The Game – “The Documentary III” review

New surprise LP & the 11th overall from Compton, California emcee, songwriter, actor & professional attention whore The Game. Originally taken under the wing of JT the Bigga Figga, his 2002 debut mixtape You Know What It Is would catch the attention of Dr. Dre & 50 Cent. Both of whom signed Game to a joint venture to their individually respective labels Aftermath Entertainment & G-Unit Records, distributed by Interscope Records. With their help, his debut album The Documentary the following year would go on to become a West Coast essential. However, a falling out between Game & 50 just months after the album’s release would result in Game moving over to Geffen Records to complete his 5-album contract. His next 4 albums Dr.’s Advocate, LAX, The RE.D. (RE-Dedication) Album & Je5us PiecE all showed that Game didn’t need Dre or 50 to make quality music. Once fulfilling his major label obligations, he went the independent route by founding his own label Numinati Records & showcasing the artists with a compilation entitled Blood Moon: Year of the Wolf in 2014. Game then put out an overloaded yet decent sequel to his debut with The Documentary 2+2.5 the next year as well as his previous album 1992 the year after & Born 2 Rap on his 40th birthday. Hit-Boy helped him come out of “retirement” again with the more consistent Drillmatic: Heart vs. Mind, although it was DONDA levels of bloated. Every Movie Needs a Trailer produced by Mike & Keys was honestly pretty great considering the lesser amount of filler Drillmatic had & the time for The Documentary III has arrived.

“Geezus” produced by London on da Track opens up saying “when you from the westside, you ain’t gotta pick sides” when a majority of the west coast would disagree whereas “Love It or Hate It” featuring WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg comes through with a “Hate It or Love It” sequel where Cool & Dre are sampling “What You Won’t Do for Love” by Bobby Caldwell. “Steppers” featuring Lil Wayne includes the witty line “Got ice on my neck, but I’m still yellin’ out “Fuck ICE” 1 time for my vatos” over a jazzy trap beat from Bangladesh just before “The Life” warning these rats they’re all food.

Lit Papi & RJfrmLA both appear on the disappointing gangsta celebration “Scary Times” prior to Mike & Keys bouncing back with “20 Deep” from the sampling to the improved consistency regarding the performances. I can appreciate “No Brakes” instrumentally experimenting with hyphy even if he’s ass-kissing Drake looking for all the smoke with no intentions of slowing down while “Sticks” talks about the gangsta life over a drumless piano.

“Geekin’” featuring the late Drakeo the Ruler discusses both of them doing hoodrat shit with their friends leading into “40 Deep” featuring Ye formerly known as Kanye West links up for a sequel to “Crack Music” off the latter’s sophomore effort Late Registration sampling “Ahora” by Anthony Santos. “Do You Love Me?” soulfully responds to people claiming they appreciate him when he doesn’t think that’s the case while “Run It Up” featuring Leon Thomas III ends the 1st half on a decent pop rap note.

Cloud rap, trap & alternative R&B collide during “Party at Game’s” featuring PARTYNEXTDOOR not doing the romantic themes any better than the previous joint until “Baby” featuring Armonie Jay & Kalan.FrFr butchers a sample of the Ashanti single of the same name. “In the Way” featuring RJmrLA & Tyga treads the hyphy waters once again for annoyingly sexual subject matter while “The Part” featuring AzChike, Lefty Gunplay & YG gets on some jazzy west coast gangsta shit.

“Hella” featuring E-40 & RJmrLA moderately talks about taking a bunch of whips & cash despite 40 going harder than RJ even if he & Game are sharing the opening verse while “Nothing 2 Hide” eerily lets the world see him for the gangsta he’s always been. “LA Monster” samples an unreleased song Ye recorded for Jesus is King with A$AP Ferg back in 2019 to take a pathetic jab at Kendrick Lamar while “Meet the Parents” manically talks about not asking for this shit over a somber Conductor Williams beat.

