Music Reviews

And the beat keeps on keepin’ on for East Atlanta rapper Hunxho, who just dropped a sonically seductive two-track single, “Part of the Plan + Hold Me Down”, on September 27. Both songs are available in Atmos and Lossless options on Apple Music, as well as in hi-rez options via other digital platforms. If this pair of potent tracks is any indication of what’s to come with Hunxho’s next full album that’s purported to be arriving later this fall, we’re in for quite the aural smorgasbord to come.

Hunxho leans deeper into his well-established hip-hop/R&B blender with the opening gambit, “Part of the Plan”, which kicks off with a muted guitar figure somewhat back in the mix, bass-heavy beat more outfront, and a smooth synth/keyboard accent spread wide and tall like a fine Atmos garnish. (Yes, Chef!) If you’re not an Auto-Tune fan, Hunxho’s warbled vocals may put you off—but the room-echo effect that’s used somewhat subtly throughout his main flow but then becomes more prominent at the end of each successive line gives the overall mix some added breadth in the full 360-degree Atmos arena. Once Hunxho finishes his can’t stop/won’t stop manifesto, the returning wobbly guitar figure takes “Plan” home, as the bass throbs back out front and the lofty, recurring ’80-styled synth stabs carry it all to the final fade.

A cleaner acoustic guitar line opens the second track, “Hold Me Down” and then Hunxho takes his flow slow—still Auto-Tuned but enhanced with more selective echo in spots. A sly repeat of the “hold me” portion of the title phrase recurs throughout, as do a few other choice words/enunciations—sometimes in the ether, sometimes more down the middle. The beat is less bass heavy, and it even drops out entirely for one of the later verse sequences to leave room for Hunxho’s vocals to fully rise up. You should also be able to discern fingers sliding on the guitar strings during chord changes in the back half. Again, kudos must be given to the production team for keeping the final mixes clean and not at all cluttered so that you can really get into the vibe of Hunxho’s storytelling upon successive listens.

I rotated listening to Hunxho’s two new tracks amongst my wireless House of Marley Liberate XLBT headphones, open-air Atmos-enabled speaker system, and AirPod Pros, and ultimately decided that sitting in my Eames listening chair sweet spot with fully open ears lent this Hunxho two-fer my preferred playback setting, with the Marleys being a close second and the AirPod Pros a more distant third. “Get in the game and then just lose / That ain’t part of the plan,” Hunxho submits in the lead track—and he ain’t off-base, because you can’t go wrong listening to this two-fer single in all its Atmos glory.

”Part of the Plan + Hold Me Down” in Atmos on Apple Music.