All Roads Lead To Home by Raw Soul is an EP that will have you coming back again and again – head bopping in time – with its exquisite production, unendingly smooth flow and brilliant lyricism.

I must open this review with two confessions. First, that I only just got into rap; before this EP, I’d only known of Eminem and K-pop rap. Second, that I pushed off this review for a week (sorry to my editor Rob!) – partly because I’ve been working on some very exciting things coming to IAAS Music soon, but mostly because I wasn’t even sure where to begin writing about this. Truth be told, I am very envious of Raw Soul’s flow and spent definitely more time than necessary reading and re-reading the lyrics; there is just so much packed into so little.

Raw Soul’s SoundCloud, greatly undersells the record. Raw Soul writes that he “doesn’t know if these songs are any good”, even as he considers this to be, “as a showcase of technical skill and ability, [his] best work yet”. Within that same ‘About’ field, it’s revealed that this EP was created in a month. I’d say I find it hard to believe given its overall tightness and excellence, but sometimes the best work emerges under pressure – just look at Doechii’s breakout Grammy-winning mixtape Alligator Bites Never Heal, also composed in a month.

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Raw Soul R&B artist from Vancouver

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Baring his soul (pardon the pun) in this mission statement for his artistry, Raw Soul describes what he wants to bring to the scene. There’s the bravado associated with hip-hop and rap, of believing one to be capable of great things to change the world – yet balanced against the vulnerability of exposing your innermost feelings in pursuit of your craft. As an artist and writer myself, I definitely related hard.

The record opens with an explosive 90s-style synth in Skywalker. It’s honestly my favourite song on here, and not just because it references Anakin and I love Star Wars!

Skywalker sets up the whole EP and Raw Soul as an artist exceptionally well. In just under 4 minutes, I do feel like I’ve gotten to know a part of the artist a little more – my measure for what constitutes a great track. It exudes confidence, the type of track that would get an audience hyped at a live gig – yet never crosses the line into arrogance, with Raw Soul rapping that he’s “tryna keep it humble”. There’s self-belief and self-affirmation, even as the lyrics almost seem self-soothing as a manifestation and mantra at times. It’s almost a subversion of the stereotypical rap projecting this image of power and swag – instead, Raw Soul acknowledges how he reaches for greater heights while not being quite there yet.

The next track, Salud, took me by surprise with its jazzy fusion. If Skywalker was bravado, then Salud is the vulnerability that comes with opening yourself up so deeply in pursuit of your craft. The production is full of intention in matching the themes of each track – Salud invokes wine and a toast, which is associated by the refinement reflected in the jazz. I particularly appreciated the circular ending, with both the lyrics and instrumentation calling back to the start. It’s a nice breath from the youthful, brash energy of Skywalker, setting up the return to bravado in Rise and Fall well.

Rise and Fall is gritty with a groovy percussion in a half-time R&B feel. It’s wonderfully dissonant in my mind (not sonically in the least) – it’s closer to Skywalker than Salud, but lyrically it’s so incredibly vulnerable. The lyrics are a confession of being “just a man”, but also wanting to make it big and having those dreams seem too big.

The next track, Dream and Desire, follows a similar naming pattern and energy – but much more acoustically. A piano twinkles in the background and an acoustic bass creates a groove you can’t help but move to. Though it expands on Rise and Fall, where previously Raw Soul looked outward into the images and actions he telegraphs to his audience, now he looks inward into why he desires the spotlight and does what he does at all.

All Roads Lead To Home by Raw Soul R&B Album

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Immediately, Don’t Know makes an impression as having more voices. There’s a vocal lead in the background, and for much of the song the vocals are double-tracked with just enough variance. Maybe I’m reading a little too much into it, but it does fit the idea of ‘not knowing’ well to have conflicting voices. The focus shifts to what Raw Soul has given up in chasing his dream – what it cost, what it’s taking now, and what happens if maybe it doesn’t turn out as envisioned.

Raw Soul closes out the EP with Sayonara – goodbye in Japanese. Here he concludes and summarises the EP’s themes. There’s gratitude, there’s grit, and maybe more importantly there’s no indication of stopping or slowing down. The production stays energetic, and he asks the audience directly, “Y’all thought I was finished?”. Again, I hear this playing out incredibly well for a live audience – and now I’m sad that Raw Soul is based in Vancouver, Canada, while I’m in Singapore, so I probably won’t catch a show from him.

Overall, this EP is one of the tightest I’ve heard in a while. There are no skips – in fact, the tracklist is another thing I’d give Raw Soul his flowers on. Each track flows incredibly well into the next, and they all sound unique yet cohesive. The energy levels fluctuate very pleasantly – never jarring, and never overly repetitive to the point of fatigue. The last rap mixtape to give me the same feeling was 1999 by MARK of NCT. I never get bored listening to either – and believe me, I listened to All Roads Lead To Home so much in preparing this review.

My singular constructive critique would be on the album art, which is a tree with the EP title below. I’d preface this by saying that I have no context as to why this choice was made, and that there could absolutely be a great reason why Raw Soul chose it. I just wish that the visual design matched the stunning level of intentionality displayed in the music itself. The thin serif to thick, round sans-serif feels incongruent to the grit and soul (excuse the pun, again) of the EP. Though perhaps that speaks to itself in how highly I think of this record, that I had no notes on its sonic or lyrical qualities. For that, I’d also like to give great credit to producer bvtman, whose work I will promptly look up once I finally submit this review to my editor.

I’ll definitely be spinning this EP and turning over the rhymes and lyricism for a while more. And I’ll probably end up regretting that I won’t manage to fit those later thoughts into this review, but perfect is the enemy of good – and nothing is ever done, only due.

So if you are an artist of any kind, or hustling in any way to change your life, go listen to All Roads Lead To Home by Raw Soul – because you’ll find a kindred spirit in at least one song in this 6-song EP.

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