(Photo Credit - Aisha Badru)
We had the opportunity to do an advance review of Aisha Badru's new EP Road to Self! Her style fuses alt and pop and combines it with some dynamic vocals. Road to Self releases TOMORROW June 7, 2019! So be sure to check it out when it drops and read our track by track review!
Advance Review - Aisha Badru - Road to Self
The EP opens with the sounds of nature with a transition track called "The End". It's calming and peaceful and a fun choice to open with, it's a soothing experience. Next up is "Road to Self" which begins with light acoustic guitar and piano. It's intricate and delicate in its aim, Badru's vocals come in hushed over them just as delicate as the instrumentation. Badru sings of being ready to find herself and being ready to be by herself. The notion of self-discovery through self-care is apparent here. She picks her vocals up with some highs about halfway through the track showing off her vocal range. The song is an extremely ambient experience, almost to being underwater. I absolutely dig it.
"Unrefined" leans a little more alt/pop, but it also gives Badru an opportunity to display her vocals, which is a good thing because her register is so pure and smooth. The beat in this song will instantly get you feeling like you want to move. Badru sings of being your own person and sings of inclusivity. Finally, "Enough" starts off with keys and electronic sounds and Badru's fantastic vocals. The hook on this is absolutely fantastic! I loved the lyric "Pain is like the rain that falls down". The song sends a message of not being afraid to take a leap, particularly when it comes to love. It also includes some positive messaging as Badru sings "I promise that you're enough". Just fantastic wordplay throughout. A great close to this EP.
Closing Thoughts - Coming in at four songs, this was a short EP so I wish there wasn't a transition track there and we could have more full songs. That's just me being selfish because what we did get from the other three were great and I wanted more! It's great when you can say you liked the message the artist conveyed as well as the music they used to do it with. Badru has a strong grip on lyric writing and her alt/pop fusion is captivating.
Rating - 4/5