Kelly Kirwan
Rich piano notes form a sweeping melody, followed by clean percussion reminiscent of a rotary phone’s mechanical rewinding. A voice enters, clipped and muffled as if it were filtered through a megaphone. As we lean in close, we hear the words, “It’s time for a change,” and are plunged into Datboi Nature's latest EP, Accepting Happiness. Accompanied by the rich instrumentals of producer Fla.mingo, it's a collection of soft-swaying, soulful hip-hop that glimmers like light spilling through the blinds.
The second track, "Opiates Are Bad, Ask My Mom," features a faster percussion and a layered, slightly lisping male tenor that could be the child of Macy Gray. They act like the Greek chorus of the song, guiding our emotions as an answering machine picks up and we hear, “Hi sweetie, it’s Mom,” in the background. Her message plays against the delicate arrangement, her words nearly lost in the notes that wash over us.
On the final, eponymous track, Fla.mingo samples Radiohead’s mournful anthem "Videotape," and creates a robust synthesis of the sounds and styles of the first two songs: a soft cadence that meshes all its consonants into one, and the vibrant chords of a somber piano. As a whole, Accepting Happiness is a much needed reprieve, and a welcome beam of light on our airwaves.