HW&W's impressive roster seem to be killing it with every new release and the Ottawa-born, Elaquent, does not disappoint. After previously failing as a rapper after his mom told him he had a "geek's voice", Elaquent turned to beats and the instrumentals he is now producing have a complexity and smoothness that is rare to find in this age of heavy drops. Although there are hints of influence in his various releases (Jay Dee and Madlib), Elaquent produces something very current and unique.
"Treehome94½" has a strong undercurrent of jazz that flows throughout the entire instrumental with snippets of brass being introduced every so often and the offbeat drums something you would expect to find in a tucked away jazz club with a neon sign you go to at the dead of night. However, it is not. It is instead found in a electronic infused number that although looks to the past for inspiration is indeed very modern. Jazz is a hidden love of mine and it brings me great pleasure to see it appear so cleverly and subtly in an instrumental that gets the heart racing.
There are lots of other Elaquent releases I would love to talk about but instead I will just suggest to visit his Soundcloud and I will leave my other favorite at the bottom of this article.
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