Top Ten Best Things About Spongebozz's Album "Started from the Bottom / Krabbenkoke Tape"

I don't know how he manages to make beats that are so overproduced and blockbuster-ish and still be so unknown. SpongeBozz is famous in Germany, but no one gives shoutouts to his amazing producer. I don't even know who he is. Or if it's even a him. Could also be a woman or a group. It's as if they only existed in the booklet of the album.

"Started From the Bottom" is a 9-minute epic storytelling song and my favorite of all the tracks. However, in terms of epicness, nothing beats the 18:30 minute long "Apocalyptic Infinity." He lyrically and musically slaughters the German rap scene and demands the recognition he deserves and never got. Many of the things now trending were introduced by him, but back then he was negatively received.

For over ten minutes at two different tempos, the mood changes. The beat gets more dramatic and dark, his vocal delivery turns more serious, and he takes aim at Kollegah, his former friend turned archenemy. It feels like a death sentence and execution. If it wasn't Kollegah, Germany's most popular and acclaimed superstar rapper at the moment, I'd be worried about his reputation after this.

On the disc, SpongeBozz often doesn't shy away from sharing his anger and disappointment with the injustice and unfairness of how he was treated in the past, making this a much more personal record than his debut.

The variety of flows in "Apocalyptic Infinity" alone is more than what most rappers are capable of. Just listen to it in all its 18:30 minutes of glory. Even if you skip some parts, you will notice his flow has changed in the meantime.

Musically, we get epic orchestral beats, dark electronic beats, rock-inspired beats, Latino-inspired beats, trap-inspired beats, Eurodance-inspired beats, and old-school-inspired beats.

SpongeBozz has already shown his unusual lyrical skill since he first appeared in the JuliensBlogBattle internet video rap battle tournament in 2013. But this is the first time he not only portrays a persona but also lets out a lot of anger that he has dammed up for years.

Yet, the disc also has brighter moments that show his love for a catchy song, and it works in the context. Even with all of the injustice and unfairness around him, he still loves what he is doing. All in all, we get a good insight into Dimitri Chpakov.

Before becoming SpongeBozz, Dimitri Chpakov was Sun Diego, who was sometimes featured on Kollegah's songs. They were also friends. During that time, he tried to establish a distinctive style that, apart from double-time flows and multisyllabic rhyming, also included sung autotune hooks. He was panned for the latter, so much that it doomed his career.

At the same time, Kollegah became German hip hop's superstar and apparently simply dumped Sun Diego, probably expecting him not to make it as a rapper. This is where it all began. In 2013, he came back as SpongeBozz and became famous himself, with his true identity kept secret until 2017 (though there were numerous rumors). Now, he reveals everything he witnessed back then and also attacks other people who attacked him along the way.

While "Started From the Bottom" is simply the more interesting disc to analyze because it's more personal, "Krabbenkoke Tape" is SpongeBozz the way he became famous: as a homicidal, anarchic, druggy cartoon character who shoots first and then talks. If you are into that kind of humor, this is perfect, especially at such a high-quality lyrical level.

And it costs as much as any other album. He really put effort into the lyrics and music. There are no skits or intros or whatever. Thirteen tracks on each disc.