Statik Selektah puts a more soulful boom bap spin onto “The Pen” talking about his lyricism being unstoppable while “The Cookout” featuring Larry June provides a west coast barbecue anthem Sndtrak & Beat Butcha cooked up together. “I Won’t Be Afraid” featuring Black Thought chops up “Cherish the Day” by Sade talking about having no fear of death while “Game Recognize Game” drumlessly finishes The Documentary III calls for the attention of all saints & sinners.

Putting what criticisms I had for The Documentary 2+2.5, I wouldn’t have imagined The Documentary III dethroning it to become my new least favorite chapter of the entire trilogy although I’d say I’m largely on the fence with it than I was with either Drillmatic: Heart vs. Mind or Every Movie Needs a Trailer. His skills can never be taken away from him, yet I don’t consider that an excuse for him to make it nearly an hour & a half long or overload it with an excessive amount of guest appearances who don’t always knock it out of the park.

Score: 3/5

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Payroll Giovanni – “M.O.B. (Mind my Own Business)” review

Detroit, Michigan rapper Payroll Giovanni self-producing his 15th studio LP. Notable for being a part of the Doughboyz Cashout collective, he also released over a dozen solo albums with the most notable being Big Bossin’ as well as Big Bossin’ 2 & Another Day, Another Dollar all fully produced by Cardo. Last time I covered him was when he self-produced Have Money, Have Heart a couple years ago & that was the most I’ve enjoyed his music since Giovanni’s Way, which didn’t wane any anticipation I had for M.O.B. (Mind my Own Business).

The title track opens up with some otherworldly synthesizers talking about leaving any conversation that doesn’t involve money whereas the only single “Puppies” recalls a situation occurring a long time ago where he tried to help someone only for said person to foolishly try robbing him. “No” talks about being up more these days after staying down for so long declining those who want something outta him while the west coast-tinged “Locked In” maintains his focus.

“Cash Tall” moves on from there embracing the Detroit sound to discuss keeping his circle small & his money in large amounts while the Mobb-influenced “Enough” ends the 1st leg of M.O.B. (Mind my Own Business) about having his share of days where he wasn’t making as much money as he would’ve hoped to. “Rollie wit Baguettes” gets the 2nd half going incorporating more synths talking about what happens when listening to Payroll’s music just before “On the Flo” breaks down going from the streets to riches.

The song “Point of View” talks about his perspective always being on a woman he’s romantically involved with, encouraging her to hop in his whip asking whether she wants to know anything or do something while “Bosses in the Clouds” discusses staying prayed up handling his own business. “New Levels” though spends M.O.B. (Mind my Own Business)’s final minutes talking about being in the season of his life where he can’t settle.

Getting sick of producer/artist agreements & paying lawyer fees, Payroll Giovanni had all the right reasons to solely create M.O.B. (Mind my Own Business) & I can certainly see myself coming back to it more than Hustle Muzik or If Not Me Then Who?. His production’s gotten better since 2024 & hearing it will prelude another full-length the Detroit trap veteran’s preparing within the next coming months has me hoping he’ll continue capitalizing on his artistic deftness.

Score: 4/5

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prettifun – “Pretti Loves U 2” review

Charlotte, North Carolina rapper & producer prettifun finally returning for his 5th studio LP. Known for being a member of the 4ersona collective, he would eventually go on to put out 3 full-lengths & 7 extended plays in the span of nearly 3 years prior to Victor Victor Worldwide signing him in 2024 off the positive reception of Pretti & Funhouse respectively. A sequel to the latter made for an impressive debut for the label 12 months earlier further embracing the rage sound more than it’s predecessor did, dropping Pretti Loves U 2 in preparation of both You Can Die Laughing & Hi-Fi 2.

