Beak Nasty Spotlight & EP “Spilling the Void” Review

Before launching into our “12 Days of Snowta” we look to take our caps off to spotlight artists represented at the festival. First, we take a look at some of the festival’s local talent, including some of our favorites new to the lineup. The first thing one needs to recognize about Snowta is the diversity in the lineup. Snowta’s line-up fuses the amazing multi genre music festival with a heavy slant on both Hip-Hop and EDM communities both internationally celebrated and in the region.

Besides the well renowned international talent that will be playing the two-day extravaganza,  Snowta is embracing its roots with its line up featuring groundbreaking local and regional talent that includes Minnesota’s own PROF, Wookiefoot, Jon Wayne and the Pain, and Beak Nasty plus regional talent from Detroit, Milwaukee, and Chicago includes Golf Clap, Martians Crew, and Statik.

Beak Nasty is a duo consisting of Ryland “Beaker” Sabien (producer/turntablist), and Phil “Foxy Dope” Ade (drummer/percussionist), who in their new EP “Spilling the Void” combine hip-hop and glitch-hop. Together, Sabien and Ade collaborate out of Denver, Colorado.

Sabien has been producing music since 2009, initially known as Beaker (becoming Beak Nasty in 2013). Sabien, originally, hailing from Wisconsin, is a local to the Minneapolis music scene after moving here in 2010, as well, as attending the McNally Smith College of Music in St. Paul, Minnesota.

In 2013, Sabien changed his musical project to be called “Beak Nasty.” Around that time, as well, the other half of this project, Phil Ade, moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota. The duo was an instant connection.

Then in 2015, Sabien and Ade moved from Minneapolis, Minnesota to further explore their collaborative inspiration out in Denver, Colorado. Then, in August of that year, Beak Nasty released their EP “The World is Real.” Soon after, the duo performed their first headlining tour that winter, followed by continuing to perform at Infrasound Music Festival in the summer of 2016 with popular artists such as: EOTO, Manic Focus, Space Jesus, and Ganga White Night.

Since then, Beak Nasty, the duo are hard at work creating their newest EP “Spilling the Void” which was released on November 21, 2017. On November 22, Beak Nasty celebrated their release party featuring DJ Abilities, LabRat, Jumble, Foxy Dope, and KoCo Collaborations, with Photos by Eyediola Photography.

“Spilling the Void” is a five track EP, featuring artists MikeRat, Chance York, DeCarlo Jackson, and Kihndyn Peters. Beak Nasty proves once again unable to be pigeonholed into one genre or category. This EP offers a different tone with its focus instead on glitch-hop, leaving behind the soulful tones of their last album, “The World Is Real.”

The title track “4:10” features rap artist Kihndyn Peters’ soft vocalization. It includes a very chill, laid back electronic beat with gentle percussion and drumming courtesy of Foxy Dope. At the end of the track, the ending fades to an echo and concludes with a brief conversation in the recording room.

“Mindslip” and “Overcast” take on a slightly edgier, louder, and darker tone. The hip-hop lyrics during “Overcast” are repeated throughout: “she feelin my style, she feelin my flow” Followed up with sounds of trippy electronic funk, heavy cymbals and drumset, and a strong build up to the phrase, “…used to be the sky was all sunny but now it’s overcast…” The music drops. Then, darker vocals blend back into the softer-pitched electronic sounds and strong drumming beat. At the end of this track, the electronics and instrumentals die out and the track returns with ending of vocals: “‘the burning question is: how did you get the name?’” His answer, you ask?: “‘I’m just mad nasty’” as homage and reference to their name, Beak Nasty.

Next on the EP is “Lotus” featuring MikeRat, Chance York, DeCarlo Jackson. The track begins extra funky. Then, the song includes hip-hop featuring MikeRat, Chance York, and DeCarlo Jackson. The track turns very chill, with electronic tunes, which sound like glitch-hop blended effortlessly with jazz, vocals, hard funk, electronic bass, mixed with what can be explained as “very moving soundtrack score music”, think like the documentary “Planet Earth” style.

The EP concludes with the final track, “Digital Rising,” which can be heard on repeat coming from Soundcloud. This track could be called the epitome of their glitch-hop heavy EP.

The title of the track explains enough the emotions felt one may feel while listening to this. For instance, its slow-build sounds like the power getting turned on in an electrical machine, complete with sounds like raindrops, with electronic drips, plus bird noises. The feeling of being in an electronic rainforest comes to life, aka a digital rising, is experienced. The light electronic notes, rain noises, light drumming/ percussion is very chill, as well. As the track intensifies, the rain sounds get heavier including sounds like an electrical-whirring, like an old machine thinking, similar to that of an old-projector. The electronic blips and beeps sound like a machine having a conversation. At the finale, the track concludes with sounds from an old cable box with dial-up internet fading out, then static. Silence. The end of the track.

Appaulase. The EP “Spilling the Void” was well recepted at the the release party and is available for fans on Soundcloud.

‘Spilling the Void’ EP Release Party, featuring: DJ Abilities, LabRat, Jumble, Foxy Dope, and KoCo Collaborations.

Photos by: Eyediola Photography

Story by: Kara Ketcher