I recently covered an album called Moondance by an artist named Qundalini KIDO. I believe he’s now performing under the name HBK KIDO. He’s also the head of a Detroit-based label called [SYN]republic, which houses the artist I will be writing about today: 95Sai. I enjoyed Moondance despite being very critical of it; 95Sai apparently liked the write-up I did, and decided to put this latest release, The Noise, on my radar. It came out on December 10th, which was a pretty stacked release day. I really enjoyed it even more than I expected to though, so that’s why I decided to do a full review for it. There are 14 tracks here, almost all of which are under 3 minutes long. The entire project is about half an hour, which I find to be a really good length. At this point in my life, I feel like that’s around the sweet spot for an ideal album runtime for me. I also really dug the album cover, and I feel like it was a good depiction of the soundscape. Speaking of which, I unfortunately am not aware of who handled the production, but I’m assuming it was all done in-house. The beats are very spacey, and they kinda reminded me of Drake’s Nothing Was the Same a little bit on my first listen. However, after multiple listens, I actually think this album is much more akin to Kid Cudi sonically—particularly Cudi’s SATELLITE FLIGHT: The Journey to Mother Moon project. That album isn’t great, but there are a couple pretty cool tracks on it, including one of my favorite Cudi songs, Going to the Ceremony. Anyway, let’s go ahead and dive into the tracklist.

The Noise begins with Eye 2 Eye, which is a really dope intro. The astronomical theme is introduced straight out the gate. The production is quite spacey with a mid-paced tempo, and 95Sai’s opening bars are pretty cool.

Masked up like Von Doom
Walk into the wave, now you washed in a monsoon
What is there to gain, wave-hop into a harpoon
Cool and he smooth, that's the top of a mushroom
What is there to do when it's not cool to be true livin' in our rules
I be fumin' from how they move, watchin' what they doin'
Coolin' with my young niggas we be fusin'
Styles outside the box, watchin' shit kaboom

This song features HBK KIDO, and the way he comes in right behind Sai is awesome. He sounds really fantastic here, and I think he really elevated things. The song was already good, but KIDO adds a lot to it in my opinion. I loved these lines…

Say it with your chest, bitch
I'm with [SYN]republic, we the bestest
Hold your breath, it's muddy waters full of asbestos
Watch your step, there's many bodies floatin' at the exit
We was speakin' to them, so they exist
Me and all the dogs got a problem, give 'em cleft lip

This is such a good collaboration. These dudes sound excellent together, so it had me excited to listen to the rest of the project. It’s a really dope song.

Track 2 is called On Go!!, and it has a similarly spacey instrumental, albeit a bit more energetic and light. The way the bass comes in as soon as the first verse begins is cool, and the way it drops in and out at certain points sounds phenomenal.

Two eyes through the blinds, can you see through the limelight what I'm tryna become?
Most be eye for eye in the world, if you look real hard, guaranteed you won't see none
How you gon' spark hope when a motherfucker head so low, when he look they don't see none?
Life go straightforward, no reruns, better live it up while you still in the sequence
No Death, but I'm out here reapin', practicin' shit, doin' no more preachin'
Fuck a wager, we make that tower, the wavy ass beat—this somethin' I can lean with

The beat switches up pretty nicely for the final 48 seconds of the track, and it sounds pretty nice. I don’t think his flow is as tight on this part of the song as it was on the first part, but that’s me being super nitpicky. The song’s really good.

The following track is called See None, Hear None, and it has perhaps the most entrancing instrumental up to this point on the record. It feels very slow and thick, but it makes me sway back and forth as I’m listening. The evil laugh motif that’s peppered throughout the track sounds very cool, and I dug Sai’s writing quite a bit.

Not consistent with my dreams, always face reality
Mirror, mirror on the wall, what the fuck is wrong with me?
I can't be the same one in this reflection that I see
If I'm God's son, why these demons always temptin' me?
And they close enough to run off with my soul like a thief
Friendly faces make appearances and take away your lead

Structurally, the song’s fairly straightforward; there’s just one verse followed by an outro in which he says “See no evil, hear no evil, that’s just how it be.” I feel like this song probably would be harder to fully appreciate outside of the context of the full album. I really enjoy it though. I think it’s great.

It’s followed by the shortest song on the album, Broken Connection. This one is more melodic than the preceding material. I really love the instrumental here, and the sung “what do we know” refrain sounds really good. Closed-minded geezers will be turned off by the autotuned delivery of that line, but I think it sounds very good personally. The brevity of this track results in an interlude-esque listening experience, which I think works really well. The verse is great too. The song’s title indicates exactly what the subject matter is about.

