“Eat Your Heart Out” is, ultimately, an album about our most connected human emotion, the subject of eons of songs written and eons of songs to-be written: love & the ways it comes into play in our lives. Loving something unattainable, our initial infatuation often confused with love, longing for something that is no more, finding new partners, missing our partners, being in two different places in a relationship, feeling the stability that love gives, etc… It’s deeply woven into the musical motif of the album and throughout the lyrics of every track.
The album shows exponential growth for Nick & Astro as they reach into new sonic palates they haven’t touched in the past, yet what’s even more exciting is the vast array of talent appearing on the album. Bonafide Hip-Hop legend Redman is in top form on the classic Rhodes driven Hip-Hop sound of “Last Nite” while long time collaborator Kapok’s hook is hazy & infectious. Los Angeles beat scene legend Shafiq Husayn (Anderson Paak, Jill Scott, Bilal, Sa-Ra) rides the slow analog slump funk of “Angelwings” down Wilshire Blvd, and Norwegian Hip-Hop wunderkind Ivan Ave picks things back up on the second verse. Van City’s latest steamy export Diamond Cafe delivers a stunning performance on the early 80s influenced digital sex funk that is “Paradise” – coming in somewhere between Sade, El Debarge and Prefab Sprout. Longtime Rap favorites Abstract Rude & T3 (of Slum Village) meet frequent collaborator Kapok for “Come Home”, a beautiful swirling joint with strings, spaced out keys, and Potatohead’s signature hook lamenting a lost love. Also featured are frequent J Dilla collaborator Frank Nitt (Frank N Dank), up and coming R&B vocalist Kendra Dias, Canadian legend Moka Only and Midwestern Soul & Funk purveyor Reggie B.
