Vancouver, B.C. – Cityreal has released his first full-length album The Beginning, and from the beginning this joint’s a banger. He brings the West Coast and Vancity sound (if there could said to be one Vancouver sound) to another level. The album features hype melodic beats coupled with conscious but catchy rhymes and crisp production.

From A to Z, The Beginning starts off on the right foot and stays on track. This is a real album, it’s conceptually thought-out with a true beginning, middle and end which reflect Cityreal’s skill as a songwriter as much as his abilities as an emcee and producer. He handled all the production on the album – making and arranging all the music and vocals himself – which lends to each track being a uniquely individual song.

From the title track opener to the album’s last song “Out Of Time” there’s a continuous and cohesive flow to the whole recording. An uptempo flow at that, both in his his percussion as well as his verses. Song after song is a neck snapper, and with guitar riffs and piano melodies leading most tracks, every song is undeniably catchy. Waving the Vancity flag sky-high, Cityreal has many of the city’s most talented artists collaborating with him: heavyhitters Kyprios, Moka Only and Narai all shine with their contributions, and their appearances keep the album from ever becoming redundant. Each song has a clearly thought-out theme or concept: from “Liar” to “Soul On The Track” or “Change,” each track is original in its own right, which keeps the album interesting and the listener engaged.

This CD stayed in my deck longer than most local albums and ended up providing the perfect soundtrack to a country drive on a beautiful sunny day, though it would probably be as fitting on a drive back from the club on a late night. Even my Betty Page-esque pierced metalhead girl was feeling every song. Cityreal’s The Beginning represents Vancouver as well as it does hip-hop culture in general, and it’s unlikely any hip-hop head wouldn’t be vibing to it upon first listen.

Written by Jesse Furnell for HipHopCanada

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Posted by Jesse Furnell

Jesse "Lyric420" Furnell grew up in the Surrey skate scene of the early 90s. Exposed to more rock than rap - although he did own Public Enemy's Fear Of A Black Planet tape in elementary school - his attitude that 'good art is good art' has always given him a fresh outlook on music whether it be punk, prog rock, metal, indie or rap. The Bay Area scene and sound of the late 90s is what initially pulled Jesse into the boom bap: thanks to Quannum and Heiro, along with what was happening in the East coast underground rap scene, he found himself immersed, impressed and obsessed with hip-hop like never before. The philosophy major turned college dropout, once a familiar face at the Surrey courthouse, is now more entrenched in music than ever before. He started rapping in early 2000 and he's yet to stop, even when asked to. Fortunately or unfortunately, Jesse has much to say on the topic of hip-hop and has now been given the chance to have his opinion heard on a national scale. Our apologies.

1. 
   Van chickJun 12, 2010 at 8:39 pm

   Wow…this is a really good album!

2. 
   Guessgirl_08Jun 12, 2010 at 9:05 pm

   Awesome album! Everyone should listen and download this off itunes!

3. 
   Wes_CoastJun 15, 2010 at 7:54 pm

   Truly a fantastic album. Rarely is every song on an album great.
   Very mature and inclusive…get it!!

4. 
   BC Bud BoyJun 16, 2010 at 9:12 pm

   This album’s dope. Anybody know when Cityreal is playin in Vancouver again?

5. Tweets that mention Cityreal – The Beginning [Review] | HipHopCanada.com -- Topsy.comJun 17, 2010 at 10:07 pm

   [...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Vancity Buzz, Cityreal. Cityreal said: Cityreal album review on Hip Hop Canada.com http://www.hiphopcanada.com/2010/06/cityreal-the-beginning-review/ [...]

6. 
   HoeyunoOct 17, 2010 at 1:41 am

   I actually heard a bit of dudes album and I was pretty impressed. Im usually a hater but dude put together a pretty ill album.