The self-produced “Rollacoasta” turns up the bass to recall a hoe telling him she’s in love with the struggles whereas “Scene” combines rage & digicore so he can talk about feeling like his mind’s breaking. “Steps” emphasizes the digicore elements cautioning to watch what you leave just before “Deposit” talks about spraying clips at those fucking around along with needing people to pick a side & not wanting the continuous amounts of money coming in to cease.

We have prettifun admitting to being ready for marriage at this point in his life on “Just Me” & throwing shots back at whoever sent them to begin with while “Nobody” wraps up the 1st half blending digicore, rage, pop rap, bubblegum bass, plugg & future bass so he can acknowledge his rise in popularity. The lead single “Moon & the Stars” dabbles with new jazz & kawaii future bass to kick off the 2nd leg asking if his lover would stay if he gave her those 2 specific things while “All Knowing” talks about being a top player.

“Room” kicks off the 4th quarter with some blaring 808s keeping it legitimate from the jump & doing this for his late homie Angie while “WTF Idk” confronts an individual who feels like they’re above him when he was the one who initially helped them over a digicore instrumental. “UI” talks about changing the form on all these fuckboys along with seeing if his label can pay him more while the closing track “All Love!” concludes Pretti Loves U 2shouting out his new group LF comprised of slayr, ezcodylee & Egobreak.

Funhouse & it’s sequel saw prettifun taking a backseat from the producing side of things so he could put some more recognition for himself as a performer, so I had higher expectations for Pretti Loves U 2 & would say it dethrones it’s predecessor last summer to become his magnum opus alongside the best thing he’s done of the 2 albums he’s made since Victor Victor signed him. His rage, pop rap, digicore, trap, bubblegum bass, plugg, future bass, new jazz & kawaii future bass production has evolved since Pretti using lesser influences of bitpop & his performances are equally catchier.

Score: 4/5

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Denzel Curry – “Unlocked II” review

The Scythe’s de facto leader & Floridian emcee Denzel Curry coming off the collective’s debut tape for his 4th solo extended play. Originally a member of the SpaceGhostPurrp-founded Raider Klan a little over a decade ago, he’s seen quite the success on his own since departing off projects like Nostalgia 64, 32 Zel (Planet Shrooms), imperial, TA13OO, Zuu & the Kenny Beats-produced UNLOCKED. Melt My Eyez, See Your Future went on to become his most mature & acclaimed body of work to date has ran it back with Kenny for Unlocked II coming off King of the Mischievous South 2: Ultraground nearly 2 years prior.

“Gone Fishing” opens up with a rap rock intro clapping back at people saying his music doesn’t hit the same when already has a history of hits prior to “Evil Grin” featuring JPEGMAFIA not only blending rap rock & boom bap, but the line in Peggy’s verse about him not having fans anymore made me laugh as a fan of his since Veteran knowing it’s because the main critiques people had with Experimental Rap was the flows used being repetitive & Ye formerly known as Kanye West rubbing off on him after producing for ¥$ a little over 2 & a half years ago.

Had to address the elephant in the room there. Anyway, the psychedelic “Candlelight” contains cool interpolation of “DIET_” off the original Unlocked & a hilarious outro calling back to “Bounce with Me” by Bow Wow just before “Product” talks about going from the hood to investing in shit he’s a part of. “Ups” turns up the funkiness delivering a present from the villain himself to ensure he’s remembered leading into “Benjamin” admitting he shouldn’t give a fuck about cheese unless $100s are involved since it ain’t about him at that point.

“Cold Night in Hell” winds down the last act of Unlocked II telling apologizing to his fans for getting used to the way he’s been living these days while “Crown” featuring Westside Gunn teams up declaring if anyone wants the throne, they better come take it from them & assurances of making it in due time that require patience. The closing track “Difference” featuring a brief Yebba verse sends off the EP basically talking about SpaceGhostPurrp going from being an influential figure to burning every bridge he had.

