Aj Tracey's "Flu Game."

 


Immediately, AJ Tracey begins his sophomore album, 'Flu Game', with the satisfying synthy frostbite of an anthem with 'Anxious.' Tracey is 'recession-proof' as he runs his 'London Town' with a breezy flow. He then turns up the dial in the NAV featured 'Kukoc.' The trap instrumental is satisfyingly murky as a charismatic Tracey likens his influence on British youth to Phil Jackson coaching the Chicago Bulls. As a result, the rapper got the British kids 'shooting like Kukoc.' Nice. Additionally, NAV is serviceable in the track, as he delivers a decent hook and verse. The enjoyable sports references do not stop, especially in the banging 'Bringing It Back.' The 'whee' adlib after the 'I locked up the food for the like Boris and then let it go like Rashford' is humourous, likewise for Digga D's 'slap that PR, saw them Crouch.' The chemistry between AJ Tracey and Digga D is satisfying, especially within the track's catchy hook. In 'Cheerleaders', Tracey continues to boast his Phil Jackson-esque influence. The production is a  synthy, euphoric warp, armed with chilling trap beats as Tracey got 'young bulls shooting like Paxson' and 'jumping on the pitch like Xavi or Scholes.'

After looking down on his detractors by calling their verbal flex being 'nothing but net' in 'Draft Pick' and hitting them with a 'Eurostep' in 'Eurostep' and a few mediocre tracks, 'Flu Game' shifts away from the atmospheric trap beats to summery grooves, beginning at 'Top Dog.' The bassline, seemingly taking inspiration from Santana's 'Maria Maria', is decent as Tracey maintain his charismatic braggy nature. Maintaining the summery vibe in the T-Pain featured 'Summertime Shootout', Tracey's attempt at singing in the hook is bearable. Unfortunately, T-Pain's feature here is underwhelming. His autotuned background vocals never felt supplemental as his verse was forgettable. After 'Perfect Storm', the Latin-flavoured basslines get tiring to listen to, especially in the lacklustre 'Coupe' featuring Kehlani.

'Numba 9' does recall some chilling synths, yet despite Millie Go Lightly shining,  Tracey is annoyingly almost bland in the hook as SahBabii feature is forgettable. Following the passable club anthem 'Dinner Guest', 'Flu Game' does end modestly with 'West Ten.' Producers 'Fred Again' and 'Take A Daytrip' deliver a refreshing garage instrumental which supplements Mabel's decent chorus and a more enjoyable AJ Tracey.

'Flu Game' is promising at first as Tracey unleashes a charismatic burst through his flows and humourous sport-themed punchlines over atmospheric trap instrumentals. Unfortunately, despite being somewhat interesting at first, the Latin-inspired summery grooves was a killjoy of a chapter in 'Flu Game', almost unrecoverable. 

Best Track(s): Anxious, Bringing It Back, Cheerleaders, Kukoc. 

5.5/10.

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