Process

This project is incredible. The production by Sampha and Rodaidh McDonald is stunning, with very touching and emotional elements throughout. For example, the beautiful production on the intro track is incredibly well-done, with string instruments forming the main instrumentation, adding a feeling of warmth yet coldness at the same time. The bass in that track is enormously powerful, and the trap-influenced percussion is very well put together. This is just one of those incredibly well-produced cuts, and I could go on forever talking about every instrumental separately. Sampha's performances are also perfectly well-done; his singing is absolutely beautiful, with his vocals ranging from incredibly high to low, which is very impressive. His performances on cuts like the intro track, "(No One Knows Me) Like the Piano," "Timmy's Prayer," and "Incomplete Kisses" are really touching, emotional, and just incredibly well-sung. In my opinion, Sampha has the voice of an angel; there is no room for filler, and his voice is amazing, full of pain but also confidence. The production is also a standout feature here; it's psychedelic at times and really brings out the best in his voice. The intro track "Plastic 100°C" is dark and atmospheric; it's the longest track here, but you don't even notice because it's such an experience. "Blood On Me" has my favorite chorus on the project, where you can really hear the pain in his voice. Around the middle, we have “Like The Piano” and “Take Me Inside,” which are much calmer songs; however, “Like The Piano” is a far superior track because of its beautiful melody. “Incomplete Kisses” has a very different instrumental than the other tracks; it's more glitchy and electric, but still, the song feels so natural and flows so well. This album genuinely blew me away, and some moments reminded me of Frank Ocean. I love his music, but at the same time, Sampha has a noticeably different sound. I don’t know how he will top this, but if this was his debut, then there’s no telling what his next few projects after Lahai will look like.

SAMPHA - Process

RATING - 9.1/10

FAVORITE TRACKS - Blood On Me, Timmy’s Prayer, Under

GENRE - Rnb, Alternative, Neo Soul