Continuing the prolific run Kenny Beats has been on all year from Weezer’s new full-length The Gold Album earlier today to FATHERS’ eponymous debut & Rico Nasty’s latest EP RX, he & Denzel Curry reunite for a 24 minutes EP containing less wonkier boom bap production compared to Unlocked II’s predecessor & there’s more of a conscious twist to Zel’s hardcore lyricism bringing a respectfully small handful of guests on board in comparison to holding it down by himself again.

Score: 4/5

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Rapsody – “God Gotta Afro & Gold Hoops” review

Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina emcee Rapsody is back for her 5th studio LP. Rising to prominence last decade with a handful of mixtapes & EPs, her 2012 debut album The Idea of Beautiful continued to show her potential until the Roc Nation Records-backed Laila’s Wisdom in 2017 truly refined her style & sound almost perfectly. 2 years later, she signed to Def Jam Recordings releasing EVE to similar acclaim, coming off Please Don’t Cry to explain God Gotta Afro & Gold Hoops.

After the “Peace, God!” intro, “Free Yo’ Mind” produced by mR. pOrTeR kicks things off on a funky note suggesting maybe she’s too humble or has too much ego & trauma in her search for freedom whereas “No Way” goes for a tropical vibe instrumentally dissing DJ Vlad & No Jumper for being culture vultures. The 2nd & final single “Apple Juice” blends neo-soul & jazz rap for an ode to the late D’Angelo leading into “Never Break” shifts towards a drumless approach showing us an indestructible heart.

We have the lead single “God Gotta Afro” experimenting with industrial hip hop & electro so she can talk about shattering dreams & duckin’ schemes just before “OMG! (Love to Sun Ra)” presents us a psychedelic love letter to none other than the late avant-garde jazz icon himself. “Black Love” featuring No Malice discusses Afrocentrism over some soulful background vocals & finger snaps while “Pick a Side” featuring Amanda Reifer hits the midway point talking about individuals hiding the truth away because they have privileges they ignore.

“Abandoned Me” kicks off the 2nd half on a cavernous synth-driven beat clapping back at a guy who’s angry because she put up boundaries he can no longer get around while “The Peejaays” by MadRaps talks about about the projects on top of this heavenly Madlib instrumental. “You!” proves to the crowd who doesn’t like trap that she can very much kill it over that sound exemplified by the hunger in her cutthroat delivery while “Black is Beautiful” by MadRaps tackles the Afrocentric subject matter once more.

The song “Pretty Bird” preceding the “Way U R” interlude remembering his niece’s girl who passed away asking to capture a picture of what it’s like beyond the light & singing at her wonder of love lost while the upbeat “Joyful” attempts at making the crowds dance, refuting the claim people don’t do it anymore. “Act II: Bloodline / Growing Older” wraps up God Gotta Afro & Gold Hoops with a 6 & a half minute 2-parter talking about having the patience of an old timer.

Conceived when she took a vacation to Ghana, it made Rapsody look at the US rewriting history through whitewashing & that eventually resulted in God Gotta Afro & Gold Hoops landing right behind Laila’s Wisdom for my 2nd favorite album in her discography. mR. pOrTeR handling a vast majority of the production other than a few tracks makes me happy as a Detroit native who feels like he can be underappreciated behind the boards, providing the right musical backdrops for Rapsody to preserve African American stories & truths.

Score: 4.5/5

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Mike Shabb – “Sewaside IV” review

Finally have the 4th studio LP from Montréal, Québec, Canada emcee, producer & engineer Mike Shabb in front of us. Emerging in the spring of 2018 off his full-length debut Northwave, he would continue to make his presence known by putting out a few extended plays & mixtapes before gaining notoriety for engineering Boldy James’ 5th album Fair Exchange No Robbery along with producing “Switches on Everything” off Hitler Wears Hermes X & enlisting his mentor Nicholas Craven to fully produce his 5th EP Shadow Moses. He would follow these up with Hood Olympics, Sewaside III, Shabb Van Gogh, Fight the Power!, Vrai Rap Keb!, the Drega33-produced Lost Tapes & Maple Flavored. The latter of which was ok compared to the others I named, coming off Hood Olympics 2 to drop Sewaside IV.