I spent some time tryna find my way back to where we was
Seems we could be a thing of the past, I hold no grudge
I'm above bein' spiteful at that, the dreams I had
Of us stickin' through 'til we on our last, and we'll be good
But alas, we been caught in a trap, a tit for tat
And perhaps we grew tired of that
Through all the times that we had cries, smiles, and laughs
It wasn't bad, I just wanna see us grow and be good, that's where I'm at

It’s honestly a really heartfelt song that I think is really great. It’s another dope track to me.

The Drifter is just over 2 minutes long, and it’s got a beat that is also very spacey. However, it also sounds lighthearted, pleasant, and full of life to me. I really like the sung hook. 95Sai’s use of autotune is consistently tasteful in my opinion. Again, this one gives me strong Kid Cudi vibes.

I ain't seen the sun up in a long time
The job requires me sleepin' before it's sol shine
I usually ride when time flies in night skies
This nocturnal lifestyle is now mine
The wide eyes from peerin' into the dark sky
The star's bright, but too far to shed light
In hindsight, the symbolism of my life
Want real guidance, too far for insight

The “sol shine” line was interesting to me. I couldn’t tell if he said “sleepin’ before its soul shine” or “sleepin’ before it’s sol shine.” Either way makes sense, which is pretty cool. I doubt that was intentional, but it’s still a cool feature of the song. I think this is another really dope track.

The first real highlight for me on this project is called Its Out There. This one has a mellower, more melodic instrumental while still maintaining the spacey vibe. It almost kinda gives me Odd Future vibes. The production here is just really pretty. The verse itself didn’t blow me away lyrically, but his vocal delivery fits the tone of the production super well in my opinion. I really love the hook on this track too.

I know it's out there, something gotta be out there
Soul searchin', I'm outchea livin' until I'm O-V-A
No one knows my paranoias keep me from bein' sane
Must admit, I love hearing, "bro, it'll be okay"

I was a bit displeased when I first heard the John F. Kennedy sample at the end of the track because I’ve heard it in music before and the way it’s used is usually very hokey and melodramatic, but after multiple listens I’ve decided that it actually works really well here. It segues into the following track really nicely too.

Track 7 is called Above the Moon & Sun, and it’s easily one of the best tracks on the record to me. It might be the number one best song here. I don’t know for sure yet though. I haven’t decided a favorite song as of December 19th. Anyway, this one features HBK KIDO again, as well as another [SYN]republic artist named SynSai. This one has a pretty jazzy, piano-driven instrumental that I really love. Sai’s flow and vocal delivery kinda reminded me of a 2010’s era Kendrick a little bit. He just sounds very nimble rhythmically.

Tendencies that attended my mental made me troublesome
Missin' essentials put my potential with the ash and dust
Lookin' for something out where there's nothing, yet my hope is up
Fill up the engine, aim for the stars, get ready, here I come

The way KIDO comes in behind him for the second verse sounds really awesome despite its brevity. His voice has a really nice contrast from that of Sai. The bridge from SynSai sounds excellent as well. The way the beat kinda switches up for that part sounds really awesome. Her breathy vocal delivery is dope, and her singing was nice too. This song is really cool. Again, it’s definitely one of the best songs on the project. I love it.

The following track is another major highlight called Glorious. I absolutely love the production here. Again, it maintains that aforementioned spacey vibe, but it sounds pretty soulful to me at the same time. The autotuned vocals on the hook sound excellent, and I love the verses too.

The first time I sat back to unwind
I felt trauma, still here and alright
I realized I aged well like fine wine
And no rush 'cause blood fuels my lifeline
In hindsight, I looked past the real signs
I took off and seen things in new light

The second verse might be even better than first one to be honest. I really love this rhyme scheme…

Been jumpin' off moonrocks
I'm not from the average cut cloth like The Boondocks
My pops used to rerock shit through the tubesocks
The pot hand me down so get used to the new ahk

I really dug the Transformers reference too. That was well done. The song’s pretty amazing to me honestly. I think this is probably my favorite track, but I might change my mind by the time I’m done with this review.

It’s followed by another highlight called UnRuly. This one might have the most hypnotizing cadence on the whole record. It’s hard to hear this and not get the coveted involuntary head nod. I really love the hook on this one.

Come true to this, not used to shit
I bag and I take what I'm usually in
Few screws been loose, but that toolie spin
I'm bound to what I am 'round hooligans

The flow on the second verse is even better than that of the first one in my opinion.

Come through do damage
Broke out the box, too much can't manage
Pop out the cut, this big propaganda
Style like this off the planet
Want it? Catch it on camera

This one is definitely high on the list of most replayable tracks from the album. I think it’s phenomenal.

