It's special when two producers share a specific language but have varying dialects of said language. San Diego beatmaker Tranzformer and London-based American producer Big O linked up for their third collaborative beat tape, "Dichotomy," a transatlantic dialogue as rich in deep soul samples, filthy textures, and rare originality as anything else you are likely to bless your headphones with. In unison, they have assembled a project that juxtaposes the distinct from the uniform with such equilibrium that disparity is harmony.
On paper, it seems like the tracks are hand-offs; each feels across the album as though Tranzformer is bringing that gritty West Coast warmth, and Big O is piling on more UK finesse and layering in additional intricate melodies. The carefully modulated sense of rhythmic tension running through them never clashes but only adds further to that palette of sounds. “Dichotomy” is not a competition of voices but instead a conversation, with both speaking in the same tone and with ultimate understanding.
These are not just the producers showing off; they are listening to one another in the world of ear, being a fly and nudging at the borders in ways that never break apart from each other but rather exist as variations on the same subject. What sets this collaboration apart, however, is the foundation of trust that each artist had in the other. Soul is at the heart of each transition, flip, and chop. This is an auditory experience for the connoisseur.
Beat tapes are emotional, narrative, and challenging to listen to, and Tranzformer and Big O reinforce all three of these characteristics. Together they make a fitting farewell from opposite sides of the musical world, yet nonetheless they collaborate to provide one last lesson on how sometimes the best music comes from opposite ends of the map, and if one follows this logic, far beyond as well.