CT BOOM BAP: Last Shall Be First by New Haven’s KR tha Specialist
With heavy beats and a smooth flow, KR tha Specialist out of New Haven doesn’t mince word or waste time. His latest EP Last Shall Be First (LSBF) is a tour deforce and brings classic boom bap to Connecticut music.
Featuring boom bap, record scratching, and some in your face production, LSBF could have been released anytime between 1985 and today. KR tha Specialist, aka Kode Red, rhymes with confidence and never misses a beat. He’s relentless and balanced on the mic, mixing speed and consistency to create a timeless presence. The project name speaks to the divided times we live in, where a growing inequality gap exposes and exacerbates many of the problems in our society.
For the old heads out there, Kode Red has a style that lives in the same neighborhood as LL Cool J and Big Daddy Kane. This is especially visible on “Lose the Ego,” a track with elaborate instrumentation, featuring prominent horns, an old school snare and kick, and a tenacious MC.
From start to finish Kode Red is dealing fire. There are no bad tracks on LSBF, and with a run time of about 14 minutes, it’s over too soon. You’ll wish the intro had been made into a full-length track just to get another couple of minutes out of the entire EP. Over the course of the 5 tracks, Kode Red gives us enough variety to keep things interesting while keeping LSBF true to it’s Boom Bap roots.
When can we expect more from KR tha Specialist? I don’t know the answer to that, but with 6 releases since May 2020 on his BandCamp alone, it’s a safe bet we’ll be hearing from him sooner than later. With Last Shall Be First, he joins a growing list of Elm City rappers, including Radio Stevie, SotoLish, Siul Hughes, and Ceschi, who are bringing heat from the jump in 2021.
Head to KR tha Specialist’s BandCamp to listen and purchase Last Shall Be First along with the rest of his discography.
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Michael Stroneski, editor at mvsicthovght, has started several blogs and multi-media projects you’ve never seen. He is a life-long cheerleader for Connecticut and underground music. You can reach him at contact@mvsicthovght.com.