Novus Ordo Seclorum has another spacey, kind of deconstructed, almost Ambient-esque instrumental. I like it, especially in conjunction with Sai’s cool lyrics.

Crazy I seen this show when it said that the new black really been orange
In the field we work for the shit, but I bet that it's still gonna pay for the corn
They depict new things in the Bible so much, it ain't no tellin' who's our lord
I'm prayin' for new better days, but in truth I don't know who I must pray for

It makes a lot of sense when you take into account the song title, and how that connects to the subject matter. The lyricism is definitely the main selling point of this track to me. If I didn’t speak English, I don’t think I’d really be into this one as much, but I guess that goes without saying. It’s a good song.

In the Constellation is one of the weaker songs on the project for me, mostly because of the way the vocals are delivered. Like I said earlier, I think the autotune is applied very tastefully on this project, but this may be the one track where it’s a bit too much for me. Actually, that’s not quite true. It’s not that there’s too much autotune; it’s more so that there isn’t enough of anything else to chew on for me. I think the lyrics are very good, and the melody being sung is decent enough. I feel the same way about the instrumental as I did with the preceding track. This one kinda feels more like an interlude than anything.

I'll find separation
Keep your reparations, rather earn with dedication
Pain made me stronger, still alive, invigorated
Through the good and bad, I'll be constantly elated
In the belly of the beast, know by now he must be sated
I been livin' in a world where the sin is our creation
Next to blessing's correlation
If the morning star rises then the flame is what we face
Good morning, see his grievance, overcome with preparation
We can joke about the matter after shattering the curses felt across our generations

I feel like I would enjoy this song much more if I was listening to it while smoking indica. It’s a very slow-paced track, and I could definitely see how the melody of the vocals could be irritating to certain listeners because it is pretty repetitive. I still do like this song to some extent though. I think it’s pretty solid.

Track 12 is called Telepathic, and this is the one that reminded me of Nothing Was the Same the most. I definitely got some Drake vibes from this one, but in a good way. The instrumental starts off really ethereal and chill. The light percussion sounds really nice to me, and the rapping at the beginning of the track is great. The flow isn’t too flashy or anything, but it fits the instrumental really well.

Lost souls intertwined on the crossroads
Some rose, it was them that it dawned on
Days lone in the world, finally long gone
Soul ties on the tide they was led on

The singing during the second half of the track is really good too. There’s not really any noticeable autotune on this one, and it sounds really good. The way the drums come in during this part sounds fantastic as well. This is another really dope song that grew on me a lot with multiple listens. I really like it.

The penultimate track is called Intermission (In a Mission). This one is far from a favorite of mine, but I certainly like it to some extent. It’s just not really as interesting as most of the other songs sonically in my opinion. The actual rapping itself is what makes it worth returning to for me. Sai’s flow sounds dope. However, that’s not to say that the instrumental is even remotely wack. It’s a good beat, and I like the song overall. I think the title is apt because it does feel like more of an interlude than a full song, but that could be said about a few of the tracks on this project. I like this one though. It’s pretty good.

The album closes with one final highlight entitled Waning, and this one features SynSai. I absolutely love the melodic production here. The drums that come in sound fantastic, and I love 95Sai’s autotuned vocals on the hook.

Waning, I'm fading and my sleep is deep
Waiting for things, this time I rest in peace
Far out where I'll be, it's always something new to see
I be so plain inside sight, live far from way before me

The verse itself is really nice, and SynSai’s soft vocals on the outro sound fantastic. I love the way the song ends too. This is a really fantastic way to end the project in my opinion. I feel like it wraps things up pretty nicely. The song’s fire.

^{This album is great. I think it’s a very cohesive record with a dope theme. The astronomical production along with the contemplative lyricism makes for a pretty engaging listening experience for me. There aren’t any songs here that I don’t like to some extent, and the features really added a lot to the project without stealing the spotlight. I honestly don’t have any consistent gripes with this one. Like I insinuated towards the end of the body of this review, there are multiple tracks that feel like interludes, but I think as an overall product 95Sai was able to craft something that’s greater than the sum of its parts. I think I think the writing is really good, and musically it’s very pleasant. Like I said in the preamble, I got a lot of Kid Cudi vibes. There were also moments that reminded me of Kendrick Lamar & Drake, so that’s pretty cool. After hearing this project, I’m sold on these guys. I look forward to hearing what 95Sai does next, and I’m gonna keep my eye on the rest of the [SYN]republic crew as well. This project is dope. Check it out, and let me know what you think in the comment section below. ✌🏽}

Favorite Song: Glorious
Least Favorite Song: In the Constellation

B+