The dynamic duo of the underground reconnect to deliver another great addition with their game-changing formula.
It comes with no surprise that Spitta and Alchemist go great together like music on a rainy day. The two have dominated the underground with their signature styles, leaving their mark on the game and influencing the next generation of hip-hop artists. When the announcement was made that the two would be releasing a fourth collaborative project (third if you don’t count Fetti with Freddie Gibbs), fans everywhere rejoiced and prepared for the genre’s most ambitious rapper/producer duo.
Continuance is just as the title displays – it is an extension of the blueprint sound that took over the underground and continues to dominate today.
Similar to their previous efforts, Continuance immediately sets the tone with Alchemist’s gloomy production building the overall atmosphere of the record. The hazy aura radiates a relaxed energy that perfectly coincides with Curren$y’s sluggish flow, allowing for the listener to drown in the lush experience.
With various collaborations under their belt and an undeniably amazing chemistry, the duo decide to continue building upon their game-winning formula while making room for slight innovations along the way. Aside from a few curve balls, Continuance is everything you would expect from a Curren$y and Alchemist project, plus more. The signature gritty Alchemist production shrouds the surface level while Curren$y continues to spit a million dollars worth of game for only thirty-eight minutes of your time. And who could forget the all-star roster of features ranging from new figures like Babyface Ray to familiar faces with Wiz Khalifa.
The amount of faith placed in Alchemist’s production brings out another beast in the New Orleans emcee as he lyrically outdoes himself yet again on Continuance. Delving deeper into Curren$y’s performance, the confidence placed in his underground partner puts the battery in his back to keep rapping circles around the whole game. This credence is well displayed on the album’s intro, where Spitta raps the lines: (“I could tell this project would be received well / I could smell, I ain’t gon’ smoke that bullshit that you tryna sell”).
From here on out, Spitta takes listeners on a hazy journey, well-narrated and accompanied by the underground’s finest beatsmith. It’s something peculiar about Alchemist beat’s that unlocks a new chamber within an emcee, but when the veteran producer can lock in with a deadly emcee of his choice, the end result eliminates any trace of mediocrity. This duo in particular, however, have established a strong foundation over the years where each collaboration finds the duo getting better with time – and Continuance is the perfect example.
Being the indirect sequel to their 2011 collaboration effort, Covert Coup, this project serves to give listeners the same feeling as the precursor while establishing a new foundation. “I’d never say it’s a part two, because that’d be a lot to try and emulate the way people hold that project dear to them” Spitta says during conversation with Flaunt. “It’s nostalgic to the year it came out and what was going on in everybody’s lives. To say I’m dropping part two to that is big shoes to fill. My plan really is to create something equally impactful, but a different animal.”
To say Curren$y and Alchemist delivered the perfect follow-up project would be an understatement. From the hypnotic backdrop laid on the intro “High Moon Mornings” to the soulfully poignant victory lap that makes up the outro “Kool & The Gang”, Continuance contains all core aspects that make a successful Curren$y and Alchemist collab while tuning it up a notch. The level of music they were shooting for comparing it to Covert Coup was enough for the project to have a chip on it shoulder, providing the drive and ambition to make this project great. The duo could have throw in some looseys and we as fans would have been satisfied but Spitta and Al went above and beyond to craft the best work they could.
As intended, Continuance shoots to further the legacy that two hip-hop veterans crafted as one, simultaneously etching out a new identity rather than wearing out the old blueprint. The two could have easily gave in to a nostalgia-blinded sequel, but their identical love for the craft kept them away from a half-assed effort.
8.5 / 10
Best tracks: “Obsession”, “Half Moon Mornings”, “Whale Watching”, “Corvette Race Stripes”, “Jodeci Tape”, “Kool & The Gang”. “Endurance Runners”
Mic Cheque 