Mid-Year Round Up - Genesis Owusu Kicks Off June's "Albums You May Have Missed" Series

Forget a Top 50 for the last 6 months, let's keep finding great new music

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It’s hard to believe that in a few short weeks, 2021 will be at its midpoint. After the decade that was last year, time is flying by once again.

Most publications are throwing out the “Top 50 Albums of the Year So Far” lists with summer in high gear, and I am not a fan. Sure, Check This Out! started with a review of my favorite records from last year, but there’s no point in checking in midway.

Instead, I want to make sure you are continuing to find that next record that you love. So, for the next three weeks, I will be going over music that I can’t stop listening to that hasn’t made its way into the newsletter or reviewed on my Instagram page (give me a follow if you aren’t already!).

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There’s no better album to kick off this series than Smiling With No Teeth, the debut full-length from Genesis Owusu.

Released in early March, Smiling With No Teeth is a revelation and breath of fresh air. Genesis Owusu, the Ghanan-born and Canberra-based artist, sends the listener on a genre-bending odyssey. While running through alternative hip-hop, neo-soul, funk, and early 00’s indie territory, Owusu is here to talk about mental health and racial inequality.

From the first track, “On the Move!”, an electrofunk number that pulls the listener right in, Owusu brings in the theme of black dogs. Growing up as the only black kid in his Canberra neighborhood, Owusu dealt with being called the racist term. Now, he’s flipped it on its head, confronting the aggression and wearing the label with a sense of pride.

Owusu has a natural gift for backing up his challenging verses with organic instrumentation. Surrounded by a live band, their sound pays off immediately on “The Other Black Dog,” a track full of climbing, woozy riffs. While getting lost in the groove, Owusu sings, “all my friends are hurting, but we dance it off, laugh it off / scars inside our shoes but we just tap it off, clap it off / watch me coat in rainbow as I fade into the black / And see, I switched myself to plastic, don't know how to change it back / I'm being eaten on the inside, at least I look like a snack / I haven't come out of my shell but don't know how long 'til I crack. 

The record kicks off with a bang, but it’s the groovy run in the middle of the album that makes Smiling With No Teeth a must-hear album. “Waitin’ on Ya” is a soulful yearner in the styling of André 3000 before Owusu confronts the black dog on “Don’t Need You.” Going back to R&B’s funky roots, the song would already be considered a classic if Prince had released it.

“Drown” is the highlight of the record, featuring the guitar work of Kirin J Callinan’s guitar work. A high-energy earworm, it will make you yearn for a TV on the Radio comeback. At the same time, Owusu is probably better at creating their sound and building on it in 2021. Finally, “Gold Chains” closes out the hot streak as Owusu rides his flow like a chilled-out wave.

Genesis Owusu works through a chaotic world of racism, and no one is safe. “Whip Cracker” builds into a funky fury as Owusu tackles neo-Nazis and woman beaters while chanting, “this ain’t the 50’s / you ain’t talkin’ shit / know your role / know your place.

The last few tracks find a more soulful territory, with “A Song About Fishing” using the metaphor “to cast my net in a fishless lake.” “No Looking Back” is a refreshing take on gospel, and “Bye Bye” closes things out while continuing a theme of struggling through life’s daily struggles.

At fifteen tracks and almost an hour long, some fat could be cut, but at the same time, I appreciate Genesis Owusu putting it all on the table in a debut. Labeled as a solo album, the live band work on every track deserves their accolades. The rhythm section of Julian Sudek on drums and Michael Di Francesco on bass drive the entirety of Smiling With No Teeth. Keyboardist Andrew Klippel sets the atmosphere and previously mentioned Kirin J Callinan’s guitar accents are always well placed.

This is a messy album that isn’t afraid to explore pressing themes and multiple genres. If you drop any preconceptions, though, Genesis Owusu has provided one of the funkiest and best hip-hop albums of the year.

Crank it up loud and enjoy Smiling With No Teeth.

Smiling With No Teeth is available now on House Anxiety, Ourness.

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