(Double review) Mahalia - Seasons and Mina Rose - London Burning

I placed these two projects together as for many people this may be the first interaction they’ve had with these artists. While Mahalia has been garnering more attention recently she’s not yet a particularly big name and the release of this EP accepts that. Both projects are short introductions to each artist for me representing starting points for audiences where the artist is aware that they will grow from this point. I enjoyed both of these projects and here are my quick general thoughts.

Mahalia ‘Seasons’:

Mahalia is one of the shining talents in the UK and in the last year she has shown herself to one of the more promising artist on the rise at the moment. I’ve been following her for a while, and I have genuinely enjoyed every stand-alone single she has released. Her last project however 'Diary of Me' though enjoyable, at times felt a little clichéd and occasionally oversimplified and it was clear that when creating bodies of work she needed to perfect her writing. Her potential, however, is undeniable. Her voice is powerful and compelling, and she portrays herself as very likable and charismatic. I can confirm that this is also evident in her live performances, which have improved each time I’ve seen her as she grows in popularity and confidence and I look forward to seeing her again in Manchester next week.

She released a string of singles prior to releasing 'Seasons' which were all good and further fueled my excitement for the project especially as she was garnering more mainstream appeal with songs like ‘I wish I missed my ex’. I was also pleased when the track list was released to see that it was almost entirely new music hoping for more songs of the standard that we know she can reach. However, when really getting into the EP, as I now have, I find that like 'Diary of Me' it had a few stand out moments and then some largely forgettable tracks. 'One Night Only' was an excellent opener; she is in control of the track her verses are all good and Kojey Radical plays his part perfectly, reminiscent of Roots Manuva on his final verse. It was a fun song with a spoken poem that I enjoyed, but was slightly let down by the chorus, which came across as a little cheesy.

I personally feel that if you’re going to put out a five-track EP, there should be no filler and for me 'Honeymoon' and 'Good Reason' were exactly that, kind of enjoyable tracks but saying nothing new and slightly underwritten, with production that’s good but not memorable.

Mahalia was also clearly trying to push herself vocally, attempting more adventurous, higher notes and displaying a bit more emotion for 'Good Reason.' But for me, it just sounded a bit too strained, which I thought wasn’t really needed, as her voice can be so strong. The EP did have a clear relationship focus, but so does all of her music, so it would’ve been nice for her to show a bit more variety in her writing. However, it can be said that she's still young and its early in her career. For that reason, I am pleased that she released this EP rather than trying to rush to capitalize on her popularity by putting out a full album when maybe she’s not ready. I would say overall it is a pretty good attempt, with 'Surprise Me' and 'One Night Only' as the obvious high points. The project is here to suggest that there is still a lot more to come from Mahalia, who I would say is definitely still someone to be excited about even if the project is slightly underwhelming.

Mina Rose ‘London Burning’:

Now unlike Mahalia, Mina Rose is not an artist I was particularly familiar with prior to this release and based on her under 1000 followers on SoundCloud and Facebook that’s not surprising. It was quite difficult to find out about her, as a result, so I know little more than that she is a young artist from London, which is very clear from her music, which blends hip-hop, soul, dub and reggae and sometimes ska. 'London Burning' is the first I had heard from Mina, and I must say for a new artist I am very impressed. Much like Mahalia, it is clear that there is still a lot of growth to come from Mina, but this 5 track EP announces her really effectively.

As it’s so short I can talk about each song individually, briefly giving a bit of a flavour of the album. The opener ‘Blind Man Dreams’ while kind of catchy is slightly bloated and drags a little, but gives you an opportunity to warm to Mina. From there I would say she shines. Paradise gives her the chance to show off her voice, as well as her flow and she snatches at the opportunity with a bouncy and cool song. The drums are constant, but not invasive and she rides the beat well. Dayz is possibly my favourite track. It felt for me like it could’ve been on 'A Grand Don’t Come for Free' and I wouldn’t have noticed as it had that sound that Mike Skinner made so well with The Streets, where it felt unapologetically English and relatable just like another London day. Finally, we get to 'Ashes'. It is loud, it builds slowly and it feels like the whole EP has been waiting for this moment. Mina and Taniel Rave take you on a journey, bringing back memories of the riots and discussing political disenfranchisement, leading to anger and people not knowing how to react. The track tops the EP off well and got me really excited to listen to more from this young talent and I highly recommend that you check this out. Although she’s far from perfect for me there’s definitely enough to understand where she will one day go.

By Aaron Georgious