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Surprisingly, spoken word is not often successfully combined with rap. On Nightdreams & Daymares, however, Bianca Mikahn does a flawless job of bridging the two. Pulling from deep wells of assonance, consonance and rhyme, Mikahn dances in the ebb and flow of Dile’s dreamy production, her free association finding and filling the most interesting crevices. Nightdreams & Daymares is unfiltered, artistic soul rap, but it doesn’t sacrifice musicality to get there; these are tracks that you can simultaneously vibe to and think on. One of the EP’s best aspects is the surreal haze that permeates all of the tracks — the exception being “Wise Guys,” which is a great single, but a tonal outlier. Rather than detracting from this lyrical adventure, minor flaws are overwhelmingly outweighed by Mikahn’s character and well-rounded musical sensibility. Nightdreams & Daymares makes a strong first impression and gets better with added attention.
