Hailing from New York, Ace A Caped CrusAder is a Sound cloud rapper who produces his own music. He has created numerous projects such as his first album Whxte, the E.P. A, and his newest album entitled Lonely A. Most of this music can be found on Spotify, Apple Music, or Sound cloud. This New York artist uses different influences from Chance the Rapper, and Childish Gambino in order to create lo-fi piano based hip-hop/R&B.
I reviewed his first album Whxte back in April of 2018, so anticipation ran through my veins when he reached out to me about a new project he created. I was anxious and also nervous to hear this music because I didn't know if he had taken any of my suggestions about improving his flow, remixing his voice, or improving his beats.
He did not.
Ace A Caped CrusAder presents another album of mediocre lo-fi hip-hop in which he attempts to fit too many syllables, words, and phrases into each line or verse. This album is slightly different than his last piece of music because it includes song titles that might be a little too long to be song titles. Although other artists such as Fall Out Boy, Cobra Star ship, or Panic! At the Disco used longer song titles to convey a thought or idea, I feel like the time and place for that has passed. Song titles like "I've Got A Dark Alley And A Bad Idea That Says You Should Shut Your Mouth" or "There's A Good Reason These Tables Are Numbered Honey, You Just Haven't Thought Of It Yet" could never pass in this day and age due to the death of emo culture. When Ace uses long song titles like "I Spent the Night With the Devil I Wish I Could Take It Back", or "I'm Too Drunk To Be Thinking About You In This F***ing Club, lol" I feel that there is barely (if any) creativity or thought going on. Most of the song titles on this album could be any non-descriptive, general terms about being sad or alone. Instead of trying to make a song stand out or be taken seriously, most of these songs end up being cringey "I Feel Like Everything Happening Between Us Is Pointless lol".
Ace's talent can be heard through the production of each beat and its time signature; however his downfall is rapping. Songs like "This Is Not A Song But A Helping Hand" or "I Luv Pain" reveal that the artist attempts to fit too many words, phrases, or syllables into a verse or line and often lacks rhyme scheme "You're the wall that I lean on/Called for a couple hours you a'int pick up the phone/The flowers in my heart have wilted so I wrote this song/Need a couple days alone get you off my mental." Ace will also go into a "monologue" of sorts in many tracks on this album. By him speaking shallow thoughts over a saturated beat makes the listener uninterested, and creates a feeling of apathy towards the artist. "I'm sorry, I wish, I wish there was more I could do/I don't even feel like rapping anymore/This is more like a monologue on self-reflection."
Each beat used in this album has the capabilities to draw in many different listeners due to the way he succeeds to blend the synthesizer, with the piano, and drums. Ace also definitely feels the emotions he's "rapping" about. Feelings of loneliness, depression, and suicidal thoughts are evident throughout this album, however him conveying or describing them without using direct words like "I'm depressed" is a whole different beast.
Overall I was not impressed by this album by Ace A Caped CrusAder and though it did do slightly better than his first album Whxte, it wasn't anything of an improvement. If not for the different beats used throughout Lonely A,it would have gotten the same rating as his first album review. Lonely A received a 2.5 out of 10 and I would not recommend this album ever being released on vinyl.