Written by BVNC | May 2nd, 2023 | Released September 23rd, 2022
“Losing What I Never Had” by D_Astral is an album that starts with young heartbreak and progresses into discovering that some endings are just new beginnings in disguise. D_Astral has the talent to take anything he wants to say and fit it into a rhyme scheme, from love and loss to growth and guilt. The album has three features Big Savo, Catastrophic Heros, and Hafiz-FYI. The rainfall on the intro track “Hallucinations” sets the gloom D_Astral felt from being betrayed by people in his past. The lyricism he delivers clicks with the boom-bap instrumental as he talks about his experience and that it’s always possible to grow. The first spoken-word poem track is “Precursor To.” In it, he speaks on his downfall of trying to repair things that could not be fixed, even when he didn’t make the mistake leading to it breaking, “If you make a mess, I’ll clean it.” The next track, “Pain,” opens up more about how he was blinded by love, but now he sees the games for what they are. This pain was his catalyst for changing his life by putting his needs ahead of others. “Wrong Moves” is a skit where you can hear D_Astral typing a text message before deleting it and murmuring, “I’m not even going to send this…I’m done with this.” Here is the album’s turning point as he focuses on someone worthy of his efforts with a new mindset and awareness. You can feel his change of heart and hope in life in the album’s final songs. “Do You Right,” “New Full Moon Light,” and “Whatever It Takes” have D_Astral feeling differently about love than at the beginning of the album. This new realization in life gives him a new lens to view his relationships, and he won’t let the actions of others ruin his happiness. The last spoken-word poem, “Wrong Way,” is his snap to reality. He had the habit of repairing relationships no matter what, but now he will listen to his intuition instead of doing things that will put him in a bad position. The closing track, “New Routes,” has a sound effect to sound like an old record player, but the track details the new mindset D_Astral will carry forward in life. No matter what, he will keep moving forward, and no one can stop him. Check out “Losing What I Never Had” on all platforms and message D_Astral on social media to tell him what you think about his debut album.