Indie
Reviewed by Bob
Beats n/a
Rhymes n/a
Overall 
of 
What’s the criterion for an instrumental album? I mean, what do you look for? Are there any guidelines that should or shouldn’t be followed? Do you, personally, get excited for cut and dry song structure so that you can hone your emceeing skills over some nice beats? Or do you like to venture into the unknown instrumental proverbial wilderness and wait for nasty drums, intermingled samples, and change-ups galore? Maybe even a themed album that tells a story through the moods induced from the music? What if you almost got each of those, but never really got them? It’s a difficult place to be, especially as a fellow emcee and album reviewer – but, that’s where I ended when trying to ‘get’ Nickels’ “Anti-Depressant”.
If you want cut and dry beats, you got ‘em here for sure. Nothing is going to smack you upside the head and make you break your neck. Each track is paced at a relaxing BPM and almost brings lightheartedness to your current mood (trust me on that one; I drive rush hour traffic every day). However, that same formulaic approach to some songs doesn’t work for others. I found myself on the verge of absolutely diggin’ the tracks until I wondered if I was still on the same one, or if the CD had advanced recently. A quick drum fill or change up would have done wonders.
In spite of this, there were some standouts. Even though I was unsure of the track change on first listen, the seamless transition of the soft-synth buzz saw between tracks 2 and 3 worked well. “Experimental” and “Follow The Bleeder” (tracks 5 & 6), were definitely two of my favorites on the record. “Keep On Keepin’ On” made me want to get all emo and write a story. And then there were a few more electronica styled hip-hop tracks near the end.
Here’s the but: But – there are filler tracks that simply didn’t feel like they had any life. They reminded me of old school Fruity Loops sound kits – thin and brittle – with little or no real melody to focus on. Every other or every three tracks were like this. I guess you could say I felt burdened. In other words, right when I felt the momentum of the album, the gist of the platform, the style of beats… I’d feel… nothing. To tell you the truth, I like Nickels and I like what he’s done in the past with emceeing and producing. I really wanted to like this album. Overall, I just felt more confused and let down than lifted up. That would explain all the questions at the start of this review. I’d like to see Nickels take a little more time and fulfill a goal oriented project and not settle for filler.
For fans of: Lojique, Comunalien
Purchase CD – download – iTunes
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