A$AP Twelvyy, the Harlem native and member of the hip-hop collective A$AP Mob, has released his sophomore album, Before Noon. Despite a couple of singles leading up to this release, Twelvyy has stayed relatively quiet since the release of his debut album, 12, in 2017.
It can be difficult to follow up such an impressive debut project like 12. It featured a raw blend of old school East Coast hip-hop with modern twists. Following the release of this album, it was clear to see that Twelvyy was capable of holding his own against not only everybody in the A$AP Mob, but everyone else in hip-hop.
Twelvyy showcases his raw talent yet again on his new album, Before Noon. The project shares similar characteristics to his previous release, but he came with a more aggressive, unrestrained approach that does not disappoint.
Following the intro, Twelvyy jumps right into the vigorous track that is “Catch Up.” The song provides a hard-hitting instrumental with a powerful yet mellow flow that sets the tone for the entire project.
A couple of the singles, “Kratez” and “Bill Collector,” are two more raw, bold tracks that Twelvyy fits into with ease. The energetic yet easy-moving sound that he provides is done flawlessly throughout the project.
One aspect of the album that is not flawless, however, is the features. Apart from the incredibly smooth Billz Raw feature on the equally smooth-sounding track “Pro Tools,” the features are lackluster.
The track “Brinx” contains one of Twelvyy’s most infectious and aggressive verses on the album. The features from Zay Nailer and Lago 2.0 with their offbeat-sounding verses don’t fit into the track well, which discredits the impressive performance from Twelvyy.
The album runs into an almost identical scenario with the track “Baby Driver.” Twelvyy shines with a catchy chorus and a well-flowing verse, too. The feature by A$AP Ant, however, is extremely disappointing. His awkward delivery comes off as far from natural on the track, which again seems to negate the positives that Twelvyy has on the song.
Twelvyy steers the album back to its near-perfect state with the two closing tracks, “Duality” and “Very Aquatic.” Both songs are grimmer, heavier ones with Twelvyy delivering some of his most honest and well-written verses on the album. “Very Aquatic” especially, features Twelvyy speaking on more of the lows of his life, which is a complete 180 from what the primary focus of the album is in the beginning. The rawness of this outro is the perfect closing to an album that perfectly captures every aspect of Twelvyy’s life.
2020 has already been a great year for hip-hop, and it is not too early to start putting Before Noon into “Album of the Year” consideration for hip-hop. Apart from the disappointing features, Twelvyy provides a perfect album that seems to be a continuation of his first project. With memorable verses and raw instrumentals, A$AP Twelvyy exceeds expectations yet again.
Rating: 4.5/5
