Quadeca – “Life 1” review

Brand new LP & the 5th overall from Los Angeles, California singer/songwriter, producer, YouTuber & rapper Quadeca. His earlier tapes Work in Progress, Nostalgia for the Now, Bad Internet Rapper & Out of Order were all received negatively as was the full-length debut Voice Memos although his sophomore effort From Me to You proved to be decent, with both I Didn’t Mean to Haunt You & Scrapyard under deadAir Records garnering widespread praise for artistically reinventing himself. He would form his own label X8 Music distributed by Virgin Music for his previous full-length Vanisher, Horizon Scraper & following it up with Life 1 merely 14 months afterwards.

The self-produced title track subtitled “Where Did the Time Go?” blends art pop, folktronica, indietronica, glitch pop, neo-psychedelia & UK bass to sing about life flying past us all whereas the lead single “Dark Magic” fuses alternative R&B, pop rap, alt-pop, bedroom pop, indietronica, lowend & drone metal to describe the relationship he has with his audience. “The Hero Never Dies” combines art pop, indietronica, toypop, bedroom pop, chamber pop asking why this person’s too down to look straight in his eyes while “It Goes Like This” colorfully sings about this same person potentially getting the gist of things by now.

“Make You My What” featuring kmoe after the “Celery” interlude hits the midway point of Life 1 discussing romantic commitment over some drums & strings but if I had to pick a least favorite track, the 2-parter “Regular Guy” would take the cake which is disappointing considering the themes of wanting to become a new person. After the “Gambler” interlude, “Like You Always Do” prominently employs the default Logic Pro metronome singing about a cult leader feeling targeted prior to the folk pop, chamber pop, progressive folk, chamber folk, art pop, bossa nova & breakbeat single “Baby Steps” tackles adulthood.

Dance-pop, electro, indietronica, pop rap, 2-step, art pop all collide for the 3rd single “Hell of a Time” looking at a breakup from a more introspective lens expressing that he still enjoyed the moments they spent together regardless of everything not panning out they way they hoped while “Illusion of a Choice” sings about his own experiences of battling suicide ideation & encouraging all to fight those thoughts instead of letting them consume you. “Good grief” mourns the death of someone he knew who tragically took their own life & how much his life’s changed since while “In another life…” concludes the album singing about reincarnation.

Quadeca has said Life 1 was the truest thing he’s ever made & there’s no question in my mind that it deserves the same respect the last 3 projects he’s dropped all received. His indietronica, alt-pop, art pop, bedroom pop, folktronica, alternative R&B, singer/songwriter, glitch pop, neo-psychedelia, UK bass, pop rap, lowend, drone metal, toypop, folk pop, chamber pop, progressive folk, chamber folk, bossa nova, breakbeat, dance-pop, electro & 2-step production extends his evolution with the themes of life & death being stemmed from his own experiences unlike I Didn’t Mean to Haunt You.

Score: 4.5/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Alla Xul Elu – “Universal Perverts” review

Kicking off the 4th quarter of the year with Portsmouth, Ohio horrorcore trio & Long Live Evil founders Alla Xul Elu’s 4th extended play. Consisting of Billy Obey as well as Joey Black & Lee Carver, they broke out a decade ago as a duo by releasing their first 2 albums Head of Horns & Sci-Co that same year. This was followed up with their 4/20-themed debut EP Necronomichron in 2017 & adding Carver into the fold shortly after, but it wasn’t until Twiztid signed them to Majik Ninja Entertainment in 2018 when the Xul Boys’ music got increasingly better. Their MNE debut The Almighty is unquestionably the greatest horrorcore album of the 2010s, their 2019 EP Church of Xul took a much darker approach, Mauxuleum made it in the top 10 of my Best Releases of 2020 list despite them ditching their signature boom bap sound for a more industrial, trap metal direction & Necronomichron 2: Dead by Bong was a superior sequel to their 4/20 EP. The Magic Xul Bus preluded their final MNE offering Gods of Evil Rise produced by Mike E. Clark, opening for Psychopathic Records & Juggalo Championship Wrestling (JCW) founders the Insane Clown Posse last Hallowicked. Coming off No Masters however, they’re dropping Universal Perverts in preparation for WHellcome Home at the end of the month.

