With a platinum record, multi platinum and gold singles and two ARIA’s already under his belt, it's no great secret that Drapht is a songwriting prodigy. Whether you focus on his lyrics, his melodic hooks (or focus on nothing at all and just enjoy yourself) as a songwriter Drapht can pretty much do everything. Each of his six subsequent albums – Pale Rider (2003), Who Am I (2005), Brothers Grimm (2008) and Life Of Riley (2010) Seven Mirrors (2016) Arabella Street (2018) – brought increasing levels of complexity and refinement, ascending Drapht to the absolute upper echelon of Australia's stacked card of hip-hop heavyweights. Already, he is one of the greats.
His seventh studio album Shadows and Shinings continues the upward incline of Drapht's artistic output, showing off even more songwriting flair and linguistic dexterity than ever before. Piecing each song together with a myriad of rhythmical, melodic and lyrical hooks, Shadows and Shinings puts Drapht's arsenal of musical weapons in the hands of an amazing list of collaborators and guests – sometimes pairing with music royalty and other times introducing exciting new voices. Oliver Twists (featuring Hilltop Hoods ‘Pressure’ MC) a huge throwback anthem for the local scene, Keys To The City (featuring Dune Rats) feels destined to be a live favourite, while Hypocrite blasts out of the speakers with the scorching voice of local Perth young gun Eli Greeneyes.
At the apex of this mountain of talent is Drapht himself, directing this cast of virtuoso musicians with grand vision and fastidious execution. Shadows and Shinings weaves colourful narrative and wit with the stern fabric of personal expression and catharsis. Drapht delves deep and reveals a lot on Shadows and Shinings. The album chronicles Drapht's personal relationships – whether introspective, family, with partners or exes – exploring them through the concept of the shadows everyone carries... the existential premise that we all have shadows but once you set light on them you set them free. Perhaps the height of Drapht's skill set can be seen in how masterfully subtle this narrative is throughout the album. There's a concept album to explore if you want to get deep, but Shadows and Shinings can also just be a bangin' set of tunes, if that's what the occasion calls for.
A perfect blend of thoughtful introvert and entertaining extrovert, Drapht's connection has always been his realness. When we hear Drapht songs we see a little piece of ourselves. Shadows and Shinings is a beautiful metaphor for this connection; an album that is as much for the writer as it is for his fans. Once again Drapht has stepped up and once again he is at the absolute top of the game. Welcome to Shadows and Shinings...