Freaks by Timmy Trumpet and Savage

Every New Zealand #1 single…

2

Freaks by Timmy Trumpet and Savage

Topped the NZ chart: from 17 November 2014 for five weeks

After years of bickering over the racehorse Phar Lap, pavlova, and Crowded House, ‘Freaks’ is a lovely example of trans-Tasman cooperation. Rapper Savage was part of the South Auckland hip-hop crew Deceptikonz. In 2014, he collaborated with Australian DJ and producer Timmy Trumpet, known for adding jazz elements to his house beats.

I can almost understand why ‘Freaks’ was a hit. Savage’s vocal timbre matches with the trumpet nicely. But it feels like the song goes nowhere after the first thirty seconds, just mixing up mundane verses with the same repetitive riff.

The bass and the tweeters make the speakers go to war!
Ah, the mighty trumpet brings the freaks out to the floor!

Savage

Released when Savage’s career was stalling, ‘Freaks’ was wildly successful. As well as topping the charts in New Zealand, it also made the top 5 in Australia and Finland. It was followed by the song ‘Push’, featured in the trailer of ‘The Fate of the Furious’, which played during halftime in the Super Bowl.

Read More

3 Comments

  1. Not sure I ever heard trumpet and rap combined. Then again, rap isn’t so much my cup of tea, so I generally don’t listen to it. But if if learned one thing since I started blogging in 2016, the beauty of music is there’s no good and bad, only music that speaks to you personally or not. It took me while to get to this conclusion. I’m glad I finally got there. Obviously, many folks liked this song, propelling it to the top of the charts in New Zealand. Who am I to say they were wrong.

  2. I’ve tried through the years…I just can’t get into it BUT…at least this is a little inventive in the rhythm. I will have to say I like some parts of it….the trumpet was a good idea.

Leave a Reply

Read about the discographies of musical acts from the 1960s to the present day. Browse this site's review archives or enjoy these random selections:

More review pages

Dave Dobbyn Album Reviews

Every country has a songwriter who’s very successful in their...

1960s Album Reviews

Rock and roll launched in the 1950s, but in the...
The Band Music From Big Pink

Buffalo Springfield Album Reviews

Buffalo Springfield were a short-lived, but fascinating band. It’s easy...

Spirit Album Reviews

Los Angeles teenagers Randy Wolfe, bassist Mark Andes, and vocalist...

Warren Zevon Album Reviews

Warren Zevon was born in Chicago, the son of a...

Aphoristic Album Reviews

Welcome to Aphoristic Album Reviews, where I discuss highlights from...

I add new blog posts to this website every week. Browse the archives or enjoy these random selections:

More blog posts

10 Best Covers of Carole King Songs

Before she released her record-breaking solo album Tapestry in 1971...

Fountains of Wayne: Albums Ranked from Worst to Best

When New York power-pop band Fountains of Wayne were nominated...
Fountains of Wayne debut

Vampire Weekend’s Albums Ranked

Vampire Weekend were formed by students at Columbia University. Frontman...

Great B-sides: How Can You Tell Me? by The Flirtations

In hindsight, The Flirtations’ best known song, ‘Nothing But A...

The New Pornographers' Albums: Ranked from Worst to Best

The New Pornographers emerged in 2000, a conglomerate of talent...

Subscribe

Subscribe to receive new posts from Aphoristic Album Reviews.