Serial Killers – “This Thing of Ours” review

The Serial Killers are a west coast supergroup consisting of B-Real, Demrick & Xzibit. Joining forces on Halloween 2013 by dropping an eponymous debut mixtape under Open Bar Entertainment, they would go on to follow it up a couple years later with The Murder Show & followed it up with the Day of the Dead extended play. Their debut album Summer of Sam would come out in the fall of 2020 despite its title getting more political than the trio’s earlier output, reuniting to have Scoop DeVille produce the sophomore effort.

“SK Anthem” sets the tone with this grisly boom bap intro spitting the kind of raps that’ll make you wanna punch someone in the face whereas the title track aggressively talks about the trio building a circle of trust together. “Call the Cops” gives off an old school hardcore vibe dropping bars that’ll make people snitch to the Feds leading into the horn-infused “Fired Up” advising against people trying their luck because each of them being vexed.

Moving on from there, “Levels” talks about improving oneself if anybody’s striving to reach the top just before “Hand Grenade” goes full rap rock so they can end the 1st leg boasting that they can walk through Hellfire & communicate with the dead. “High Energy” continues the 2nd leg of the album talking about life being this much of a trip & time being money while “Anarchy” encourages those listening to start promoting the strength we have instead of that other bullshit.

“Slippin’” nears This Thing of Ours’ conclusion incorporating some strings talking about keeping an eye out for the other side & not letting them catch you fuckin’ up while “By Any Means” speaks of constantly staying more solid than the concrete & representing the west coast. “We’re the Killers” finishes up the album with this ghostly boom bap outro talking about fearing no man & the lyricism of each member proving to be more deadly than fentanyl.

Summer of Sam to me was a lot enjoyable than The Murder Show or Day of the Dead were, but the Serial Killers return a little over halfway through the 2020s with Scoop DeVille behind the boards to make This Thing of Ours the greatest LP of their entire existence. Scoop’s production hits harder top to bottom as opposed to the predecessor having a couple lackluster moments instrumentally & I like that they refrained from having any guest appearances to focus more on their synergies.

Score: 4/5

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Napoleon da Legend – “G.A.M.O. (Gods Against Man’s Oppression)” review

Right in front of us is the 34th studio LP from French-American underground veteran Napoleon da Legend. Heads in the underground should already be familiar with him due to the lengthy discography that he’s built up for himself for nearly the past decade including Coup D’État, it’s sequel, Street Universe, Dragon Ball G, the Sicknature-produced Colossus of GOATS, Buckets, the DJ D-Styles-produced Invincibl Rap Mislz, the DJ Rhettmatic-produced Legmatic, the JR Swiftz-produced Great Minds & F.L.A.W. (Following Lies Always Wounds). However, I was surprised to hear most of G.A.M.O. (Gods Against Man’s Oppression) was gonna be produced by the man himself.

After the “End” intro, “Polonium” begins with this triumphant boom bap instrumental referencing the late WWE Hall of Famer Muhammad Ali whereas the self-produced “It’s All Over” works in some sampling chops looking to send all competitors home bruised up & breaking bones. “Addis Abba” featuring Vinnie Paz finds the 2 lividly talking about this music shit not being for everyone & after the “Imminent Danger” interlude, “Black Caesar” featuring Steele teams up so they continue the hardcore lyricism.

“Spilled Sphinx” featuring Nejma Nefertiti reunites the pair so they can go back-&-forth with each other like they’ve already done so countless times in the past prior to “Bombardians” featuring CF & Dontique decently talking about raising the bar & still not reaching their pinnacles yet. “Think Dominant” featuring Innocent? & SKAM2? brings in some horns to get it out the dirt while “Masked Assassin” after the “Water Seeds” interlude attacks biters who can’t be original to save their lives.

Skyzoo appears on the lavish “Tough Skin” looking back at when they had shit mapped out when the rest were playing cat & mouse games while “Kill Bots” featuring Passport Rav but after the “Break the Chains” interlude trades bars with one another over a beat from the latter talking about the cold world not getting any warmer. “Star Wars” grittily lets it be known that those who want to reach his level will die quickly while the crooning “Sinners & Saints” talks about enjoying the present moment.

