poison Ivy, is a clear standout, immediately establishing the far-reaching scope of the album. Here, Arthur introduces numerous recurring themes of the album; early exposure to drugs and love. With duelling verses, an antagonist is woven lyrically through the track, building a cinematic kind of musical tension.
Bath Salts // Jake’s Story is a dream-like interlude, pulling you into the remainder of the album. Bored Kid continues on the ideas of youthfulness and disillusionment, while songs like Longing and Habits balance bleak lyricism with brighter production.
By the time the album’s closing track Moving on (ode to DOOM) reaches its final moments, you’ll have been roped in completely by Arthur’s woozy and spellbinding brand of music.
These may still be early days for this Melbourne artist, but judging by the quality of everything we’ve heard so far, I think we can safely expect plenty more great tunes. In the meantime, do yourself a favour and listen to Gin Habits above.
