Album Review: Starlito and DJ Burn-One – Renaissance Gangster

Guest Post by:

Marcus Krzastek Twitter: @marcusKRZ

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This mixtape had me at the Lou Bond sample.  My love affair with the mysterious singer’s “To The Establishment” stems from Outkast flipping a baseline for “Wailin’,”one of my favorites off ATLiens.  Seven years later, when Brother Ali used the intro vocals and piano as the framework for his hauntingly beautiful “Picket Fence,” I was sold.  Once I heard that familiar hum and piano cascade in “Alright”, the second track off of Starlito’s latest effort, Renaissance Gangster, I knew I was sticking in for the long haul.

Renaissance Gangster is a successful mixtape in many respects and is extremely focused on building two central themes.  The first is DJ Burn One’s haunting production, which accompanies every song, creating an almost ethereal backdrop for the mixtape.  The second is that Starlito is high and plans to stay high.  What makes this CD work is that those are two concepts that fit incredibly well together, with Starlito’s hazy flow mingling effortlessly with the production to create a remarkably cohesive sound.

Outside of “Alright,” which true to its sample is one of the standout tracks, “January Wright 2.0″ shows Starlito’s talent for crafting a song.  The first verse, especially, demonstrates Starlito’s effectiveness when he’s lyrically on point.

“I got bitches, they got bitches,
Some of em realer than some of these niggas,
Some of  ‘em booze, dont none of ‘em snitch,
And they fuck with me and all my homies,
Fuckin’ with me and all of my homies,
Trust me you don’t want it,
We gonna squeeze,
And you gonna leak,
And there’s gonna be a ceremony.”

Reading the lyrics alone doesn’t provide an accurate glimpse at how Starlito fits the bars into the beat, making the awkward structure work.  It’s verses like this that show why Starlito is worth paying attention to.  There are plenty of rappers with similar styles and content but very few who share his musical intuition.  Listening to this mixtape, that’s the thought that stuck with me.  Starlito just flat-out knows how to make the most of a beat and song.

Unfortunately for the mixtape, moments like the aforementioned don’t happen enough.  Starlito is sometimes too quick to coast on his talent, and a few verses come off lazy.  They’re still fine to listen to, but they don’t deliver on the promise showcased in other parts of the mixtape.  This inconsistency is what keeps this mixtape from becoming a break-through moment for ‘Lito.  Despite this, as someone who had only given Starlito limited attention previously, I’m definitely looking forward to what he comes out with next.