“Mind War” featuring Lord Goat poses the question of what one would die for & the rise of AI taking people’s jobs from them while the title track talks about cancelling the sellouts as well as causing the cancers to cease spreading. “Ultimate Power” after the “System Error” skit reassures confidence of his future despite not reaching his prime yet but once the jazzy “Alan Wattage” featuring Ghost Machine talks about the world being The Boondocks & South Park combined, “Save Me” preceding the “Beginning” outro ends by advising against going at the Pharaoh.

Keeping in mind that there are literally dozens of albums in the Napoleon da Legend catalog, I did come away from G.A.M.O. (Gods Against Man’s Oppression) liking it less than Soul vs. Math & more than Promise. Nonetheless, I’d put Great Minds & F.L.A.W. (Following Lies Always Wounds) above all of them combined. His own production’s a huge compliment I can hand this one blending noir wave & modern boom bap, except I feel like it’s a little too long.

Score: 3/5

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BabyBartier – “Nightmare on Rodeo” review

Here is the full-length studio debut from Los Angeles, California rapper BabyBartier. Emerging off his debut EP Baby Blanco a year ago followed by Diablo a little over a month later, his popularity would continue to grow over the course of the summer after Awe$ome & Terror respectively became most most acclaimed extended plays. Now that he’s signed a joint deal Internet Money Records alongside Mercury Records & Republic Records, it only makes sense for the Nightmare on Rodeo to officially commence now that he’s under a major label.

“Lean Crazy” get things going with the 2nd & final single looking to party like it’s Project X daily over a plugg instrumental while “Forgiveness” talks about winning the world inside his hands & the chopper loading up. “Scene” looks back at going from being in the battlefield sending shot to having the scars to prove it until “Red Dead” produced by Rio Leyva cautions that people better duck the second his squad rolls past your hood.

NASH gets behind the boards for “Flexin’”, continuing the plugg vibes so he can talk about his girl bringing a TEC to the club just before “I Know It’s Coming” speaks of not falling in love because he can’t trust no hoe. “Cash Out” pushes further towards the halfway point talking about poppin’ tags & taking the swag up on his bitch just before “Poppin’” works in a chill beat from Vendr to boast that he’s high enough to hang with the Gods.

“Basic” kicks off the 2nd half incorporating some wavy synthesizers pullin’ up to the function under the influence of ecstasy while the lead single “Each of My Pockets” talks about putting on the swag for his people & carrying a bunch of blue Benjamin Franklins on him. “Tomato” keeps it rollin’ by rubbing his success in the faces of those who didn’t think he’d make it this far over a Cade instrumental while “Cali Dreamin’” talks about making a crowd of thots lose their shit over him performing.

Rounding out 3rd, we have him clarifying that Bartier’s had swag since he was in “High School” prior to “Latest” talking about the way he’s been living since last summer. “Dirty Sprite” comes through with a brief dedication to sippin’ lean & after “Hancock” likens himself to the main character of the 2008 superhero film of the same name written by the creator of Breaking Bad/Better Call Saul, the outro “B4 I Die” ends the LP talking about running up more bags.

I kinda had a feeling that BabyBartier was gonna sign to Internet Money Records given their heavy involvement on the instrumental side of Terror last fall, but Nightmare on Rodeo instead became an average major label debut containing more highs than lows that I firmly believe he can outdo whenever the time for his sophomore effort comes. Even if the production doesn’t interest me like his last EP did & most of the songs are under 2 minutes, that same hunger still translates itself exceptionally.

