Cairoglyphs is the musical entity created by the Kansas City-based producer and hip-hop artist Ryan Forest and the first release under this name, titled The Veil, is the type of debut with the ability to hammer you down upon first listen, while managing to cleverly avoid all the over-used tropes in hip-hop.
Much like his fellow Kansas City native Mac Lethal (pretty much my favorite dude in hip-hop; I've written about his stuff here, here and here), Forest is adept at delivering fast-flowing, intricate rhymes that come together like the jagged pieces of a weird 3D puzzle, making you think to yourself "how in the fuck did he come up with this stuff?!". There's all sorts of mentions and references to scientific, religious, technological and mystical concepts all throughout the 7 songs on this EP, so if you came here looking for songs about swag and bitches, you're in the wrong neighborhood. In fact, I'm pretty much sure you've ended up in a neighborhood where every inhabitant is either a cyborg or a thug with nanoimplants and a skull gun embedded in his forehead and where there is no sunlight, only neon lights. Further adding to the bleak, retro-futuristic atmosphere are the beats - sweet baby Philip K. Dick, the beats! Cairoglyphs' producing skills are amazing, being able to effortlessly produce enticing sonic backdrops for the lyrics, blending synthwave and techno/house elements into dark, pulsating melodies that perfectly complement the grimy, dystopian feel of the music, while also being strangely danceable and headbangable.
Cairoglyphs is definitely one of the most original and enticing hip-hop projects I've ever listened to and if you're interested in dark, ominous, futuristic beats and flawless wordsmanship, you should quit whatever you're doing right now and slam the play button. I've been listening to this for the past week and I'm already chomping at the bit for more material from Ryan Forest. Back to the matrix!
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