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Making a name for himself in the late 2010’s Michigan trap scene, Babytron took its eccentricities to an endearing extreme. The punch-ins and run on flows, the scamming, and the off kilter, funky beats he leans so heavily on made for a truly unique listen. It makes for a more lighthearted, niche listen than someone like Babyface Ray or Payroll Giovanni, for example. Albums like Luka Troncic are phenomenal, but across 25 tracks with minimal features or changes in flow, and goofy samples, it becomes difficult to differentiate or replay some of his stuff. Well on his new album Megatron, Babytron shook up the formula just enough while maintaining fan favorite sounds, making for what might be his best project yet.
Megatron seems to be Babytron’s most well rounded album to date and it just exudes that Detroit energy, with the title being an homage to Lions legend Calvin Johnson. The intro “Letter to Cornelius” has a unique, Spanish sounding horn sample which sees Tron in his usual flow and plenty of caricatured shit talk. Every verse he drops is packed with name drops of Runtz, designer brands, Everfresh flavors, and trips to Walmart. “Manute Bol” has a really dope beat with that subtle Bay influence so integral to the scene, while “Peachtree” slows down a bit with a deeply layered, techno inspired beat. One of Tron’s best songs ever is “Area 51”, which has him spitting a very rare hook; Most of his stuff is just straight bars, but the clever hook being reused builds up the song’s concept and makes it stand out well.
Some other standout tracks include “Mr. Do the Dash” and “Crocs & Wock” which just bleed with personality. DaBoiii (of SOB x RBE fame) trades bars with Tron on “Chess Players”, over drums which catch so satisfyingly on their flows. Next is “6 Star Wanted Level”, which has seemingly done a lot for his popularity; Over 6 beat switches, Tron does his thing as always. It might seem a bit gimmicky, but he’s one of the few who can pull it off. Continuing a run of standout tracks is “Mainstream Tron”, which has an almost absurd, poppy beat that someone like Bladee would sound at home on. It all wraps up with “The Lost World”, getting back to his iconic use of movie samples – Jurassic Park this time.
What makes Megatron so great is that Babytron is not just trying new things, but he’s doing a lot of them on top of what already worked which makes for a really fulfilling listen. Hopefully he can continue with this artistic hunger and come through with another album which is more succinct or has some interesting features.