“Freakenstein” after the “Meet the Monsters” intro references former 3-time CWA Tag Team Champion, WCW World Heavyweight Champion, 2-time WWE United States Champion, 10-time WWE tag team champion, 2-time WCW World Television Champion, 2-time IWGPタッグチャンピオン & 2-time TNA World Tag Team Champion Scott Steiner whereas “Wackula” puts a comedic spin on the idea of masturbation over a boom bap instrumental.

The song “Woofman” winds down the last few moments of Universal Perverts talking about someone they know whom they’ve coined the titular nickname to while “Yummy Gummy Cummy Mummy” spends a couple minutes describing a mummy who’s addicted to performing oral. The beat during the outro reminds me of some 90s hip hop shit, concluding the EP describing a “Creature from the Crack Lagoon” using wordplay to discuss eating ass.

Some would consider Tunnel of Love to be ICP’s freshest sideshow EP although I’d personally put Beverly Kills 50187 above it, but Universal Perverts will certainly appeal to Xuligans in the same way Tunnel of Love did to juggalos or Kool Keith & Necro’s respective 2nd & 4th albums Sex Style & The Sexorcist if you wanna take it a step further since there are underground heads who still revisit tracks off those. That being said: It’s not my favorite EP they’ve made & anticipate WHellcome Home almost 4 weeks from now.

Score: 3/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

9 Vicious – “Det Hot Shit” review

Already have the 6th extended play albeit 2nd this afternoon from Atlanta, Georgia rapper & producer 9 Vicious. Breaking out in 2024 off the single “U Fancy” despite releasing his debut tape Naz in 2020, he would go on to further introduce himself on B4SA & the full-length debut Studio Addict helped him gain more exposure to the point where Young Thug signed him to YSL Records after B4TM dropped & Tumblr Music wasn’t that bad of a debut for the label other than “Clout Demons”. B4FN & For Nothing have both become the best things he’s made since the YSL deal, leaving when the Uy Scuti Bøyz consisting of diamond* & Tezzus signed. B4EM & Emotions were both welcomed to mixed reception, coming off the widely panned Sedition to further prelude both Sex Money Power & Life’s Beautiful with LA NY ATL & now Det Hot Shit

“Cock” produced by Patrick Garza kicks things off with the worst track of the 3 angrily pleading for his hoe to fondle him regardless of her being unwilling to have sex with anyone unless being paid beforehand & after “Doing Me Wrong” takes a mellower approach instrumentally courtesy of 406ahmad advising this woman to hit up his line so he can tell her not to fuck him over, “Fifa” already finishes the 2nd EP of the day embracing a plugg sound to talk about drugs & sex.

Wasn’t anticipating 9 Vicious to drop twice in the same day but compared to the rest of the EPs in his discography, it should go without saying that most will consider Det Hot Shit to be less enjoyable than LA NY ATL & quite possibly the 2nd worst thing he’s made behind Sedition. The production’s not an issue much like what we got 3 hours earlier considering 406ahmad handles most of it other than Patrick doing the intro, but the performances are significantly worse.

Score: 2/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

9 Vicious – “LA NY ATL” review

Atlanta, Georgia rapper & producer 9 Vicious uploading his 5th extended play onto SoundCloud without any warning. Breaking out in 2024 off the single “U Fancy” despite releasing his debut tape Naz in 2020, he would go on to further introduce himself on B4SA & the full-length debut Studio Addict helped him gain more exposure to the point where Young Thug signed him to YSL Records after B4TM dropped & Tumblr Music wasn’t that bad of a debut for the label other than “Clout Demons”. B4FN & For Nothing have both become the best things he’s made since the YSL deal, leaving when the Uy Scuti Bøyz consisting of diamond* & Tezzus signed. B4EM & Emotions were both welcomed to mixed reception, coming off the widely panned Sedition to further prelude both Sex Money Power & Life’s Beautiful with LA NY ATL.

