Charles Laney – Midnight & Lion

Charles Laney embraces the darkness on the foreboding bombastic beats of “Midnight & Lion”. Firmly rooted in hip-hop, Charles Laney incorporates a great variety of different genres within the mix, featuring elements of industrial, noise, glitch, and electro into a unique hybrid. Right in the center of the whole thing from which all else flows are the fantastic vocals that have a commanding presence. Akin to the stylistic kaleidoscopic that consumes the sound itself, Charles Laney proves to be impeccable delivery, whether it is the higher kinetic energy of the opener or the laid-back vibes that dominate some of the later tracks.

“Bring the Heat” opens the album as a feverish nightmare, full of chaos. There is a slight nod towards the nostalgic. Rhythm gets messed with on the pace of molasses of the dazed “Rock & Roll”. IDM melodies emerge on the surprisingly stately “Potent Love Potion”. Nimble flourishes intermingle on the playful “Cool Girl”. A slight nod towards the dramatic runs through “The Work I Put In”. Aggression defines the woozy “Beautiful By Design”. Going for a sprawling ambitious journey is the immersive “Lord of the Crowns”. Economical grooves anchor the cryptic “Snakes”. Nicely closing out the album is the reflective ode of “Rock & Roll (Part II)”.

With “Midnight & Lion” Charles Laney is a deft storytelling, not only being able to describe a journey through a life lived to the fullest but to convey the emotion associated in that experience.