Caleb Bolin
Contributing Writer
Photo from http://www.solsays.com/
Rap isn’t always deep. Some songs focus on the beat. Some songs focus on money, drugs, sex or other things. Seattle based Sol Moravia-Rosenberg, better known as Sol, gives meaning to rap.
Sol’s 2013 song “Old Him,” one song from his EP “Eyes Open,” touches on the more pressing issues facing humanity.
“Old Him” opens with a piano and teleports the listener to some unnamed country: “8,000 miles from home…still I hold it down for my folk, surrounded by nothing but brown skin, nothing but love from the village to the township.”
In his opening lines, Sol sets the tone and the loving atmosphere in Africa, where he visited on a University of Washington Fellowship.
The song takes a turn in tone. Lines like, “Sometimes tears flow quicker than the river; smiles get thinner, mouths don’t get dinner, and somehow we build houses even bigger,” and “Back home my homie bought a Cadillac; out here that’s cash enough to bring the dead back,” contrast the gross wealth and greed in Western civilization and the lack of bare essentials in Third World countries.
“Old Him” and the other songs on the “Eyes Open” EP reflect on existential problems, problems with greed, love, hate and other issues common to people. Sol manages to do this all while smoothly delivering his lines and points. Words flow over the beats, which more often than not are dance worthy.
Sol’s EP is not only memorable because it is catchy; the lyrics and experiences mentioned are relatable, and for those that aren’t, the imagery is vivid enough to make them so.
The EP is also generously priced at $7.99 on iTunes for 10 songs, which includes two bonus tracks.
All in all, “Eyes Open” and the songs included in the EP, like “Old Him,” are a great purchase, and the content enlightens and enchants. Sol’s latest album, “The Headspace Traveler,” dropped on March 4.