“Light It Up” gets things going with this 85 second intro confirming that he’s been banned from his own city because of his countless beefs whereas “Baby Roscoe” produced by Patrick Garza disses YSL for being on what he calls “fake shit” & boasts that Playboi Carti co-signed him on the phone when his OPM BABI diss ranks amongst the worry songs I’ve heard this year. “Net Worth” digs up a microwaved leftover from the Emotions sessions & after reuniting with 406ahmad for “Studio Fein” talking about spending days in the lab, “Wyoming” ends LA NY ATL shouting out the state he visited this spring.

406ahmad has since confirmed he’ll be solely producing Life’s Beautiful when it comes out at the beginning of the New Year & that already tells me we’ll get more gratifying production on there compared to Sedition earlier this month, which I can fortunately say the exact same thing regarding LA NY ATL although I can’t really say the same for his performances considering he goes from confessing the truth of the latter city banning him to adding fuel to that fire literally the next song regardless of Slime Language III being overloaded.

Score: 2.5/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Protomartyr – “Hotel Usona” review

Protomartyr is an art/post-punk band from Detroit, Michigan consisting of guitarist Greg Ahee, drummer Alex Leonard, bassist Scott Davidson & frontman Joe Casey. Releasing their debut No Passion All Technique in 2012, the sophomore effort & Under Color of Official Right & The Agent Intellect under Sub Pop Records would turn more heads & Relatives in Descent has become their most celebrated material yet. Coming off both Ultimate Success Today & Formal Growth in the Desert though, the teasers for their 7th studio LP had me more excited than either of it’s predecessors.

“The Old Hotel” kicks things off with this post-punk intro likening the US to a hotel that’s been neglected for a long period of time whereas the lead single “Sounds We Cannot Hear” blends post-punk, noise rock & art rock to sing about tinnitus. “Converts” makes brutal critiques towards JD Vance & Peter Thiel respectively but once the 3rd & final single “Exalted Eagles” fuses art rock & post-punk to condemn the rise of fascism, “The Knife Dream” could go down amongst Protomartyr’s most haunting tracks.

Meanwhile on “Feed the Sewer”, we have Joe & company fusing noise rock as well as post-punk & post-hardcore for a warning regarding the dangers of AI just before “Lavender – Gospel” breaks down the AI database system used against Palestinians in accelerating the Gaza genocide. “3rd Country” winds down the last few moments of Hotel Usonadetailing the heartbreaking reality of families being separated via deportation & “Checking Out” sends off the album singing about America making him & many others disillusioned.

12 months from now will already be an entire decade since Relatives in Descent revealed Protomartyr’s artistic evolution beyond the Under Color of Official Right & The Agent Intellect eras, but Hotel Usona has now dethroned it to become the most powerful musical statement in their 2 decades of existence. The post-punk, art rock, goth rock, noise rock & post-rock production doesn’t lose it’s richness at any point during the 45 minutes & they conceptually make a disturbingly realistic comparison between the state of this country for almost 2 years & an abandoned hotel rotting from within.

Score: 4.5/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Remy Ma – “Alimony” review

Remy Ma is a 46 year old rapper from The Bronx, New York City who Big Pun brought into the Terror Squad some time before his death. Her full-length debut there’s something about remy: based on a true storycame out 2 decades earlier to positive reception following her debut mixtape Most Anticipated although BX Files, BlasRemy & I’m Around weren’t as great. Coming off her divorce from Papoose, she’s preluding a sophomore effort with a brand new extended play of material.

