One thing the Pandemic did was create a sense of urgency or appreciation for music creation, depending on one’s point of view. In #HUEston there was a select few at one point that might not have fit into the “box” the city was known for. I personally only knew of about three acts by the early 2000’s but while being on “the scene” in those days, I became aware of some acts I may have missed.
Flow Factory which consist of three M.C.’s Mavrek, Big Ruk and Mynus had been navigating the rap battle circuits in Houston for some years. When combined as a group one could see them out performing at certain spots and hear them as a group or separately, featured on songs throughout the years. The void they lacked was having a release everyone could get to that showcased the trio’s talent. ‘SP to LP’ is that long awaited moment for Flow Factory to enter the proper release space that many of their peers like Example and K-Otix had done years prior.
Maybe the reason it took so long was as simply three M.C.’s, there needed to be a guiding force to highlight their talents with a proper audio palette. Enter The Roux who consist of Kay, King Mason and Jermaine Williams. All had plenty of hours making incredible music in their own time, with the likes of Robert Glasper, Chris “Daddy” Dave and more, but now had come together as a collective to help extract the best out of some HUEston talents. Flow Factory was able to be in the list of those talents and this EP benefitted greatly with that. The Roux made sure to keep a ruggedness that Flow Factory radiate but also a lush sound to give this EP some meat.
‘SP to LP’ is meant to give a summary of how the three member group has stood firm all these years being from South Park and La Porte (Houston). The intro provided by Andre King work as a foreword for what the audience can expect for the next twenty-five minutes. ‘Hi Haters’ and ‘Don’t Stop’ is a “roll call” for the return of Flow Factory. Then on ‘A.M. To Da P.M.’ the trio decide to show that their content be about more than battle raps but provide a little slick talk for the ladies. ‘The Technique’ is my favorite track on this album as the production from The Roux and all members of Flow Factory are completely in sync on that track. My one complaint with the release is Mavrek’s vocals sounded a bit off with the exception of ‘A.M. To Da P.M.’ but his lyrics were not to be denied.
‘SP to LP’ has relatable ability to those of us who appreciate M.C.ing and comradery. Ask yourself how many times you’ve sat around talking about rap or reminiscing on childhood memories of forgotten toys. What did you think of the album?
Singles include:
‘Hi-Haters’
Listen to QUANTUM LEAP RADIO every Saturday from 4-6p.m. CST & Thursday from 1-3a.m. CST on 90.1 FM KPFT Houston in HD2
Worldwide @kpft.org/listen (under “kpft in HD2”) or get the KPFT APP in your playstore!!!
Catch past episodes by searching and following @https://linktr.ee/QLEAPRADIO
