QUICK MUSIC REVIEW: Indigo Saint – Indigo February

Bursting onto the scene with his dark-moody debut The Blunt EP last year, SA-based Zimbabwean rapper Indigo Saint has exuded a different vibe in his latest release.

According to him, Indigo February is not a mixtape, EP or album, rather it is just four tracks seeking to rebrand the rapper. His last installment was mired in a seemingly real-life tragedy, and now he do not want to be identified with such bleak atmospheres. Frankly, this is a weird nut of a project, overtly dramatic (mysogynism), and difficult to crack, even as Indigo’s virtuoso gifts consistently awe the listener. On paper that reads saccharine, but his delivery is genuine, wavy, calm, trippy and somehow soothing, actually. He makes art for those who have an appreciation for details of hedonism lifestyle (he openly admits to smoking pot).

The project tucks the themes of girls, drugs, love and his status quo in the rap game.It captures a full range of Indigo’s appeal across lines of both the technique of emceeing and contemporary rap staple.T he lead single Milky is a club anthem about girls, weed and having fun. Buried in trap influenced sonics and woozy cloud-raps it displays Saint’s savvy package of getting stoned and a good taste of aesthetics.

The follow up Cansi finds the rapper in a insular modern-noir romance, where he is promising his girl unconditional love. Clearly, it is also drugged-up, and the last verse saw Indigo trading toast for rap.

Twisted and Top 5 shares a similar sentiment: his status quo in the rap industry. The two songs showcases his delightful weird overall individuality in blunt-honesty and an energy that matches his age. With just a few releases, he is quite certain that his position as one of the best emcees has been established and cemented.He sings in Twisted:

They got me twisted / I think these f*ckers got me twisted /Cos’ I’m not in for a minute /I swear this lyricism must be god-gifted.

With no compromise on lyrical content , Top 5 reiterates the same notion more explicitly. His narratives of coming from the bottom to the top and pedigree of triumphing over suicidal thoughts registers Indigo as a resilient personality.

For all of the sonic pleasures, much of Indigo February’s narrative is hard to swallow with a thinking mind… which makes it hip-hop at its finest.No one could escape the twinkling piano layerings and booming bass backdrops which is prevalent on the project. Overall, Indigo February is a worthy addition to Saint’s discography in its own right. With this release, we can certainly say that Indigo is vying for the top.