“Rem the Pen” actually wasn’t bad of an intro hopping over an apocalyptic boom bap instrumental from Ron Browz to talk about the possibility of her never speaking to Nicki Minaj again, but then “Cry in the Wraith” featuring Tink & produced by Hitmaka continues the enjoyability levels getting in their feelings a bit. “Who Raised You?” however reaches the halfway point with the exact moment where things begin to decline, wanting to know who raised these new bitches over a bland beat.

Kicking off the 2nd leg, “Why I Get Married?” gives us a response to Papoose’s “Jezebel” that just feels absolutely embarrassing both instrumentally & in terms of Remy’s own performances while “Altar” throws more shots at Pap’s way returning to the boom bap accusing him of dumbing herself down for the only purpose of building himself up. “W.Y.F.L.” spends the remaining minutes of this Alimony declaring herself to be a mogul over a generic trap beat.

Soon as Remy Ma & Papoose began trading disses towards each other, I joked that it’s Kendrick Lamar vs. Drake for people who enjoyed watching Love & Hip Hop because I personally was never a fan of that whole series of reality shows & Alimony pretty much prove my point outside the first couple tracks. It starts off hot until losing steam right when the halfway point because of some inconsistencies regarding the production that I hope are resolved when the next album arrives.

Score: 2/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Action Figure 973 – “Dark Side of the Ring 4” review

Another extended play & the 15th overall from Belleville, New Jersey emcee/producer Action Figure 973. For a while at this point, his first couple mixtapes followed by his last 14 EPs & the full-length debut DOOM Was Right over a year ago giving flowers to one of my all-time personal favorite albums Madvillainy have each established himself as a promisingly skilled luchador who so happens to rap. The Most Interesting Man in the World got with Machacha for his sophomore effort last October, coming off What Would Harley Race Do? as well as & the baseball-themed Polo Grounds produced by DiMaggio & Souled Out for a 4th installment of the Dark Side of the Ring series only 48 hours after Vince Russo announced his departure from Juggalo Championship Wrestling (JCW).

The intro “Know You Role” references the current AEW World Tag Team Champion Adam Copeland shooting it with former AEW World Tag Team Champion, FTW Champion, DEFY World Champion, the inaugural NWA World Television Champion, NXT Champion & NXT North American Champion Ricky Starks whereas “Rap Is Still Crap” continues from there giving a nod to former WCW World Tag Team Champions the West Texas Rednecks.

“Going to Kill You” gives a nod to a chant originated by current AEW commentator, former 2-time ECW World Heavyweight Champion, 2-time ECW World Television Champion, the inaugural 2-time FTW Champion & 4-time WWE tag team champion Taz just before “R.I.P. Vince Steel” pays tribute to the late New York performer. “Junkyard Dog” however ends the 1st half remembering the late WWE Hall of Famer & former WCW World 6-Man Tag Team Champion.

We get a lo-fi boom bap instrumental on “20 Minute Blowjob” so Act-Lo can keep it hardcore until “3rd Man” includes a reference to the WWE Hall of Famers nWo’s debut 3 decades earlier. “Main Event of Thunder” calls back to WCW’s secondary program Thunder & the outro “Macho’s Elbow Drop” wraps up Dark Side of the Ring 4shouting out the late the late WWE Hall of Famer, former 6-time WWE world champion & WWE Intercontinental Champion Randy Savage.

From the Polo Grounds theming itself around America’s favorite past time to Souled Out celebrating his birthday describing some trips he took overseas, Dark Side of the Ring 4 mainly takes it back to what made Action Figure 973 one of the most interesting figures in the underground whether it be the raw production or the witty lyricism including gems that only professional wrestling fans would understand better than most.

