Album Review: Maxo Kream - Brandon Banks
For someone whose debut studio album dropped only last year, the amount of hype surrounding rap up-and-comer Maxo Kream is considerable, even if most mainstream listeners have not heard his name, let alone his music. Aside from the ultra-modern blend of Southern hip-hop and trap that makes him sound more relevant than many of his peers, what makes Maxo stand out most is his undeniable charisma, a compelling blend of arrogance, optimism, and playfulness that lends his already clever words an additional layer of effectiveness. But on Brandon Banks, his mood is dour and melancholy at least as often as it is exuberant, and the impression one ultimately comes away with is of a collection of mostly homogeneous tracks that deliver an atmosphere more than a coherent story. Some moments are more effective than others, but the world that Maxo pulls the listener into is uniquely colourful among a horde of his more vapid contemporaries.
If the bright and funky synths on the opener Meet Again fail to sell the album's charm right off the bat, then Maxo's lively, loose flow will more than make the case, even when juxtaposed against a painfully honest hook: "I'd rather by carried by 6 before I'm judged by 12". The verses find him speaking to a friend in prison, bouncing back and forth between empathetic reassurance and gritty realism; ultimately it is Maxo's blunt candor that makes up for any lack of clever wordplay ("You can't be there like a father and it's fuckin' with you mentally/Court appointed lawyer got my bro like half a century"). His troubled relationship with his father has always been a recurring theme in his rhymes, and if the mesh of their faces on the record's cover wasn't enough of a clue, Bissonnet makes it clear early on that Maxo has much more to say on the topic: "I have my pops inside my life, but right now that shit don't matter/He'd been locked up most my life, so I feel just like a bastard".
Though Maxo's blatant honesty often puts him a leg above most of his peers, the few features he includes on the album do show a discerning taste in talent, as well as an uncanny ability to make the most of his guests. The Relays sounds much more like a Travis Scott trap banger than anything Maxo would normally rap over, but Travis' appearance on the hook (alongside his subsequent verse) help give the simile-heavy track a legitimacy it sorely needed, even if Maxo is still clearly out-rapping him. Similarly, he and Megan Thee Stallion fit perfectly on the unabashedly sexual She Live; their combined efforts create a passable distraction from the album's more serious moments, if a thoroughly inane one. Neither Maxo nor ScHoolboy Q are particularly poetic on 3AM, but the grimy beat is a much better fit for Q's talents than anything on his last underwhelming album; the same praise cannot be given to A$AP Ferg on Murda Blocc, however, whose attempts at sounding menacing are constantly undercut by subpar lyrics and his constant barking dog ad-libs.
What makes the standout tracks sound so refreshing is the confluence of Maxo's unique approach to rap with production and songwriting that compliment his flow. For all his assets, however, Maxo cannot help but occasional slip into a less distinctive cadence, the generic trap instrumental and flow of Drizzy Draco being the most egregious example. As the record draws on, Maxo struggles to innovate on a sound that has begun to grow stale, with later cuts such as Pray 2 The Dope and Brothers barely a league above the most rudimentary of radio hits. On their own, these tracks are not particularly vexing; as a whole, they serve to detract from the otherwise fresh and inventive experience that Maxo attempts to deliver.
Brandon Banks may not be as consistent or cohesive as one might hope for, but the undeniable character that Maxo Kream brings to the mic leaves it no less enjoyable for its flaws. The recurring thematic devices, particularly Maxo's relationships with his father and his life on the streets, serve not as rigid plot through lines but as constant reminders of his precarious upbringing, a sword of Damocles that still overshadows the rapper's success to this day. One might be forgiven for not gleaming all that on an initial listen, though; Maxo's optimistic swagger and smooth, energetic flow make it all to easy to just be enveloped in the steady stream of his words, even if the music beneath them is far from original. That he is still one of the most exciting new faces in rap today cannot be forgotten, even if this album is only a taste of what he is capable of.
7/10
Favourite Tracks: Meet Again,Change, 3AM