Clairmont The Second is an artist raised int the Weston area of Toronto. He is surrounded by a family grounded in art and has been playing drums since he age of 4. It was also around that time that he was introduced to making beats with the help of his older brother, Cola H., the only featuring artist on Clairmont’s latest full-length release It’s Not How It Sounds.
An in-depth conversation with Clairmont will be available in Issue 002 of Sidedoor Magazine, so be sure to check that out for a deeper insight on the man behind the music.
Clairmont’s music has the ability to leave listeners speechless. Once they find out that his entire discography is self-produced, in addition to directing and editing a vast majority of his music videos, they’re left distraught – like we were.
Clairmont has an extensive catalogue leading up to this point. He has consistently been releasing music since 2014 and now, in 2020, he’s the best he’s ever been. Staying true to his dynamic sounds, unorthodox patterns, and distorted synths, he also remains extremely accessible. If you love hard hitting drums, and impressive rapping ability, Clairmont is for you. If you’re into innovative sounds and experimental diversity, Clairmont is for you. If you’re into great music, It’s Not How It Sounds is for you.
Although Clairmont only announced the album last week, he had been working on this rollout at least since the release of DUN on March 20th, 2020, the first of 3 single to release prior to the album being available. Following “Dun” were “Gun Finger” and “Dream”, the latter of which is a refreshing listen towards the end of the 24-minute project.
Most of the album in indescribable, and unlike anything else that has been created in the history of Hip Hop – and no, that’s not an exaggeration. “Dream” is the only song that can be related to, as it shares an energy that is similar to some of Tyler The Creator’s most recent work. As we spoke to Clairmont a few months ago, we learned that he is far from limited in terms of inspiration. “Dream” is rooted in Neo-Soul with complex but never aggressive production, sharing a sign of the versatility that Clairmont is capable of. The rest of the album, however, is extremely aggressive and very necessary. It’s hard to pinpoint any direct inspirations, except for on the album’s intro track, the entirely instrumental “Power/Theme”, which is highly electronic, with gospel-esque chords, and video game samples that very likely could have come from Zelda or Mario worlds. It’s possible that the intro track is indicative of what’s to come, but of course, “It’s Not How It Sounds”.
In an attempt to help you understand how urgently you need to listen to this new project, we have collected some of our favourite lyrics from every song and shared them below. To better understand how the lyrics fit into the production, be sure to check out the album on your preferred streaming platform. Our favourite songs are all of them.