Macromantics - Moments In Movement (Album)
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Before I get started, let me clarify that I am not really into hip hop. I’ve got nothing against it, I’ve just never gotten into it. So Macromantics’ Moments in Movement sits awkwardly in my mp3 player playlist somewhere between M83 and the Mars Volta. When I hit “play” for the first time and was launched straight into the shaky trumpet melody lying underneath the braggadocio rap stylings of Miss Macro, I felt a little apprehensive of this album, instantly out of my indie rock comfort zone. But I persisted, and found myself nodding my head to the solid heavy bass after a few minutes. But what really kept me tuned in to this album is the lyrics. Every time she throws out a weird and wonderfully crafted line I wonder what she’s going to follow it up with… so I’m compelled by her words to keep listening.
She spins labyrinths of words, tricky rhymes and lines that bounce off each other with perfectly articulated attitude and wicked humour. A self professed “absurdist wordsmith”, Macromantics is mesmerizing with her raw urban poetry. Self righteous proclamations are balanced out by narratives of life in the city and touches of cheeky humour – “when I was a baby, I was so dope, I had the biggest crib”. The instrumentation is effective, though nothing amazing or new. Mostly it’s your standard drumkit and bass, but with little touches of synth, strings, brass and guitar to keep the melodies interesting. Macromantics presents a unique album cleverly crafted by producer Tony Buchen who has also worked with Kid Confucious, Entropic and Lior, to name a few.
I don’t really get interested until the start of the second and title track. The simple, childish melody as she sings about kites and bubbles somehow still sounds cool rather than cute. But nothing gets stuck in your head like her single “Scorch”, which triple J listeners will be familiar with after Moments in Movement was their feature album last week, "Scorch" being on high rotation. Happy “na na na’s” turn swiftly into punchy, angular verses punctuated by erratic drums and a jangly guitar riff. The highlight for me, though, is "Locksmith", featuring Sage Francis. Chunky, lumbering chords are the strangely captivating opening – a huge contrast to the rest of the album, well placed as track 6. Robotic voices replace the emceeing at first, though it does return, creating a mysterious, mechanical environment that is unlike any hip hop I’ve ever heard.
It is refreshing to see a girl in hip hop who does not need to flaunt her body or the fact that she is a girl for popularity. There is not a single picture of her on the cover – instead, an enchanting, sprawling watercolour and ink drawing by Lart Cognac Berliner; nor are there references to her sexuality in the poetry. So if this girl gets big – which she is really starting to – it will be all thanks to the music.
Overall, this is not a typical album. For those who are not familiar with genre, some of the tracks start to blur into one and unless you’re focusing on the poetry (I cannot just call them lyrics) it’s easy to let the music wash over you after a while, mostly because of the instrumentation. However, there is enough lyrical ingenuity and experimentation with rhythm to be able to move past this, and I challenge you to get the songs out of your head after one listen.
