This is the 10th solo LP from Brighton, England, United Kingdom emcee & High Focus Records founder Fliptrix. Also known for his membership of The 4 Owls, he made his debut in 2007 off Force Fed Imagery followed by Theory of Rhyme as well as 3rd Eye of the Storm & The Road to the Interdimensional Piff Highway. Out the Box & Polyhymnia both came out a couple years later as did Patterns of Escapism & Inexhale, coming off Light Work to drop Mantra #9 hoping to shake up the moderate feedback of both it’s predecessors.
“From the Source” begins with a lo-fi beat from Telemachus talking about the water drying up & hoping that it’s only for the summer whereas “Eden” produced by Illinformed takes the jazz boom bap route instrumentally so he can speak of the impression he has of the world going crazy. “So Clear” goes for a conscious vibe lyrically hooking up a sped-up vocal sample behind him prior to Leaf Dog giving “Deeper in the Forest” a soulful flare starting on a roll in the jungles.
King Kashmere joins Fliptrix during “Primordial Soup” talking about doing for this who wanna make something of themselves over this funky Pitch 92 beat just before the optimistic boom bap jam “Nothing Really Changed” breaking down the memories that’ll live in his name. “Wanna Tell You” featuring Leaf Dog finds the 2 talking about still being the illest while “OCD with the L O V E” featuring Coops & Verb T asks their partners to let the melody speak.
The title track reaches the halfway point of Mantra #9 on the most appropriate note one could possibly imagine talking about only serious games getting played when he steps inside the ring while “Get Free” jazzily begins the 3rd quarter speaking of keeping the prize in his sights. “R2D2” references the astromech droid from The Walt Disney Company subsidiary Lucafilm-owned Star Wars franchise maintaining a boom bap sound while “Gratitude” takes a smooth approach courtesy of Mr. Slipz putting his gracious side in the spotlight.
“Reckless” by The 4 Owls reunites my favorite UK boom bap group of the last decade dropping hardcore lyricism over a sample-heavy boom bap instrumental but once “SM58” featuring Onoe Caponoe & Ramson Badbonez sees the trio teaming up over a symphonic Wundrop beat for an ode to the Shure SM58 brand of microphones, “Rhyme & Reason” talks about smoking spliffs when turning corners in his car.
Wrapping up Mantra #9’s final leg, the song “Son Light” gives off a warm summer atmosphere expressing the desire he has to live for both his son & his wife while “Future Ain’t Promised” turns the jazz rap influenced all the way back talking about wanting to make his best solo work this late in his career when this has been making me more hopeful of that happening. “Veil of Reality” finishes the full-length with a mind-altering outro ready to make an example for the youth to follow.
Inexhale & Light Work were merely average compared to Patterns of Escapism & Polyhymnia, but Mantra 9 has gotta be the most I’ve enjoyed a Fliptrix album in roughly 7 years right when Patterns of Escapism had dropped. The subject matter’s more mature compared to anything the CEO of High Focus has done previously enhanced by the guest list comprised of the label’s biggest names past & present and the boom bap production’s a lot stronger than the last couple of offerings were.
Score: 4/5
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