Jasey Giles has chronicled a tale of love and loss with ‘Observations’, a stirring hip-hop record that marks the Gold Coast musician’s debut.
The 13-track album, which was born during the COVID lockdowns and has been four years in the making, arrives with a palpable self-assuredness, as Giles delves into vulnerable topics and flits between the styles of rap and folk.
The album begins with the atmospheric and spacious synths of ‘I GOTTA’, a commanding opener that’s carried by propulsive trap beats and Giles’ captivating vocal croon.
It’s a sizzling R&b heater that recalls the likes of Brent Faiyaz or PartyNextDoor, but Giles makes it his own with his unique cadence and spoken word samples.
Later in the song, Giles switches up the flow alongside punchier percussion and grittier delivery, showcasing a spirit of versatility that continues throughout the entire tracklist.
On ‘GHOST MODE’ he veers away from the trap rhythms to sing alongside acoustic guitar melodies, forefronting his buttery, Frank Ocean-like vocals, while ‘QnA’ coasts on melancholic piano keys for a bedroom heater that feels like something of a ballad.
Giles’ ability to draw from an eclectic sonic palette continues on ‘I REMEMBER’, a bouncy and infinitely catchy trap-pop cut that could feature on a Kid Laroi album.
It features one of the album’s most infectious flows, but Giles switches things up again with ‘WEDNESDAY NIGHT’, a soul-rap cut that brims with the kind of jazzy flourishes you’d hear in a speakeasy.
Elsewhere, we get another taste of Ocean’s earlier work with album standout ‘NAIL IN THE COFFIN’, a bonafide pop cut with its guitar-driven instrumentation and vocal melodies you’ll be humming along to for days.
For a lesser artist, dipping into so many sounds might’ve felt dizzying, but Giles connects it all through the sheer brilliance of his rapping, and the incisiveness of his lyrics.
Doing away with the braggadocious energy that informs too much of the hip-hop genre, Giles instead offers the earnestness and vulnerability of Loyle Carner, musing on everything from feelings of pride and pressure (‘I GOTTA’) to seasonal romance (‘GHOST MODE’) and rebound flings as a remedy for heartbreak (‘DESIRES’).
Giles’ ability to tread such complex lyrical territory is only enhanced by his knack for flitting between flows with Kenrick-like precision, and his ability to deliver on both style and substance reaches its peak on the final track.
The catchiest and most distilled example of Giles’ sound, ‘GOD DAMN’ brims with razor-sharp and hilarious quips, and serves as a fun and worthy culmination of his efforts.
What all of it amounts to is a project that brims with personality, traversing as many tales of love and loss as it does of sound and genre. All of that and it’s only Jasey Giles’ debut album, so be sure to watch this space.
Listen to Jasey Giles’ album ‘Observations’ below.
