Rustik - Backpack

Hear The Track Here

By all accounts, hip hop musician Rustik has been on Soundclick since 2005 but doesn't seem to have that busy on the site, although he does have some twenty odd tracks posted up for you to listen to. A distinct lack of any information about the artist though, so its blindingly obvious that Rustik is a new name to me at least. As usual, my preconceptions cluttered my view until I actually heard the track. I was expecting the fairly typical Soundclick rap track that - although decent - would never set the world on fire. The naming of Jay Z, Li'l Wayne and Kayne West as influences should have given me a clue that this would be different.

When I first started hearing the track I had to smile because it still has a distinctive (for Soundclick anyway) home produced sound, but what comes out of the speakers is in a different league to many rappers. In fact, it's not really a rap at all, more a song with a little bit of rap hanging about looking suspicious. The ghost of T-Pain visits with the by now ubiquitous Autotune sound so despised by so many of us and - most grievous of all - this track comes from the softer sounding side of hip hop, never a good area for me to visit on account of my intense nausea towards all that lovey dovey crap.

What saves it, from my point of view, is that Rustik sounds confident, is a competent musician and producer and - given the style - a good enough singer. For my money, as good as the overall sound is (and it is good) there is something lacking and I can't for the life of me place my finger on it. From a commercial standpoint, this is an excellent track and if the influences I have mentioned interests you, then do grab a listen because it is worth it just in terms of some real indie alternative to the artists I have mentioned. Backpack is also, when all is said and done, a very decent song and shows that there's more to Rustik than meets the eye. Worth keeping an eye on methinks...

Excellent indie commercially flavoured hip hip. Highly Recommended.