Zachary Campos – “Scorching”
Zachary Campos – “Scorching” – Single Review
“I’m doing what I love to do so I’ve already won.” #FairEnough! #AsItShouldBe
Okay. So. Zachary Campos is back in the mix here…word on the street is that he’s got a full album coming out, and we’ll be talking about another one of his singles later on this week. If you remember the man’s name from our pages here, chances are that’s due to commentary we laid down on singles like “Pain” and “I’m On Fire” from the past year or so. Dude’s got a good thing goin’ on and generally speaking, I dig what I hear from the guy. He’s still got a ton of space to evolve and refine his craft, but there’s no doubt that he’s already at a level that can compete with a lot of what’s on your playlists.
When it comes to his latest single called “Scorching,” you’ll find he’s sticking to his main strengths more or less. Ultimately, Zachary’s an entertainer…a personality…that kind of thing – a character…and perhaps even more than he’s a rapper when it comes right down to it if I’m being honest with ya. As to whether or not he realizes that at the moment, I have no real clue. Maybe, maybe not. In time, I’m confident he’ll reach that same conclusion. So heck yeah, right now, that’s what becomes the main hook in the majority of his material – him. And yes, I’d say that remains to be true when it comes to “Scorching” as well. It’s Campos doing more Campos things…which can work both for and against him.
On the one hand, the guy’s confident, and justifiably so when it comes time to perform. I’m not hearing anything that’s detrimental to his career when he steps up to the mic – he knows how to handle his business, and he proceeds to do so accordingly. Having said that, can he still make adjustments and improvements to make life easier on himself? Absolutely! Even on paper just having a read through the lyrics of “Scorching” I could sense there’d be some weirdness with the metering and having to drag this word or that word out to keep the pace and flow going with the speed and precision he’d want to have – and you betcha…in having a listen to the single, you can hear that. It’s a very simple issue to fix if that’s what he wants to do – and ultimately, I’d expect that he would – he’s looking to emulate heroes like the Beastie Boys and Rakim and whatnot…all those dudes keep sharp to their metering so that their flow is unimpeachable. So you can look at a single like this from a couple of angles…in one respect, Campos gets to where he wants to go in the end…but…there’s no doubt he could totally make it easier on himself by adding an extra word or syllable here and there, or dropping one out occasionally so that evenness he needs is present and accounted for line after line. RHYTHM and poetry homie – it’s the very foundations that the genre is built upon, and it’s what truly separates the good from the great.
I know he’s got the chops to do it…it’s just a matter of really dialing into what made his heroes as stellar as they are & making adjustments until everything is ticking along like fine-tuned machinery. It’s about slowing down where you need to in order to perfect the craft and the art – and while I do enjoy what I’m hearing on “Scorching” for the most part for sure, there’s still a ways for him to go on all that before he can make a serious claim to be “the man who does it best.” Right now he’s the man that does it well. I ain’t trying to be disrespectful – it’s clear he puts in a lot of work already – but there’s always another level we can reach no matter how high we go. As for the lyrical content, this is similar terrain that we’ve experienced in Zachary’s music previously…I’m not saying you can’t do something twice or even more than that, but by the same token, in the spirit of keeping things fresh, switching it up will never hurt ya.
I dig the effects on the vocals – they suit Zachary’s deadpan style of delivery and the whole vibe pairs solidly with the sound overall. The music itself ain’t super complicated, but it doesn’t need to be – it’s got that rebel-ass punk spirit at its core, and I’d reckon that’s the vibe Campos was going for, so you can put that in the win column for the guy as well. “Scorching” is super short…like, barely over a minute long short…like…you probably only read the first paragraph of this review in the time it took you to listen to the whole song we’re actually talkin’ about here. Nothing wrong with that…I might personally advocate for longer tracks, especially in the Rap/Hip-Hop genres where words tend to matter that much more…but to be completely fair, short cuts are in fashion right now, so consider that another win for Campos too. All-in-all, I maintain the man is entertaining in a whole variety of ways. He’s got the ability to tinker with his craft and sharpen it up if that’s what he wants to do…and if he doesn’t, I’m sure he’ll be just fine. “I’m doing what I love to do so I’ve already won,” as he says. No disputing that. Hopefully he’s still looking for those crucial ways to evolve, learn, and grow as an artist…because once we’re done with doin’ that, we’re basically just glorified meat-sacks that move. Always a good idea to remember there’s another level to reach & be proud of being a perpetual student of the game – stay humble y’all.
Find everything you need to stream “Scorching” by Zachary Campos online right here: https://songwhip.com/zacharycampos/scorching
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