Iomos Marad’s full length debut album Deep Rooted is the thoughtful emcee’s introduction to the world. As an All Natural emcee and a member of the Family Tree,
Iomos flexes his lyrical prowess in the same vein as Mos Def, J-Live, Talib Kweli and others. Marad is deep-rooted in his family, in his city’s history, in hip-hop, in his dedication and in his faith hence the title of his album. Standing alone without his Family Tree members by his side, Marad attempts to capture the same magic that was harnessed on Tree House Rock. With a knack for elevation thru music Marad dives into the dominion of hip hop to deliver his introspect on life.

Deep Rooted is chock full of mellow instrumentation. With contributions from Dug Infinite (of Common’s Resurrection and One Day….) and the Molemen, Deep
Rooted is a jazzy, laid back escapade of instrumentation. With an accommodating flow to match, Iomos breezes through 16 tracks of soothing harmony. Tracks such as the easy on the ears “Straight out of Chicago” and the buttery “anotha late night” doesn’t
necessarily grab the listeners attention but instead they whisper sweet nothings to the average hip hop head beckoning him/her to listen to what he has to say. On the latter track, Iomos expresses the average night in the rough streets of Chi-town, which is prepared very admirably. With an earnest flow the emcee floats gracefully over airy flutes and a somber track. “Appetite To Write” works wonders as J-live and
Iomos trade introspective verses of that hunger most emcees lack over a solid Capital D joint. Other gems include Dug Infinite’s contribution “I Confess” and the Molemen induced “Free”. Without a doubt there is a lot to soak up within the walls of Deep Rooted, but with so much music and not a whole lot of variation between Iomos and the production’s energy can fall back into the realms of elevator music. By no means does this mean that neither the production nor Iomos are wack but it does imply that a variation of dynamism could wake up the more “hardcore” hip-hop head. The album tends to blend into itself never delivering a truly explosive set.

After 16 tracks of seriously laid back music, Iomos Marad proves that he indeed does possess what it takes to create a dope album. The problem is that with production and an approach so melancholy throughout, the listener is almost lulled to sleep at times. This does not take away from the potential that Iomos has. But with a little more energy Deep Rooted could give many a much needed wake up call.