Jase - The Jase Connection Volume One

Australian hip hop heads require no introduction when we’re talkin about Jase, the man has been holding the city down for years and his quality is only getting better. Jase Connection Volume One is audible proof of the Melbourne producer’s awesome talents and should also serve to win him some new fans around the country.

I’m gonna have to kick this review off by praising track fourteen. I’m sorry to skip so far ahead but I just can’t hold it in. The Jase / Phrase / Daniel Merriweather collaboration is equal parts musical, soulful and genuinely grimy Australian hip hop …

Australian hip hop heads require no introduction when we’re talkin about Jase, the man has been holding the city down for years and his quality is only getting better. Jase Connection Volume One is audible proof of the Melbourne producer’s awesome talents and should also serve to win him some new fans around the country.

I’m gonna have to kick this review off by praising track fourteen. I’m sorry to skip so far ahead but I just can’t hold it in. The Jase / Phrase / Daniel Merriweather collaboration is equal parts musical, soulful and genuinely grimy Australian hip hop. To Jase’s credit, his beat is appropriated beautifully; not only does it sound like it wouldn’t have been at all out of place on Phrase’s album, it has the soul to compliment Merriweather’s vocals and the tougher edge to accompany Phrase’s tales of coming up in Melbourne.

The following track, Equills’ Evolution, featuring Mantra declaring ‘it’s only human to be so damn human’ gives us another shining album highlight, as Jase’s subtle beat sets the stage for Whispa and Mantra’s dense wordplay.

No beat on the album is lacking. Some are certainly stronger than others, but even Jase’s weakest moments present some of the better production to come out of Australia. From his Lil Jon synths on A-Love and Eternia’s ‘Sincerely Yours’ to the New York bump of Optimen and Robby Balboa’s ‘Chin Music’, a wide pallette of hip hop’s sub-genres are not just attempted, but successfully attempted.

The generation gap is obvious on the album, as Optimen, Phrase and Merriweather, Equills and Javs contribute some of the album’s stronger moments, while some of the vets ironically sound years behind. I’m curious as to why the Jase/Weapon X collab ‘The One’ was left out and subsequently turned up on Weapon X & Ken Hell’s ‘Kick To The Head’ mixtape, as it would have been another highlight.