Shattered Dreams

The debut release by Bronx-bred DJ/producer Joey LaBeija moves away from the aggressive, fast-paced style of his DJ sets, focusing on more introspective, emotionally heavy compositions. The six tracks on Shattered Dreams aren't as jagged and punishing as those by LaBeija's friends Rabit and Lotic, but they seethe with rage and regret, expressing deep personal trauma. Most devastating are tracks like the Timbaland-indebted "Over," which includes stark, brutal vocal samples chronicling breakups and the loss of love. "Joey's Inferno" similarly pleads "Can I live?" over tense, melancholy synths. LaBeija's melodies are spacious and well-paced, sounding clean enough to invite listeners in before bowling them over with heavy emotional content. While brief, the EP is a seriously impressive release, and seems to indicate that there's much more on LaBeija's mind. ~ Paul Simpson