The Alpha Jerk Review

 

    Well, 2021 is finally here and even though we are only into the first day of another long and foreseeably difficult year, Atlanta rapper KEY! and New York underground producer Tony Seltzer have graced us with an album that perhaps as KEY! tweeted on its release “has no skips.” KEY! has been making waves in the music scene for a while now and even though most of you have no idea who he is, this man knows how to make great music. One of the most unique and adventurous voices out today, KEY! is able to utilize his spontaneous and contagious style to craft an LP that is purely what he alone embodies; crazy, subliminal weirdness. The Alpha Jerk is an inventive look into the eerie nature of KEY! and is further elevated to new heights thanks to tremendous production from Tony Seltzer.

    The album is only 40 minutes long while it boasts a hefty 17 tracks, and perhaps in some cases this is not enough time for each track to shine, but they almost all surely rise to the occasion as Tony Seltzer and KEY! combine to deliver some of the most innovative and creatively unique Atlanta trap bangers ever. An “Alpha Jerk” isn't a commonly explicated term, but is loosely defined as a state of mind that one can fall into and become trapped, so the album in its entirety is like one big thougth bubble that KEY! cannot get out of, and the songs off of this record do their best to reflect this feeling. Cuts like “Clinical” utilize some familiar percussion with infectious, loud bass and drums, and unique 808s and high-hats that dance around and are each able to sound intriguing by themselves. The synths here are constantly floating around, resonating with a manner that is intoxicating and filled with mystique. There is this cell phone ring tone that has been sampled in the back to give this track a tenacious and riveting edge. “Xylophone” shows off the more zany sides of both KEY! and Tony Seltzer. KEY! flows in a fun and energizing pattern over production that has used a chopped up xylophone sample coupled with vibrant synth chords and other cosmic, psychedelic accents and fluctuations. KEY! raps “I’m a Slumdog and I wants to be a millionaire” and later flows incredibly over the lyrics of “ Smile like this when you gettin’ that money, 200 hundred on the dash midnight clubbing, everybody love him like McLovin, this my Glock bitch I’m still thuggin.” You cannot help but smile and feel the fun and creativeness that jumps out of these tracks, as KEY! and Seltzer are able to trade good vibes back and forth constantly. “Voodoo” showcases some beautiful percussion, with fleeting snares and rumbling bass. KEY! is able to croon and harmonize over an instrumental with angelic synths resonating in the background. This is the kind of cut to bump on the late night while driving beneath the starry sky.

    Darker cuts such as “Destruction” are heavy with the abusive bass and rambling percussion, and the synth chords chopped up in the production are accented with tones of urgency and mysteriousness. A vocal sample in the background floats around and echoes constantly, conveying the sense that KEY! is fighting with his own thoughts and is unaware of his perceived destructive nature. He raps “Hey man what ya doing to make you self-destroying, ok I see the hate and I avoid it, she might be the world, and I’ll destroy it. We can see from these bars that KEY! knows what he might do, and others and their influences could potentially set him off. Tracks such as “Narcissistic” are very introspective while also conveying the darker side of him and how he loves himself more than everything else. KEY! raps here “Dark skin I make money dipped in melanin, I don’t spend my own cash, that’s how I stack that, I’m focused I’m locked in like Alcatraz. Along with the cleverness of that melanin bar, we can deduce that he is ultimately concerned with himself and just like the title of the track as well as the album, KEY! will do whatever it takes to preserve himself. “Rida Rida” really showcases what Tony Seltzer can do, giving us a slowed down minimalistic trap instrumental, highlighted by a daunting synthed out horn loop and some orchestral sounds that give off a superbly puzzling vibe. The production also features a static overlay on top of the entire track that gives this cut an old timey vibe like a film set in a desolate, winter landscape. The cut “Wylin” is the shortest track on here, but with the talent seeping from both KEY! and Seltzer, it does not disappoint. Distorted synths echo in and out all over the place and the piano laced instrumental gives us that classic trap vibe. Heavy bass and punchy percussion give this track a catchy and head-nodding energy. Different sounds and effects accent the production throughout and some lovely, euphonious vocals from KEY! complete the bizzare and infectious nature of this track.

