Tau Benah had just come out of murky waters on his last body of work, Young Woman, hence its provocative ambiance; it’s been more than two years since the release of the “ode to feminity” and he’s had just enough time in the sun to be charged with enough energy to release another body of work, akin to the breath of fresh air he’s been enjoying which he molds into words on the aptly titled seven-tracker, Better Late.
Tau Benah lets the dust his absence brought about, settle, by easing us into the EP with a DAP The Contract feature on an Intro packed with enough sound, soul, and meaning to be one but succinct enough to leave his listeners with high expectations for the ensuing tracks and a prelude of his inspiration. Nine words stick: “Devil on my shoulders, I don’t pay no mind” and this metaphor is just enough indication that though ill-mannered in approach, Better Late is heavy with meaning.
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Benah’s spirituality and sensibilities waste no time in shining through his clean-cut raps, from the second track, Heaven featuring Zinzi, the former begins to manifest in a Sunday Service Choir parallel. As elemental as it is, Heaven is the perfect portal for the other tracks to flow through. Push and the Uncle Ice assisted 55 Months are two percussions paved journies to introspection, raw and heartfelt as with their predecessors.
While Benah does not exactly sacrifice fun for feeling, the loosening up on Better Late does not come till the likes of Bad Habits, an outpour of black boy joy which he shares with Dubziano, and New World Ray assisted puffer Element.
Best Things In Life is an honest look into Benah’s current situation and the accompaniment of synth keys helps it to ring true.
Young Woman was Tau Benah’s induction into a new artistic direction but on Better Late, he blooms, fully and each track with their intonations of exposure and evolution are markers of what’s been honing for the past couple of years and notably, impressively.