OKnice's "Have You Tried Being Happy?" Review
Review by: Paul Thorson, Writer/Editor @Paulyt03
Edited by: Andrew Perrizo, Owner/Editor @PlaylistTC
If you like what we are doing, please consider supporting us on Patreon, PayPal, or Venmo.
Cover art by Alexis Politz
Have you just tried being happy? It’s such a simple route: Point A to point B. Just force a smile, and eventually, there will be truth to that grin. However, everyone fails to mention that this feeling is an ever-fleeting, ever-moving target that never ceases.
Happy-hungry mortals gnawing at scarce rations of bliss and contentment are synonymous with the human experience. OKnice’s newest release, Have You Tried Being Happy, encompasses this harrowing journey over rich and poignant instrumentation from some of the Twin Cities greats like Hex, Minnesota Cold, and Metasota, with additional production from Zapeda and Deergod.
Over 15 tracks in a 40-minute span, St. Paul residing, Oklahoma-born, OKnice shares an intimate account of his struggle with clawing his way out of the pit of apathy and woes that are all too relatable to everyone.
“Told myself I’d make a happy record/
Told my friends I’d my act together.
You can see I failed at that, but whatever.”
Meticulous Melancholy
Have You Tried Being Happy surpasses the size of the emcee’s last two projects in the first-days-of-lockdown experiment of The Social Distance and the chilly, late 2019 release of Winter Tape Vol. 1. OKnice’s effort to make a feel-good record falls short on this album, but that goes without saying; it’s filled with heavy doses of dopamine.
The opening track, “I’m Still,” dishes out a meticulous but rich and authentic vocal performance over mellow, but potent, instrumental from Deergod. The first few minutes of this album show his growth, forever mastering the art of impactful bars while allowing almost every syllable to rhyme.
“I’ve been crate diggin’, trying to fill my chest crater/
Now the paper changing hands, Dunder Mifflin turned to Saber.”
With the first visuals to release, Split Screen sits second in the driver’s seat on Have You Tried Being Happy. This joint offers a brighter hue in contrast to the majority of the album’s darker despondency. Still, it sets its course to the hopelessness of everyday life with the lyrical direction as OKnice tries to fight himself in a deathmatch using two halves of a screen.
“Snake Oil” is the heart-tugging, melancholy ballad. The horns weep, the drums lumber to paint a blue hue over OKnice and Defcee’s introspective and flawless verses. OKnice speaks a lot on emotions throughout his work, and the instrumentation on “Snake Oil” by Minnesota Cold is an unparalleled complement to that perspective.
Type: Blue-Part 2
The tape deck turnover at the tail end of “Snake Oil” feels symbolic to the end of Have You Tried Being Happy’s beginning, shifting in sound but keeping pace with its energy before it settles into the album's body.
Over a guitar-riffing, rumbling Metasota instrumental, Love Ulysses shares his account of the blues with an impeccable cadence. OKnice delivers an original and incredibly catchy hook along with a pair of verses.
“I read a dissertation on a bathroom stall once.
In summation, it just said, ‘You’re all fucked, so have fun.’”
From Nowhere to Pleasantville
With low-end strings and quick-hitting kicks of Zapeda instrumental, OKnice lists all locations of the world most desired that he hasn’t been to and claims a nameless entity from Nowhere, USA. The sixth track Voicemail starts with an endearing birthday message from Christopher's grandmother. Careful Gaze vocalist Gabe Reasoner delivers a drowsy and cerebral melody over gloomy organs that adds a further texture to the project.
”Pleasantville” is the kind of joint that needs to be a Fallout radio station in the near future. With sounds provided by in-house producer Hex, this track draws a sketch of a picturesque suburban sprawl with the underlying superficial, mind-numbing culture inside its city limits. With an additional advertisement of the Chrysler T-V 8 Nuclear Tank in a voiceover from Joe Bianco, Pleasantville helps us prepare for the next part of the project.
A Forecast for the Apocolypse
“Emergency Broadcast” gives an announcement for the start of the end. Over ghostly piano production by Hex. OKnice gives a spacey melody reminiscent of the Flobots classic “Handlebars.” However, instead of showing off the no-hands act, OKnice has his finger on the button to wipe out all existence.
Between the ever-sweet relationship between brick and window to spotting the devil in the bright light of day, OKnice has enough of the blues in “Family Tradition.” The genetic curse to lift your spirits with spirits or other substances is all too apparent in many families, including Christophers. Alabama native Sekwence delivers the guest verse as the raspy-voiced plug for all your woes.
How to Miss and Hit a Home Run
The last act of Have You Tried Being Happy presents a grand, poignant instrumental that’s sure to spill the tide of emotions in “Swing & Amiss.” Buried in this album full of struggles to crack a smile and fully develop an appreciation for life is soil muddle with apathy, regret, and uncertainty.
Yet, OKnice still leaves you with a dose of endorphins on his way out, even though it feels like happiness is still so far off for him and most people. “Swing & Amiss” represents how failure sometimes leads to something beautiful in the midst of the chaos of this cold, callous world.
Where to Listen to Have You Tried Being Happy?
You can listen to or download OKnice’s Have You Tried Being Happy on Bandcamp or wherever you stream your music.
Catch OKnice Live at the 7th St. Entry
OKnice will be playing at 7th St. Entry this Thursday, April 7th along with the acts of Lazenlow, Yare, Zen Is In, Love Ulysses, and DJ Nanobyte on the ones and twos.
You can find tickets here.
