A moving, quasi-concept album, this debut from the 20-year-old rapper is bold and thought-provoking, the kind of record that comes along only rarely.
Fearless and incisive, Dave’s reportage-style tracks sketch out race, prison and abusive relationships, resulting in a landmark record.
At 20 years old, Dave – born David Orobosa Omoregie – has just released one of the most thoughtful, moving and necessary albums of 2019 so far.
PSYCHODRAMA isn’t an album to stand up and rejoice to. It’s a sit-down-and-consume, a listen-and-learn. In doing that, you appreciate the blood, sweat and tears that have gone into the prose.
It’s rare to hear a debut album so confident and accomplished, especially when the artist himself has just turned 20 years old. Yet Psychodrama is pretty close to a masterpiece and raises the bar for a new standard in British rap.
Packing dense lyricism, poignant introspection, and resonant production into a neatly compiled concept, PSYCHODRAMA has all the makings of a generational classic.
For the most part ... ‘Psychodrama’ is consistent in its darkness, in its razor-sharp lyricism.
Dave’s level of self-awareness and display of unabashed rawness allows listeners to be drawn in on an emotive level, allowing Psychodrama to resonate with young people across Britain.
PSYCHODRAMA is a consistently engaging record that echoes the complexities of being black in a broken Britain. It feels like a giant step forward for UK rap.
His debut album, Psychodrama, is one of the most significant bodies of British rap music in a generation.
The past three years have seen him grow from underground street-freestyling sensation to truly versatile artist.
Psychodrama is a bold statement from a rapper unafraid to ask tough questions of himself--and the often unforgiving world around him.
A concept record of sorts, Psychodrama has the 20-year-old from Streatham apparently undergoing therapy — a conceit that works thanks to his consistently sharp, sometimes shocking lyrics.
It's hard not to nod in agreement with what Dave's saying throughout Psychodrama, but generic instrumentals and humdrum flows don't translate many of his good points into captivating songs.
People seemed to really enjoy this record, and while Dave is a very technically proficient rapper, I didn't find Pscyhodrama all that captivating.
The beats are serviceable but not very memorable, and the socio-political threads through which Dave weaves his lyrical tapestry are almost as cliché as the metaphor I just used. I applaud any rapper that attempts to tackle societal issues in their music, but Dave doesn't really put a personal spin on it, and seems content to just throw out ... read more
Edit: OKAY FUCK IT I LOVE THIS
Prelude: This might be shaping up to be the best year that UK Rap has ever seen
Review: GODDAMMIT THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN A 9, BUT VOICES WAS SO GODDAMN BAD UGH
This is perhaps, the most meaningful rap release of the year so far. UK Rapper Dave absolutely pours out his heart over 11 tracks. His keen sense of wordplay and admirable storytelling abilities are the most likable features of this album. The album features this 10 minute epic of a song called Lesley ... read more
Goddamn this is fantastic. I think even people who don't like British Rap could enjoy this. Dave is a great storyteller and lyricist and he showcases that on this album. The instrumentals on this album are beautiful produced too. They make the whole psychodrama theme of the album better. AOTY so far.
FAV TRACKS: Psycho, Streatham, Black, Disaster, Screwface Capital, Lesley,
LEAST FAV TRACK: Voices
EDIT: Damn this grew off me.
EDIT 2: Okay it grew back a bit.
OG RATING: 96
Incredible. The maturity Dave displays on this album is ridiculous for his age, and whilst his ability to make hard-hitting tracks like Streatham and Black is what gets him most of the credit, his ability to mix that up with a chill 'song of the summer' like Location really shows a versatility that I think people often overlook.
1 | Psycho 4:08 | 91 |
2 | Streatham 3:25 | 87 |
3 | Black 3:48 | 87 |
4 | Purple Heart 2:44 | 72 |
5 | Location 4:01 feat. Burna Boy | 84 |
6 | Disaster 4:00 feat. J Hus | 81 |
7 | Screwface Capital 4:13 | 87 |
8 | Environment 3:22 | 82 |
9 | Lesley 11:07 feat. Ruelle | 93 |
10 | Voices 3:18 | 64 |
11 | Drama 7:03 | 82 |
#1 | / | GQ [UK] |
#1 | / | The Vinyl Factory |
#2 | / | The Guardian |
#4 | / | Gigwise |
#4 | / | The Line of Best Fit |
#5 | / | PopMatters |
#7 | / | Clash |
#7 | / | Far Out Magazine |
#9 | / | Magnetic |
#10 | / | Fopp |