Emcee Aquil has been making records in his hometown of Philadelphia for a few years now, but has remained relatively unknown outside of the area until now. He seems poised to breakout, though, with his latest album, Land of Synth. Working with a handful of producers constructing songs on synthesizers, Aquil introduces himself to a potentially new audience as a thoughtful and creative artist.

The first comparison that came to mind when I heard Aquil rhyme was to another Philly emcee, Has-Lo. They both have a subtle approach to the mic and are able to bring their listeners close as they communicate deeply personal and emotional verses. The both also work without a lot of frills, which aren’t necessary to what they’re doing. The best part of Aquil’s work on Land of Synth is the way in which he’s able to address big picture issues, personal issues, abstract ideas, and still manage to have fun with it. It’s heavy without getting burdensome, fun without seeming meaningless. There is one moment at the end of the album in which it seems like he’s playing into the cliché of conscious rapper speaking down to his audience. However, at the end of “Integrity,” Aquil pulls the rug out from under his listeners by slipping in a sample of Keenen Ivory Wayans in Don’t Be A Menace… yelling “Message!” A song like “40° North” is a great example of what makes Aquil special. In it, he does a great job of delivering a complex picture of his hometown, discussing his struggles to find his place in it as a struggling artist, along with his love and frustrations with the place he calls home. “Do For Love” does not go for the obvious romantic slow jam angle, instead talking at length about how he developed his love for music. Many people will casually listen to this song, hear the gorgeous hook laid down by Phoenix Pagliacci and just assume the song is about a woman and miss the references to Marley, Isley, and Wu-Tang. “1984” is one of the most moving anti-war songs I’ve heard in a while, which has a lot to do with the way that Aquil’s style doesn’t beat you over the head to drive the point home. Instead, it’s up to the listener to meet him halfway and pay attention to a story about soldier who gets in over his head faster than he could have anticipated.

There are several producers working with Aquil on this record, including TheEnginear, Astronote, E. Jones, Trey Hemingway, Bhonstro, Abjo, Arcka, Knxledge, The Jazzment, O Da Beatgoon, and Christopher Killumbus. With this many cooks in the kitchen, the album could have easily sounded muddled and unfocused, but that is not the case hear. Everything comes together and flows very well. Some tracks sound very contemporary, some draw on electro-boogie, some draw on Dirty South, some draw on some early ‘90s East Coast hip hop, but it all comes together. There are a few tracks that I’m not in love with, such as the title track, but it’s more about stylistic preference and not loving the hook than the song actually being bad. One thing that is done very well over the course of the album is the use of audio clips to further facilitate the discussion of certain points, many stemming from the issue of race. The clips are spaced out just enough and run just the right length to get listeners thinking about issues without ruining the momentum of the album, which plenty of albums suffer from.

Land of Synth isn’t perfect, but there is a lot to like about what Aquil’s done here. First and foremost, he’s an emcee that has gotten my attention as a story teller, communicator, and artist with vision. Even with a few stylistic choices that I didn’t love on the album, it wasn’t anything I couldn’t get past to see all the good things that were happening. This is a big step forward for him, and hopefully the momentum will keep him growing and releasing more great hip hop in the future.