Malachi J. & Teofolis ‘Malachi on Mars’ Review

Malachi J. linked with emcee/producer, Teofolis, to release a full-length LP, Malachi on Mars. Here’s the official review:

Interestingly enough, the first half of Malachi on Mars is straight out of Venus. Mars, a war planet, associated with weapons and conflict, is more fitting for the latter half. Everything before halftime is damn-near hippie vibes. Later for that.

The duo’s superpower is instantly identified; flow. From the intro “Unstoppable“, where Malachi J. announces a flow switch then proceeds from first to fifth gear seamlessly, it’s apparent. There’s even a mention on the standout track “42 Bars“, where M.J spits: “I don’t rap about sh*t, please note that/I ain’t rappin’ bout sh*t, please note that“.

There you have it.

M.O.M isn’t about anything, in particular and doesn’t need to be. It’s like everything Kendrick Lamar left out of Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers. It’s a good time; a scenic ride through the mind of 2 seemingly carefree, flat out good rappers. Good beats and dope rhymes are enough, sometimes. Not to be cliche’, but… it’s a vibe.

Speaking of production, Teofolis handles the entire 10-track output and it’s apparent. It’s one of those albums where you only ask “who produced this?” once. You can’t buy this type of cohesion and album flow. It’s just something that happens when one man drives the soundbed.

So nice, we had to do it twice.

“Flex” and “Flex, Pt. 2” share the same exact hook and content… and I works both times. It kind of feels like the “Wu-Tang Forever” into “Own It” combo from Drake’s Nothing Was The Same album. More exact, same vein.

Malachi on Mars ends “darker” than expected, with “Dame” and “Voices“. Both have devil/demon themes and sounds that warrant the album’s title. They each have an over-synthesized driving force that may not even come from an actual instrument. It sounds like sounds that aliens send to Earth to confirm their existence.

It’s pretty early in the year, but Malachi on Mars is a sure-fire candidate a run mid-year top project lists. It’s just hard to craft a better flowing, well-produced, time efficient album. They just made it hard for the rappers in their lane, especially duos.