Thus begins a six-part seasonal series of local album reviews, with foliage photos. Cider on the stove, fall heat through your speaker. Let's do this.

Photo by me

"Timeless Opulence" by Stevie and Sam feat. Thaddeus David

Emerging from the shadow of a new-school hip-hop Mt. Rushmore featuring Kanye West, The-Dream, Drake and The Weeknd — the genre's current grand hedonists and fusion electronic music acts — comes underage Seattle rap/R&B duo Stevie and Sam, with their freely downloadable debut album "SwimSuits."

It should come with a warning: You must have patience for a hazy, prolonged dream where teenagers can afford cocaine and everyone drives someone else's SUV.

If you're still with us, "SwimSuits" is an interesting, messy album that ought to be a landmark in the local rap scene this year. Stevie (Cheung) and Sam (Wishkoski) are brave new producers exploring the current genreless time in music, competent enough to mimic their heroes almost perfectly, willing to try out industrial noises and strange arrangements.

The songs on "SwimSuits" unfurl in multiple parts. Stevie raps and sings over glossy, noir-ish electronic textures, sometimes joined by other vocalists. Other times the track is instrumental. The tail-end of "Kama Sutra IV" is a collage: wet-sounding handclaps, slow-ringing bell, squiggly vocal sample.

The generally advanced nature of the project might have to do with mentorship by longtime Seattle R&B singer Darrius Willrich, who taught Stevie and Sam at Seattle Prep high school — or local hip-hop superproducer Jake One, who sometimes taps Sam as a keyboard player. Or Stevie and Sam might just be on their own level.

"I don't even listen to rap," Sam told me a few months ago at a concert. "I'm into electronica."

The most arresting moment on "SwimSuits" is the frank refrain on "Kama Sutra II": "all the girls go sniff that blow — sip that drink — hit that dro." It's as catchy as it is unhealthy.

The best song is "Timeless Opulence" feat. rapper Thaddeus David — also the most ready for MTV. The slow, architectural hip-hop beat feels like it's floating at sun-roof level, each drum note and piano chord a passing skyscraper. Thad and Stevie rap and sing about having fancy things while smoking and drinking — rote stuff, really, but their voices sound cool. The track is about mood, the glitz is hypnotic.