Ren’s musical output is relentless. Between road busking, The Large Push, solo work, Skinner Brothers initiatives, and ventures like Mission Labcoat Runway in New York, retaining observe of his timeline requires dedication.
However that’s the attraction. Sick Sick Soul Vol. 1 drops as one other chapter on this consistently evolving story, and “Twos On A Cigarette” would possibly simply be its silkiest second.
From the primary bars, jazzy chord progressions set the tone earlier than that unmistakable storage and drum & bass sound kicks in.
Takes you straight again to the 90s, however it’s not some nostalgic throwback train. The Skinner Brothers mix breakbeats with these jazz influences, creating one thing that nods to warehouse raves and pirate radio whereas staying contemporary.
Unapologetically British, tough across the edges in all the precise methods, clean the place it counts.
Ren opens with a scene: moonlight, a shared cigarette, that preliminary spark of connection. The verse flows naturally, assured with out being cocky.
He’s portray an image of city romance, concrete areas remodeled by fleeting moments.
Soul Boy’s verse shifts the temper barely, bringing in reflections on London streets, time passing, numbing routines.
The interlude with its Bob Dylan reference and day-of-the-week development retains issues unfastened and vibing, stopping the observe from getting too heavy.
Easy hook, however it lodges itself in your head immediately. That repeated “proper now” turns into the observe’s name signal, capturing that live-for-the-moment mentality with out making an attempt too exhausting. You’ll end up buzzing it hours later.
Jazz components from the intro maintain surfacing all through. Chord voicings, rhythmic looseness, area for components to breathe.
That closing guitar solo provides obligatory fireplace to what’s already a various combine, transient however completely positioned.
Right here’s the factor concerning the manufacturing: it’s virtually begging for remixes. These drum & bass foundations might simply push to 170 BPM, home producers might strip it again to the hook and rebuild from scratch.
The modular development and robust melodic core make it ripe for reinterpretation throughout digital subgenres.
For many who’ve adopted Ren via his extra confrontational work, this presents a special angle fully. Subtle however inviting, the closest factor to a love music on the album.
“Twos On A Cigarette” manages to honour a selected period of British music with out getting caught there. Seductive, clean, ear worm materials.
As a part of Sick Sick Soul Vol. 1, it reveals vary between the more durable tracks surrounding it.
One other strong lower in what’s shaping as much as be a constantly robust venture. The journey continues, unpredictable as ever, and loving the second.