Score: 4/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Kardinal Offishall – “Firestarter 2: everyday, sometimes…” review

Kardinal Offishall is a 50 year old rapper, songwriter, producer, DJ & record executive from Toronto, Ontario, Canada who made his debut in late ‘97 with Eye & I. The sophomore effort Firestarter: Quest for Fire albeit major label debut under MCA Records would make him the ambassador of the Canadian hip hop scene even if Fire & Glory, Not 4 Sale, the Nottz-produced A.M.T.R.I.M. (Allow Me to Re-Introduce Myself) mixtape & Kardi Gras: The Clash were all welcomed to mixed reception. Over a decade later & he’s returned for his 6th studio LP.

“Heavy’s the Head” triumphantly opens up talking about the weight of the crown he’s wearing whereas “40 Acres & a Ferrari” featuring Black Thought & Stove God Cook$ finds the trio discussing it not being too late for them to receive those 2 things over a boom bap instrumental. “All Nighter” featuring Konshens & T-Pain goes for a pop rap vibe talking about staying up for an evening with their partners but once “Kiss Me When I” admits he hates it when his lover leaves, “Top 3” featuring Buju Banton & Idris Elba ends the 1st leg with a boastful reggae anthem.

Nesta appears for the remix to “My Brother’s Keeper” to kick off the 2nd half continuing showing more love towards Jamaican culture while “When You’re in Love” once again confronts themes of romance over a more subdued beat. “Bombay Sunsets” featuring Idris Elba returns to the boom bap so they can bring it hardcore & after “When There’s Smoke” aggressively talks about the consequences of any beef poppin’ off, the title track ends Firestarter 2: everyday, sometimes… telling us the way he’s been feeling since the previous full-length.

Admittedly: I wasn’t so sure whether or not Firestarter 2: everyday, sometimes… would live up to the expectations set out by the predecessor considering almost everything he’s done since has left audiences divided. And contrasting the previous installment capturing Kardinal Offishall at the height of his career, this sequel provides a glimpse of where he’s at a quarter of a century later as the ambassador of Canadian hip hop maintaining his signature dancehall style outside of some boom bap & pop rap detours. I can respect that.

Score: 3.5/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Ms. Rachel – “I’m So Happy” review

Ms. Rachel is a 43 year old YouTuber, social media personality, educator, activist & singer/songwriter from Biddeford, Maine who has become the modern day Mr. Rogers from her channel surpassing 20M subscribers to sticking up for children that’ve been affected by the Gaza genocide. Her husband in Broadway music director & composer Aron Accurso producing an entire LP’s worth of children’s music however seemed to gain more anticipation than the full-length debut Let It Go, the sophomore effort I’m Up to No Good or the Over the Moon for You extended play combined.

The title track opens up with these colorful piano chords & choir vocals in the background singing about being in a good mood & nothing changing that whereas “I Love a Rainbow” featuring Mr. Aron finds the couple teaming up for a cheerful ode to rainbows over an instrumental that sounds like hotel lobby music. “Icky Sticky Bubble Gum” continued from there singing about the textures of chewing gum prior to “Phonics” running down the entire alphabet.

“Hop Little Bunnies” takes a more delicate approach altogether singing about waking up sleeping rabbits with this sweet 95 second tune while “Caterpillar” featuring Mr. Aron spends a couple minutes observing the beauty of moth/butterfly larva. “Up & Down” works in some more keys so the Accursos can teach the youth their directions leading into “Bubble Pop” whimsically singing about 4 fishes swimming in the water & pretending to be a number of different aquatic animals.

As for “Walkin’ at the Zoo”,’ we have both Ms. Rachel & Mr. Aron going on a zoo date together over some more pianos hanging behind them while “Open Shut Them” gives us their rendition of the classic nursery rhyme. “I Could Be Your Friend” reaches the midway point of I’m So Happy suggesting she can make companions out of anyone who’s listening while “I Listen to My Body” soulfully sings about paying attention whenever their bodily functions send a message to either of them.

