Review: the tripod e.p.2

Return of the hip hop trio a big hit? No question.

★★★★☆

After several years apart, LISA, DJ Taku, and Verbal are finally back together as they once again set to transcend Japanese music with their newest single “the tripod e.p.2”. Included are three new songs: a remix of an older song along with both an instrumental and an acapella version of the new songs. This brings their total to eleven songs on a very beefy return; however, covered in this review will only be the three new tracks themselves and not the instrumental and acapella versions. After having been apart for so long, does the trio still have that charm they had all of these years? Let’s find out.

M-flo, for those who don’t know, is a hip hop group born back in the mid-90s from vocalist LISA, Verbal, and DJ/ rhythm producer Taku. They were mainstream and international successes early on, earning the title of most iconic and influential hip hop production team in Japan.
However, in early 2002, Lisa announced her departure from the group to jump-start a solo career; this left only DJ Taku and Verbal to engage, with various amounts of collaborations throughout the 2000s. They coined this time period the “M-flo Loves” era. With all three members finding only limited success in the 2010s, they announced in December of last year that they will be reforming.

Their main song, “No Question”, jumps right in with a classic M-flo style with a keyboard introduction leading up to Lisa’s first verse. This is a nice evolution for DJ Taku’s style from his “M-flo Loves” era, compared to his earlier work that involved many classical instruments with a rap and techno style. Overall, it was a nice reintroduction to M-flo, but my only criticism is regarding Verbal’s rap solo. It seemed as though it had thrown off the beat compared to the beat Lisa used, which almost sounded like two different styles of songs being combined.

After the explosions of beats and sounds that was “No Question”, “Never” dials it back, a way that blends both a rap and ballad style of music together. Lisa’s soothing voice, along with Verbal rapping in what sounds like a voice distorter, brings a totally different sound that works amazingly well. Add to this an amazing violin and piano playing in the background that really pulls out the emotions that Lisa is trying to express in the song. While short, the song leaves the listener wanting more. I surely recommend this song off of the album!

In a complete 180-degree turn, “MAKE IT BREAK IT” speeds up the tempo with sharp pitches and beats that make it sound more akin to techno, which involves Lisa in more of a rapper role compared to the other two songs. “MAKE IT BREAK IT” serves as a lovey bookend to exhibit the range of what M-flo is capable of. However, my only gripe with this song is the inclusion of the boy who was repeating “M-flo in the house” into the end of it. This sounded off-putting; an unnecessary, not so pleasant way to end the song.

Overall, “the tripod e.p.2” is a great reintroduction to M-flo as a three-member unit. It has some minor hiccups that I personally don’t agree with, but I feel that this is a great jumping-off point for newcomers to J-pop and people with a preexisting interest in Japanese hip hop and R&B. I give this single a 4 out of 5.

You can buy the single (here)