By now, anyone paying attention to SA Hip Hop is well aware of the name Touchline. The rapper from Tembisa has proven himself versatile and hard-working by constantly maintaining his presence, driven by a hunger to succeed clear for all to hear and see.
His latest offering is in the form of a 10-track studio album titled S.O.O.N 2(A Better Year). True to the title, he continues to make Something Out Of Nothing as he relays through his content.
Touchline has made it customary to end the year off with an offering of some sort - be that a mixtape or a single. The intro track, A South African Christmas, is one such offering that dropped as a single in December of 2021. It eases the project in slowly as Touchline reflects over fallen colleagues in music, counting whatever small blessings there are and how to reconcile and move forward. It’s a bittersweet moment that’s reflective of the period we’ve just come out of. The wordplay is something to be admired.
Actions Over Captions is reflective of just how much he has honed his skills. His storytelling is as on point as it's ever been. In his raps, Touchline preaches focus and elimination of distractions. He speaks as the voice of South African youth.
His content can be taken as preechy and somewhat judgemental but it's just what people need to hear to hear. He aims to empower. He is set on addressing social ills through his music and for that, he cannot afford any sugarcoating.
That's except on the song Shugela where he diversifies the sound with Amapiano. His raps fit in seamlessly as he serenades a love interest. His style allows him to tap into the sound while keeping form.
He dabbles in the Piano sound once again on Six, where he's in a more vibey bag. The production is shaky to be frank. It could be deliberately raw or it could be testament to how the Yanos sound isn't as easy to pull off as many think. The best could stand to be more refined.
The arrangement on the album is to be admired. From Sugela, transitioning in Amasi which is a trap joint with a log drum dominating the drum kit. It's been good to see over the past year how the log drum has been integrated into trap beats. That might be the middle ground those that are hesitant to dip their feet in some Piano might want to play with.
Because Touchline's strong point is reflective raps, I'll Always Have Me comes off as a strong contender for one of the most stand-out tracks on the album. It shows in this content that he is jaded but here it’s on full display.
The album is not only introspection, there's a good balance of vibey songs through Six, Abapheli and Abafana Aba Hot. He lets his other side come out to play. Still flaunting dope wordplay, with killer kasi slang cool talk. He exudes confidence with the skill to back it up.
He brings it back to his reflective raps with the last two tracks. The album ends off with a somber joint - Peace Hunting - that sees the beat switching up a few times as he gets poetic. He speaks about the doubt he had to overcome as he focused on what he wanted. His ambition still burns strong for what's to come. It's a great selection to end things off. It has a victory lap feel to it.
10 tracks feels like the right length even though this isn’t a rap-heavy album. It has the right diversification for an album. Something to reel in a new audience for him. It tells enough of his story for new listeners to get a glimpse of his story without having heard prior projects. He strikes a good balance between dropping quotable bars and delivering the message he is so evidently passionate about. Solid set of songs, solid production. This album shows that he has good son-making abilities in addition to being a great rapper. This is no doubt a strong entry to his catalogue.
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