After the “Fiya Fi Dat!” intro, “Montreal!” begins with a soulfully jazzy ode to the city that made him preceding him going full “Jack Mode!” for the next track swapping out the jazzier elements in favor of a funkier vibe. “1,2,1,2” references the late WWE Hall of Famer Muhammad Ali’s motto for anyone looking to commit career suicide in a battle with him over an old school beat while “Tell ‘Em Again” dabbles with reggae sending love to all of his family out in New York.

We have Shabbo completely going hard with the sampling again on “Disco Duck III” continuing a trilogy in which Hood Olympics began & Shabb Van Gogh bridged while “Mr. Triggerman” gets on his gangsta rap shit over a crooning boom bap instrumental. “Conehead!” keeps it funky for more lyricism reminiscent of 90s hardcore east coast hip hop & so does “Tales from da Hood” except he’s recalling stories about his neck of the woods, assuming the saga will continue since it’s labeled “Part 1”.

“Boom It Up!” officially marks the halfway point of Sewaside IV speaking of getting rich like a muhfucka now as opposed to people doubting him & after the reggae-tinged “Mike Shabb Getting Married” interlude, “Leflaur Leflah!” homages one of the few tracks The Fab 5 have done with each other as a supergroup. “Ring-A-Round!” featuring Obijuan talks about keeping the guns & butter between them over some pianos while “85.5FM” featuring ANKHLEJOHN & Rvlr Magz gives us a hardcore intermission.

I felt like “Buckshot ‘26” was a dusty sequel to “Buckshot Flow ‘93” off Broken World while the jazzy “Bastard Child!” continues to give his flowers to the Boot Camp Clik. The other single “Dontsweatit!” featuring MIKE links up talking about walking through their own shadows & not letting detractors define who you are as a person until “Flowers!” takes a more smoother approach instrumentally yearning to show appreciation towards people while they’re still here.

“Reminisce!” returns to the boom bap looking back at him making it out of the jungles of Montréal & expressing his annoyance towards people hating for him being legitimate from the rip but after the celebratory “Party People!” outro, the bonus cut “Imnotakilla!” officially ends Sewaside IV with 1 last heater clocking at precisely 100 seconds basically getting in his shit-talking bag attacking those who ain’t getting bread or pussy daring them to pull up.

At the time, I really did believe Sewaside III was gonna conclude the saga & here we are 2 years later proving me wrong with what I’d consider the finest chapter of them all. Mike Shabb’s production takes heavy inspiration fromThe Bomb Squad similarly to what C-Doc did for Public Enemy last summer when Black Sky Over the Projects: Apartment 2025 dropped last summer & the lyricism calling back to Duck Down Music Inc.’s run 3 decades earlier.

Score: 4.5/5

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13° – “Ghetto Hipster” review

Brand new sophomore effort from Chicago, Illinois rapper 13°. Emerging only a few years ago off his first couple mixtapes Urban Junkie & Metropolitan respectively, he would go on to follow both of those up with Uptown Dropout as well as Clique City & it’s sequel. His debut EP Cyber Sundayz caught the attention of Island Records & they helped introduce him to a wider audience with the positively received full-length studio debut Black Fridayz, now declaring himself to be the Ghetto Hipster.

“A Gloomy Morning” hops over a synth-driven boom bap beat to kick things off talking about being the king of his city & his life soarin’ past him whereas “Lordz Never Worry” gives off some Graduation vibes declaring himself to be a superstar. “White Sox Capz” psychedelically represents his hometown advising to get the fuck out his face unless one’s looking for him to put them to shame while the cloudily poppy “Pistolet” flexes of dating every model & comparing the head to blowing the smoke off a fired pistol.

