The 25th Hr is an alternative R&B artist from Toronto, but he’s so much more than that label would imply. His music is unorthodox, with the artist constantly leaving his genre in experimental ways. It's mystifying and conveys more questions than it does answers. In his debut EP Overture, The 25th Hr frees himself of all musical structures and conventions, making each and every one of his steps as unpredictable as the next. The only consistency within this six song journey seem to be the R&B related instruments and techniques that he uses. Ideologies spanning through R&B and jazz history like slap bass, jazz chord progressions, big band instrumentations, and even more recently, sampling, are all featured in this EP. With glitchy songs like "TYND" and straight up jazz bouts like “Now You Know” that features a big band setup blended with soulful keys and sprinkles of guitar, the listener is continually pulled in every which way possible. These techniques all varying from different eras are all found in Overture. His palette of instrumentation spans anywhere from digital 808s to saxophones, cellos, and double basses. The 25th Hr also uses time signatures and rythmic patterns that are far from cookie cutter to say the least.Listen to it below:
Advertisement
Byron Yan is a writer based in Toronto. Follow him on Twitter.