GRACE

So he disappears for 7 years, drops an EP with a complete tone switch, but it's pretty quality, then returns 6 months later with a new EP and a new tone switch. This one keeps it short and sweet, only featuring 4 songs this time around. "UP" was oddly the first track he released after his hiatus last year, even before "SHARK", and I absolutely loved it, finding it odd that the song and its style were not found anywhere on "SHARK". For whatever reason, he delayed "UP" from appearing on "SHARK" and instead it shows up here, and it is much more fitting in all fairness. While "SHARK" embodied a darker synth experience, "GRACE" plays as its counterpart. "GRACE", the song, is quality. A fantastic use of vocal mixing and ambience in the glittery synths. Reaper has almost nailed down the art of slow-moving production. He finds ways to keep the music interesting while maintaining certain chords or noises for a good length of time, and "GRACE", the song, is a great example of this. The middle two tracks, "HEAVEN" and "LIBERATION," do falter slightly, not matching the same quality as the opener and closer. They suffer a bit from not capitalizing on the same strengths as the other songs do. The slow production I mentioned earlier hinders these a bit. It's not like they are unlistenable, but a bit more time in the oven, and I think these could have at least neared the quality of the others. I hope Reaper sticks around and continues doing whatever he's doing. It seems every time he releases something, it's pretty different, but I am consistently a fan. While I wish this could have been a song or two longer and a few tweaks to keep the interest in a few songs, I'm still satisfied with the EP, especially considering how close together he released this to his previous outing.