THEESatisfaction

THEESatisfaction is Seattle’s throwback hippie hip-Hop dream team. This dynamic duo brings the daisy, peace and love era back into the game. Comprising rapper Stasia Irons and singer Catherine Harris-White, THEESatisfaction blend together soul, jazz and funk into a hip-Hop menagerie of sounds and lyrical visual aids, designed to open the mind to truth, sex, drama and justice THEESatisfaction way.

I could use a lot of big adjectives to describe their debut album awE naturalE, but simply put, this album is the real deal. It’s a refreshing foray into territory once owned by Floetry (rapper and singer aesthetic), the key difference here being that this duo takes more chances, boldly wearing both musical and socio-political influences on their sleeves.

On tracks like  “Deeper”; “God” and “QueenS” they bring an electric live energy into the studio, giving their sound a funky edge--which in turn enhances the headnodding groove. The mood and feel runs the gamut, speaking directly to everyday human experience; accessible, with just a wee bit of mystique sprinkled on top.

While there are plenty of successes to celebrate here, one key miss is that lyrically, it falls short in places. While their wordplay is witty and successfully carries across their thoughts and feelings, I found it did not fully deliver on the above and beyond promise of the music. The sonic chances THEESat take are the heart and soul of this album. It truly calls to mind an era when a beat was more just an electro loop.

Overall this project gives us hope that there is life outside the tried and true. THEESatisfaction has put us on notice, creating the expectation that the next few albums are going to maybe change the game. This time however they gave us a good album, something pleasant, different and raw to vibe on. Definitely give this a spin.

-Enyi