“The Wheels on the Bus” featuring Mr. Aron of course dates back almost 9 decades ago with the Accursos putting their own spin on it while “Dino Play” featuring Mr. Aron sings about prehistoric life to continue the 2nd half. “Pop Those Bubbles” featuring Mr. Aron encourages all the kids popping the bubbles being blown their away before they hit the ground while “Old MacDonald” covers the traditional 1706 nursery rhyme of the same name.

Mr. Aron returns for “If You Should Meet an Elephant” to do some vocal harmonizing for over a minute while the aptly named “Counting to 20!” spends 56 seconds testing one’s ability to count to that specific number. After covering the 1780 spelling game “Bingo” & the mid-19th century folk song “Looby Loo” respectively, Ms. Rachel makes it clear that having “Big Feelings” are completely acceptable while “Together” explains the meaning of what she & Mr. Aron consider friendship. “I Love You to the Moon” concludes I’m So Happy expressing the gratitude she has for all of her supporters.

It’s completely understandable if this review shocks anyone since I’ve never covered children’s music up until this point & I may not have any kids of my own, but I do have a nephew turning 4 this fall who’s enjoyed a handful of Ms. Rachel’s videos in the past & get the feeling most parents will put on I’m So Happy for their little ones as much as Raffi or even They Might Be Giants for the foreseeable future since the Accursos managed to create a mix of newly written material along with renditions of traditional children’s songs. I’ll even put it above John Legend’s recent album My Favorite Dream produced by Sufjan Stevens.

Score: 3/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Skyzoo – “Luxury Tax” review

Brooklyn, New York veteran Skyzoo reuniting with Detroit, Michigan producer Apollo Brown for his 10th solo LP. Emerging in the underground off the 9th Wonder produced Cloud 9: The 3 Day High, he continued to make a name for himself with a consistent discography. Highlights include The Salvation, the !llmind produced Live from the Tape Deck, A Dream Deferred, Music for My Friends, The Easy Truth, In Celebration of Us & my personal favorite: the Pete Rock produced Retropolitan dedicated to his home state. All the Brilliant Things built itself around gentrification & The Mind of a Saint was dedicated one of my favorite shows Snowfall, coming off the Old Soul Music-backed Keep Me Company & the superior Views of a Lifetime counterpart EP to celebrate a decade of The Easy Truth with a proper sequel.

After the “Soapbox 2” intro, the opener “Abundance” kicks things off with a boom bap instrumental talking about there being no typos regarding what one’s type is whereas “Detours” keeps the dusty vibes rollin’ so he can shout out all the alternative roads he had to take “God Given” retains the traditional boom bap sound talking about his discography being stronger than it was when he began 2 decades earlier while “Keep It Close” expresses a desire of being someone this person can spend their days with.

“Table Manners” confesses to being up in here feeling like he’s got 2 plates on him & for those who have his back to stay by him just before “Learned Behavior” ends the 1st half talking about his people looking at him like an exodus & that ringing true today. “Rose Tinted” leans towards a jazzier direction instrumentally depicting a part-time trapper & activist while the crooning “Scrape the Bowl” flexes his vinyl collection could buy him a condo.

Meanwhile on “No Discounts”, we have Skyzoo soulfully talking about the prices remaining long as he’s still here while “Hear Me Out” discusses bringing everyone around him. “The Blind Spot” featuring Blu & eLZhi finds all 3 lyricists talking about being around eternally but once “Under the Lights” assures the illumination’s bright enough, “The Rearview” sends off Luxury Tax advising one can’t be afraid of the corners if they need their own bouquet of flowers.

The Easy Truth has always been one of my favorite entries in Skyzoo’s discography, so the idea of them running it back an entire decade later for Luxury Tax had me more excited than I was for some of his recent material & am overjoyed to say it’s certainly the finest album he’s made since Retropolitan. Apollo Brown’s soulful production matches the consistency of the extended play Sky gave us 9 months earlier for a cultural celebration rooted in duality & evolution.

Score: 4.5/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!