5 out of 5

Label: THQ

Producer: Malcolm Kirby, Jr.

Dang.  I visited Kirby’s website to see what else he had worked on and saw a picture of exactly the guy you’d expect to work on a Saints Row soundtrack, and his other credits – an NBA game, some random commercials – match the assumption as well.  He has a crooked hat on, a smug smile, and he writes in a style that matches all of this and fits right in to the Facebook / Twitter world.  So: dang, how does he create a soundtrack like this?  It is, on one hand, the sort of urban beats you’d expect, but there’s just an element of something more on each and every track – not to mention that those beats are switched up, not just a 4/4 with different samples thrown on top.  I listened to some of his other cuts, which have embarrassingly “cool” track names and are remixed and whatever shit else, and he manages to do the same thing there… it’s maddeningly awesome, a reminder to not judge books and whatever else.  It’s possible Kirby has been doing this forever, or studied music theory in school and arrived at a precise style based on his studies; it’s just as likely he’s a natural at finding the right mix of creativity and style…

Whatever, this score just does it for me every time – there are scratches, there are ambient moments, more housey moments, and they all effing work perfectly as a standalone album.