Today, after a long, unfortunate hiatus, I am returning with a review of Vince Staples' debut EP, Hell Can Wait. I have been a fan of Vince for a while now, and I truly feel like this guy is one of the top young rappers in the entire game right now. Vince's projects have been very consistent, and he seems to kill every one of his guest verses. This is Vince's first major label release, at a time when he is getting more buzz than ever. Can Vince capitalize with a great new project?
The beats on Hell Can Wait were definitely one of its major highlights. Like on Vince's last project, Shyne Coldchain Vol. 2, No I.D. handles much of the production here. That is pretty much a guarantee that the EP's beats will be good, and it's no different on Hell Can Wait. I was very impressed by the variety that this production had. The first song, Fire, was as dark and violent as it gets. This beat hit really hard, and will definitely bang in some good speakers. The next song, 65 Hunnid, is the opposite. This instrumental was relaxed, and melodic. It featured a soft piano pattern that gave the song a bit of playfulness. The next two songs, Screen Door and Hands Up, go for some more darkness, as these both feature hard drums and sound pretty nocturnal. The best instrumental on this EP is without a doubt Blue Suede. This beat is stellar in every possible way, with the huge, banging drums, large bass, and wailing synth in the background. It is absolutely fantastic. After that though, the last two songs on the EP were not that memorable. They were not bad, but they were very different from the rest of the album, sounding more bright and happy. I wasn't really feeling these last two instrumentals, but I appreciate the variety. Hell Can Wait brought a mixed bag of beats, but the bag featured a few gems that I will remember for a while.
Vince Staples is as brilliant as ever on Hell Can Wait, and I actually feel that he was at his best on this project. Vince raps with a certain attitude and confidence that makes him very fun to listen to. One problem that he has had in the past was that he raps in a monotone, boring delivery. I can happily say that there was none of that on this EP. Vince sounds hungry, and he delivers all of his lyrics this way. The intro, Fire, is a short song, but it is a perfect way to start the mixtape. Vince goes really hard here, even with his voice muffled a bit by the instrumental. I don't even mind this, as the song is still great and you can tell Vince's flow is still on point. Vince proves on 65 Hunnid that he can put together a killer hook, crafting one here that was stuck in my head for a while. Although the song Screen Door was a little long, making it one of my least favorites on the EP, Vince still raps very well and I liked many of his lines on this track. Vince comes back hard, though, with the track Hands Up. This song was fantastic, with Vince attacking the topic of police brutality. He sounds focused, and his flow was absolutely perfect over the beat. Blue Suede follows, and while the instrumental dominates the song, Vince flows nicely on the track and I liked this hook. Vince brings on singer Teyana Taylor, the only feature on the tape to sing the hook on Limos, and I enjoyed it quite a bit. This was a pretty good track. I do think, though, that Feelin the Love, the outro was the weakest song on Hell Can Wait. Vince didn't sound as good here, and it sounded lazy compared to the awesome tracks the EP already had. Overall, Hell Can Wait was Vince proving that he can carry a project all by himself. He crafted some excellent songs on this tape, and even the tracks I did not enjoy as much were stillvery listenable. Vince did a great job on this EP, and I think he's an artist to keep your eye on has his debut album approaches.
HELL CAN WAIT WRAP UP
+Vince carries this EP by himself, rapping consistently well
+Vince can be very lyrical
+He flows very well, showing he picked the perfect instrumentals for him
+Great variety with the production
-Some songs paled in comparison to the others
Best: Fire, Hands Up, Blue Suede
Worst: Feelin the Love
Vince Staples- Hell Can Wait
9.1/10
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