Seattle MC Porter Ray comes correct on his Sub Pop debut with a mesemeric and multi-layered set of spectral, sub-driven hip hop. "Watercolor" is a snapshot of Porter’s life and the lives of his friends growing up in Seattle. The album captures a specific time period, before things began rapidly changing around their neighborhoods, and it delves into the experiences that shaped Porter, the situations he and his friends survived, and how they overcame the adversity they faced. Porter’s influences – including hip-hop classics like Nas’s Illmatic, Common’s Be, and Mos Def & Talib Kweli’s ...Are Black Star – shine through in both the beats and production, and his deeply personal lyrics. Porter was born and raised in and around Seattle’s Central District/Capitol Hill/Columbia City/Beacon Hill neighborhoods. He wrote short stories and poetry before he began writing rhymes in middle school and early high school, and started recording music towards the end of high school. "Watercolor" follows a string of acclaimed, self-released mixtapes -- Electric Rain, Nightfall, Fundamentals, BLK GLD, WHT GLD, RSE GLD -- all of which have been available as free downloads via Bandcamp. Featuring world beating singles “Sacred Geometry”, “Lightro [Looking for the Light]”, “Arithmetic” and "Bulletproof Windows", the album also includes performances from Jus Moni, Debra Sullivan, and Chimurenga Renaissance. "Watercolor" was recorded in various studios in Seattle, mostly mixed by Erik Blood (Shabazz Palaces, THEESatisfaction, Tacocat), with a few songs co-mixed by Vitamin D (Macklemore, Abstract Rude, Black Sheep). Watercolor was produced by B Roc, with additional songs produced by DJ El Grande, KMTK, and Tele Fresco.
TRACK LISTING
1. Waves
2. East Seattle
3. Bulletproof Windows Ft. Nate Jack
4. Past Life Ft. Cashtro + Black
5. Everybody [Interlude] Ft. Fly Guy Dai [Shabazz Palaces]
6. The Mirror Between Us Ft. JD + JusMoni
7. Sacred Geometry Ft. Cashtro + The Palaceer
8. Arithmetic Ft. Infinite + Stas Thee Boss
9. Navi Truck
10. Lightro [Looking For The Light]
11. Dissolving In A Daydream
12. My Mother’s Words Ft. Debra Sullivan
13. Beautiful Ft. Aslan T. Rife + The Palaceer
14. Sacred Geometry [CONSTELLTION MIX] Ft. Cashtro + The Palaceer *LP Bonus Track
15. Vanilla Coke *LP Only Bonus Track
16. Sacred Geometry [Instrumental] *LP Only Bonus Track
17. Brothers [Instrumental] *LP Only Bonus Track
18. Arithmetic [Instrumental] *LP Only Bonus Track