Nocando didn’t take long to follow-up his 2017 LP Severed. He released King Snake on December 1, giving it a little room to breathe over the holidays before dropping off the first video from the project, “1998.” An introspective slice of nostalgia, “1998” finds Nocan reflecting on his upbringing in Los Angeles and those first forays into teenage freedom, centered around the bus he took from his home in South Central to the greener pastures of the West Side.
Like many of his music videos, the self-directed clip for “1998” follows Nocando from his house to the beach, lingering along the way to take in the sights and sounds of modern-day LA. All the while, the documentary-style visuals complement bars that paint their own lasting images of “young savages / Boys from broken homes with no tourniquets and bandages / About to have a head-on collision with the establishment.”
The beat is a mellow, guitar-driven loop that evokes the sort of chill surf rock that often gets associated with LA, letting Nocan’s lyrics take center stage. The Hellfyre Club rapper is already off to a strong start for 2018, but given his work ethic and independent freedom, you can bet that this won’t be his last appearance of the year. King Snake is available now on Nocando’s Hellfyre Club Bandcamp page.