We have some crazy sampling techniques being pulled off on “Membership” talking about not needing a patch because he’s already a gold member leading into “Ridiculouz” maintains the euphoria confessing he kinda digs people detracting him for being a golden ticket. “Poetry Jamz” stood out to me for it’s unignorable throwback to when The Neptunes dominated the airwaves in the early 2000s just before the poppy yet cloudy “Juene O.G.” poses the question of whether his not his name will be brought up in discussions a century from now.

“Northside Synonymz” begins the 2nd half likening life to another public assembly with the background vocals sticking out the most to me regarding the instrumental while the cloud rap/pop rap-infused 2nd single “Dwntwn Luv” intoxicatingly talks about trying to fuck a bouncer. “Lyricz” made for a solidly cloudy pop rap lead single making a cold reference to the late Juice WRLD at the end of the hook hoping this woman can heal his heart while the Ye-inspired “Brand New” talks about life giving him body shots.

Trippie Redd makes Ghetto Hipster’s sole guest appearance during the penultimate single “Emotionlezz” dedicating itself to all the weirdos & having apathetic pulling from future bass thoughts while the 3rd single “Hipster Encore” talks about his love of skinny Vogue models who do coke. “Microphone Fein” ironically lager includes a bar referring to 17-time WWE world champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, 5-time WWE United States Champion & 4-time WWE tag team champion John Cena while “Journalistic” atmospherically concludes the album clapping back at the way fraudulent blogs be acting.

Black Fridayz was a solid farewell to the Clique City sounds 13° blew up off of & to begin this new chapter of his career, his 2nd major label offering initially stemming from a highlight off his debut last fall dethrones it’s predecessor & the Clique City mixtape series for the bragging rights of becoming his finest collection of material so far. The production’s significantly cloudier than the debut & he’s having more fun with his music taking inspiration from the likes of Nas, Westside Gunn, the late Capital STEEZ & A$AP Rocky.

Score: 4/5

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Jorjiana – “5 Elements” review

Jorjiana is a 21 year old rapper from Michigan City, Indiana who came up in 2024 off her breakout single “ILBB2”. She would later sign to Atlantic Records the following spring & would release her debut mixtape Project 219 roughly 7 months later to moderate reception mostly due to the underwhelming selection of beats rather than the performances from her or the guests. Recently joining Buvision Entertainment whilst retaining her Atlantic contract, she’s continuing to prelude her full-length studio debut with an extended play.

“Talk” opens up with a bassy instrumental that includes a switch-up midway through letting her detractors know she could care less of their feelings whereas “Indiana 2for2” talks about entering her old money era even if the beat’s generally uninteresting. “I’m the One” embraces a rage-inducing vibe making her guy nervous because she loves money more than him & after “808-Wish” moodily explores the downsides of relationships, “Rich Finally” cloudily ends 5 Elements talking about achieving wealth.

Neither of the previously mentioned tracks that were both released as singles building up anticipation for 5 Elements blew me away, but I still gave Jorjiana the benefit of the doubt thinking the other 3 songs would make up for it & I unfortunately liked this EP less than I did her debut mixtape last Black Friday. She’s a capable performer but as I had mentioned, Project 219 lacked in the production department & a great deal of her Buvision debut’s beats remain dull.

Score: 2.5/5

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Truly Young – “Dear Joshua” review

Los Angeles, California bedroom pop singer/songwriter Truly Young releasing her debut extended play after turning 25 this month. Known for being the daughter of Dr. Dre, she would eventually get herself involved in music by making a few guest appearances on Kevin Abstract’s 6th album blush under X8 Music a couple years ago & was actually more impressed with the performances she had on there than I initially thought. That said: She’s making a bigger artistic splash with Dear Joshua beyond her debut single “Room 64”.

