The latest album from MDK FLA (Matthew Cobis) is entitled “The unintended consequences of time travel and it spans 10 tracks, each of which is totally unique and diverse but somehow manages to maintain its coherence. Let’s see what those 10 tracks are all about.
1- Enough
The opening track is a great showcase for what’s about to come. For the first two minutes of the song, everything feels so industrial and electronic. Samples and synths add to the angsty and alternative 90s/early 2000s feel. It’s like hearing Marilyn Manson collaborate with Rammstein. The growls in the last section of the track are the star of the show here for sure.
2- Ancestor Worship
High-pitched auto-tuned vocals, soft clean guitars, and somber drum lines make you think this is meant to be a soft song, but the basslines and the foreign lyrics make it very ominous and even hypnotic at some points. I presume the language is Hebrew or some middle eastern language, because of the guttural letters and it also sounds like a prayer or some religious recital, which I found to be amazing.
3-Not Done With You
This song is very similar to dance-pop and 80s pop-rock or some more modern acts like Daft Punk. I really love its bassline and vocals the most, I’d love to dance to it at a party or rave and maybe enjoy these airy soaring vocals in a live show.
4- Devastation
An industrial beat that’s leaning toward the hip-hop/trip-hop side of things. It belongs on the album due to the vocal style and the production style, but the instrumentation is entirely different from all other tracks making it super unique and an overall pleasant listen.
5- Savage
A distinctively clearer modern hip-hop sound here, but it’s dark hip-hop for sure. The verses are rapped with a fast pace and an incredible flow. It’s really brief though, so it left me wanting more of its cool rapping.
6- John Titor
If you’re familiar with the name, you probably know the story of the alleged time traveler John Titor. The song tells it in its multiple sections and amazing transitions, and out of the entire album, this track has the most diversity within one track. Once again, the bassline is the superstar here but that doesn’t take away from the amazing guitars and drums and the wonderful soaring vocals. This is a song I truly wanna hear in a live setting.
7- StarForm (Instrumental Version)
This one has another amazing bassline and cool funky synths that will get you up on your feet and dancing. It really suits the futuristic and time-travel vibes, if you’re a fan of psychedelic and progressive trance you’ll love this track as it’s very close to the style of Armin Van Buuren.
8-Unabated
Back to a more rock-ish sound, this one has more grounded guitars, bass, and drums and a more conventional song structure. In its middle section, we hear the industrial samples and tweaked synthesizers once again and as the guitars get heavier we hear more angsty rapping and spoken words. I really love this merge between rock and electronica that MDK FLA seems to be super talented at making.
9- Vamp
This is the album’s shortest track, and it’s based on a sweet and emotional chord progression. The vocals sound youthful and near the end of the song, they get accompanied by some dissonant synths that put a nice conclusion to the album.
The tenth and final track is the extended version of “Not Done With You”, which brings the full extent of the track. All in all, this is one of the most diverse albums I’ve ever listened to, and its ability to draw these many influences from different and distant genres will still sound connected and have elements that join the songs with one another…that ability is nothing short of songwriting brilliance.