    The features on The Alpha Jerk are also pretty refined as well, with most of them complimenting KEY! and Tony Seltzer’s production with grace and top tier quality. On the cut “No Sirski,” the production is arguably the most mainstream and catchy, which isn’t a problem at all as the rising and falling chord progression is synthed out of its mind, sounding like a Lil Uzi cut that has been put on crack and given a huge hit of DMT, able to sound beautiful and absolutely crazed at the same time. Lil Yachty features on here and for once in his life sounds phenomenal. His vocals have his classic auto tuned sound, but his delivery is filled with energy and he doesn't sound like he is having a stroke, and just like the nature of this album, Yachty sounds like he is having fun and his inflections are wavy and ambient all at once. He doesn’t have any unique lyricism going on, but that is to be expected and takes nothing away from this feature. With the raging percussion, this cut is probably the catchiest song on here, and that is further pushed along by KEY! and his plethora of vocal inflections and deliveries. “Fashion week” is a funky, groovy banger complete with ringing synths and complimented by little intermittent bits of percussion that make this track peculiar and absolutely addictive. KEY! raps on the hook “Fashion week” over and over as if to convey the fun and shenanigans associated with the lifestyle of these fashion shows, later saying that “He can’t control himself.” Sonny Digital features on here and flows like a maniac. He raps “You ain’t making no waves little nigga cause you lame, and yo fashion weak, how you smokin’ on zaza wearing that Zara, cause yo fashion cheap.” This feature is so complimentary to KEY! because Sonny Digital is able to match the playfulness and exuberance of the entire record. His bars are funny and quite clever and he is able to switch up his inflections and deliveries akin to how KEY! does as well.

    448Rasta is one of the downsides to this album due to his feature on “Heart.” The production on here does not help either as the instrumental is overloaded with synths and the beat is so fast paced that the percussion sounds super cheap as it has to try and keep up. 448Rasta sounds like he his rapping with a speech impediment, slurring his words and crooning some ugly vocals. He evens out eventually and starts to sound a bit more professional later on, and even the production slightly mellows out as well but both these improvements cannot save this track from being as underwhelming as it was. KEY! does little to save the track as well, as he sounds pretty bland as compared to the rest of the cuts on here. Even though his energy and nature do show an attempt to salvage the song, it is ultimately not enough to keep this track from complete sensory overload. “Ima Star” has decent production, with the bass being ridiculously abusive and probably the best on the entire record. The synths are a little jarring and seem to do nothing to evolve the actual quality of the production. The songwriting isn’t too spectacular either, with KEY! rapping over the hook “Ima star” repeatedly in the most annoying way possible, and at one point saying “She just wanna take some pictures in my bathroom, she just wanna show her ass she know I act a little badly. These bars are just a little bit cringe worthy and sub-par for KEY! in general. Quadie Diesel features on this track and actually delivers some fantastic energy in is his verse, but has nothing of importance to really say and is off beat too much. Ultimately this track was bogged down by the mediocre production and lackluster performances throughout.

    Even with some of the downsides to this record, they are almost completely glossed over with the spectacular energy and talent from both KEY! and Tony Seltzer. Cuts like “Scott Disick” and “Send it” are great closers to this project.  “Scott Disick” features some percussion that could only be described as perfect and the dreamy piano loop is breathtaking. This creative trap vibe is pushed along by KEY! and his amalgamation of inflections and lyrical deliveries. “Send it” features probably the most unique synths on this record, hitting us with these floating keys that dance around the cut with a ambient and psychedelic nature. KEY! has some great deliveries as well rapping “Niggas ain’t from the soil they ain’t got no soul, knock a nigga off, domino, knock a nigga off, adios.” His inflections and mind state seem distant and ethereal, while also being very in the moment as well, with his bars ringing in clever and very true.

    This record from KEY! and Tony Seltzer is a fantastic way to kick off the new year. Virtually every sound and element on these tracks were curated strictly and almost perfectly for KEY! thanks to Mr. Seltzer. The crafty and mysterious nature of KEY! is at the forefront here, delivering flows and bars that are distinct and unlike anything else in the genre right now. Tony Seltzer has proved on this record he is a top tier producer that can create instrumentals that are zany, vibrant and catchy while also complimenting another artist’s style in picturesque fashion. The Alpha Jerk is a near perfect attempt to formulate a record that is as creative as it is, complete with riveting production and infatuating flows and deliveries. This collaboration album between KEY! and Tony Seltzer is a deep dive into the mindstate of the enigmatic KEY!, and is exactly how to start a new year in dynamic fashion, leaving the listener viciously craving more from these two musical savants.

 

 

Score: 8/10