SKULS - Lost Knowledge EP

Trap can be tricky these days. It true that the essence of this misunderstood genre is floating on a life raft somewhere in that infinite sea, staring around at so called fam and squad, overusing hashtags and memes to buy likes and fake fans, only to find itself surrounded savage beasts trying to devour it whole.

But savage has taken on new meaning, and in the abyss of savagery that has become trap music, few find that essence lost at sea. Even the up and coming talent that isn’t completely generic is quickly eaten alive by an oversaturated market or forced into a life of parasitic bottom feeding. A very small population of very real talent emerges victorious in this loved and hated genre that is based on a way of life. Very few have been able to skim through such murky waters with the deep understanding of this music, having what it takes to navigate through these murky waters and produce attention worthy trap tracks.

According to trends and critics, trap music died as some passing fad or trend maybe before it even began. The truth is that it lives in the veteran producers still using classic trap tenets to create current, even timeless sounds for a new generation of fans. Their lasting power is proof that trap is alive and well, even if it doesn’t look or sound like the played out versions of what you thought was trap music. And while the sea remains full of talentless hacks, there are artists surfacing that disprove all these generalizations and falsities.

Trap is not dead. This is not your grandmother’s trap music, though. SKULS have been known to run the trap hard, featured on this site for some of their RIPS, or remixes that kill the original dead…but dead like trap music that rises from the grave and is given new life. Their music captures the darkness that surrounds them in this industry, grasping the face of a culture in the throes of a war they are fighting to gain notoriety and simultaneously maintain their integrity and originality. A war they are obviously winning, as we can see in the release of their newest EP, a Terrorhythm release aptly titled Lost Knowledge. Big ups to the homies for releasing on a killer label with something of a concept album that pays homage to the fundamentals of trap music by twisting it up into a mini concept album that captures that essence of trap music, the knowledge that is so lost on this world. As if they were reading my mind that was listening as I was writing this review, the first track is called, “Abyss,” and is a musical materialization of an actual abyss. An enthralling three heavy tracks that characterize the music and talent of SKULS. Heavy and weighted, but effortless as if they know not their own size or powerful reason. The third and final track contains writhing synths and moving vocals that are strangely uplifting, emergences from the beautiful darkness of the two tracks that came before it. “Obsession,” the second track on the EP, premiered through Complex UK, fitting because of the grimy UK style sounds of SKULS, and a nod to a lesser known bass line, the third and final track called “404” originally premiered through NestHQ.

I have been saying this for some time, but now with some heady industry names supporting this act, it is time to stop sleeping on SKULS. Lost Knowledge is available for download on Terrorhythm’s bandcamp page.