The self-produced title track begins singing about this guy who’s easily influenced by doubt & her not being his type of woman over an indie pop instrumental whereas “fear the reaper” goes for a summery vibe asking who’d she be if she didn’t give into danger. “forever” ends the 1st half realizing Joshua will miss her while “shadows” describes escaping her feelings. “boy” dabbles with dance-pop airing him out for not being the man she thought he was & “you 2 deserve each other” colorfully ends singing about him recognizing her weaknesses.

Putting aside the fact her father’s the Quincy Jones of hip hop, Truly Young spends the 16 minutes of her inaugural EP Dear Joshua sending an audio letter to her now ex-boyfriend pretty much airing out her grievances towards him. It made me happy learning she produced the entire thing rather than having other producers on board much like her “Room 64” aside from “shadows”, establishing herself in the indie pop world channeling all that anger she had stemming from that failed relationship & creating what I consider the real beginning of her solo career.

Score: 3.5/5

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Weezer – “The Gold Album” review

Weezer is a power pop/alt-rock band from Los Angeles, California consisting of bassist Scott Shriner, guitarist Brian Bell, drummer Patrick Wilson & frontman Rivers Cuomo. These guys’ 1994 debut The Blue Album & the 1996 sophomore effort Pinkerton under Geffen Records are both hailed as their finest material, following it up with The Green Album & Maladroit to moderate reception. Make Believe produced by Rick Rubin was a let down, their Interscope Records debut The Red Album was alright, Raditude’s the worst thing they’ve ever made & the Epitaph Records-backed Hurley’s ok regardless of “Memories” being one of their best tracks. Everything Will Be Alright in the End through Republic Records & their Atlantic Records debut The White Album were both some of their finest material in years, but Pacific Daydream was trash as were The Teal Album & The Black Album. I found myself loving OK Human in 2021 despite Van Weezer being a letdown, coming of the SZNZ saga of EPs to have Kenny Beats produce their 16th studio LP albeit first for their new home at Reprise Records & Warner Records.

“Say Yes” was a solid alt-rock/power pop intro singing about being down if Rivers’ partner is whereas “Shine Again” takes us to an alternate universe thematically incorporating elements of post-grunge, stoner rock & hard rock whilst maintaining the other 2 sounds. “Don’t Make It Weird” awkwardly sings about everything being cool if this person lets it be while “We Might as Well Be Strangers” featuring Wednesday has a real chance of becoming Weezer’s best single this decade from the power pop, indie rock & slacker rock vibes to the romantic lyrics.

Alternative rock, post-grunge, power pop, spoken word & slacker rock all make up for the other single “C.E.O.”confirmed to be a “Undone (The Sweater Song)” sequel & I’ll certainly take that instead of “Hoops” unceremoniously kicking off the 2nd half of The Gold Album with what could likely be my least favorite track here despite the shoutout to WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg in the final verse. “Nowhere” thankfully is where things begin to pick back up fusing alt-rock, power pop & post-grunge singing about wanting to be with someone if the snow’s cold or the sky’s grey.

“The Show Must Go On” has more of a self-referential tone than any other song here using a riff reminiscent of “Rock & Roll” by Led Zeppelin while “Up in the Clouds” comes through with what I’d consider a top 5 track & maybe the best example of the post-grunge undertones explored pairing that with Rivers Cuomo’s optimistic performance. “The LA Sound” triumphantly concludes The Gold Album singing about how you can’t fake their knack of digging into each other’s individual collective chops & flipping the concept of pop music on it’s head.

In addition to becoming the Coloring Book saga’s most gratifying installment since The White Album an entire decade earlier, it doesn’t surprise me that I’d have The Gold Album became Weezer’s most reinvigorating statement since OK Human with the only exception being this surpassing it. Kenny Beats’ alternative rock, power pop, post-grunge & slacker rock production combined with the entire band making songwriting contributions gets back to their sense of wonder & hopefully keeping it that way.

Score: 4.5/5

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