Kolkata Hip-Hop Artist Pablo is Gritty and Playful on His Debut Album

From the bhangra-inflected melodies that run throughout “Ting Ting Tara” and “Solaah Aane” to the resolute trap and drill on “Champion” and the Spanish hook of “Black Suzuki,” Pablo’s debut album sees him blend in with diverse hip-hop approaches. And none of that is necessarily surprising, because the Kolkata rapper-producer has been doing most of it all over the span of a decade – from Machine Gun Kelly-esque punk-rock on “Imperfections” to his early days as a dubstep and trap beatsmith.

His debut album Pablo’s Gonna Pull up on You – which takes its name from his producer tag – draws together 10 tracks led by an inimitably heavily accented English flow. He says about aiming for diversity on the record, “This album is designed like a show performance – from the first song to the last in that order. I wanted to create an experience for the audience listening to it at one go, and try to maintain the balance between the storytelling aspect of the songs with the overall sonic experience. Despite all of the songs being very different from one another, they are all subgenres of trap music.”

While “Black Suzuki” is his club song with an angle of romance, “Cal 26” is an upbeat, hyperlocal salute to the city he was raised in. He’s joined by rapper Rocky Gorkhali for “Take Me Down,” whose beat takes from a sitar sample. “It’s a story about surviving defeat, and turning enemies and haters into fans,” Pablo says in a statement. The pace changes up to an intoxicating level on “High On You,” with Pablo’s pitch-corrected croon becoming the hook. Mumbai rapper Gravity elevates “Champion” with his incisive Hindi bars, while Sandeep Vyas adds to the boisterous song “Solaah Aane,” which addresses two-facedness. “In a world filled with shouting liars trying to make a quick ‘Solaah Aane’ (a one rupee coin), the only currency that matters uses is the real truth teleports to a different phase of the rapper’s life,” Pablo states in a description for the song.

While music videos for “Take Me Down,” “Solaah Aane” and “Cal 26” – directed by Pablo – are out, the rapper says he’s got visuals for “Nothing New” or “High On You” in the works. There’s also a tour planned in November, although Pablo did launch the album last week with an invite-only gig in Kolkata. He says about the show, “It was a 100 percent D.I.Y. event from our side. I really wanted to do it on the day of the release itself because it was a special day for me. It has been a long journey writing, producing and recording this album and there are so many people who have emotionally been a part of the project. It was really heartwarming to have them around at the release party, where I performed this album for the first time. Not to forget our community from Calcutta who have been waiting so long for this to drop and have been supporting us from day one.”

Watch the video for “Cal 26” below. Stream the album here.