Score: 3/5

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WTM Solid – “$uper Amazing $uper Rich” review

Detroit, Michigan rapper WTM Solid returning 3 months since his sophomore effort for his 3rd studio LP. A member of the WRLD Tour Mafia, he also embarked on a solo career of his own beginning a few years back with the debut EP Originatour followed by both Matter of Time & What’s the Difference?. Bigg as well as the full-length debut Imagine That at the start of this year elevated himself as an individual amongst the rest of WRLD Tour, following up Killa $eason as well as Touropean & Street Gospel to discuss being $uper Amazing $uper Rich.

“It’s a Life$tyle Tour” works in a cinematic Detroit trap instrumental talking about touring being a way of life the way he sees it whereas “Biggest Boss” incorporates some sampling techniques & interesting effects on his voice boasting his lifestyle. “Deadboylife” has a more eerier approach to the Detroit sound rapping his life over these beats leading into “Deadbeat” talking about making money in his city & in Atlanta, Georgia similarly to what his homegirl Rachel did.

Wrapping up the 1st half, “$olid Checkin’ In” produced by WTM Niketech gives a nod to the adlib his WRLD Tour brethren Rafa has become known for whenever he begins to spit verses while “Cross $tate Mafia” featuring Babytron has to be a top 3 track uniting the Cross $tate Boys & the Dog $hit Militia crews. “Livin’ in a Double Cup” was another favorite of mine from the cloudy Detroit trap vibe LulRose & WTM Miles give off instrumentally to the lyrics about his squad having the power of changing the government while “$ubway $urfer” references WWE Hall of Famer, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion & 3-time WWE Tag Team Champion Rikishi.

“IDK What Tour Wear” goes for a synth-heavy Detroit sound talking about his indecisiveness of picking out an outfit for the day while the timing of “$ora” makes me laugh considering the recent news regarding the AI app parodied by the Paramount Skydance Corporation subsidiary Comedy Central hit series South Park almost 5 months ago being shut down. He hops over this warmly uplifting beat to describe his position as the “Man with the Plan” & after “5 Stars*” boasts about making $25K in a quick manner, “Kendricky with Kapital” ends the album hitting the road without a driver.

$uper Awesome $uper Rich takes it’s name after a song from Killa $eason last summer baring it’s initials after the Slam A Slut Records label that the WRLD Tour Mafia built together as a family & it’s an exceptionally great follow-up to Street Gospel although I prefer the latter more. The cloudy Detroit trap production’s a little less plugg influenced than it was at the beginning to the year, handling a majority of the verses by himself other than Tron & further embracing the love he’s always had for The Walt Disney Company subsidiary Marvel Entertainment owned Spider-Man franchise. He also announced last night that he’s currently recording Touropean 2 over at the UK, which I’m interested in hearing that considering both “Kash Doll Skirt” & “Support > Hate” are some of his best songs.

Score: 4/5

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Decksterror – “Love & Honour 2” review

London, England, United Kingdom producer Decksterror returning with his 2nd extended play Originally known under the moniker G-Man, he would form Hollow Sun Records alongside Cosm in the spring of 2020 a couple weeks after the COVID-19 pandemic began & eventually made his full-length solo debut with Black/Gold Stash a couple years later. Signed to the Croydon underground imprint Hidden Hobby Records as an in-house producer, he made his debut for the label with Love & Honour and has dropped the highly anticipated follow-up only 24 hours away from Callum Newman becoming the youngest IWGPヘビー級チャンピオン.

“Democracy Manifest” by Ill Sykes, Kakarot & Lomax opens with the trio spitting hardcore bars over a boom bap instrumental whereas “The Source Code” by Lomax lets everyone know what this shit’s really all about. “Terminal Horizon” by Ill Sykes works in some horns to talk about his words being more effective than sticks & stones while “Tony Stark / Speed of a Train” by Murkerz gets the 2nd half of the EP going with a dusty 2-parter.

Body Bag Ben & DreMilla appear together on “P.A.K. (What Does It Mean?)” talking about their respective pens slicing anyone who dares to step up to them in a rap battle while “The Golden Eye” by Juga-Naut, Micall Parknsun, Montener the Menace & Teach ‘Em ends on a more luxuriously rawer note talking about how they made a pledge when it comes to the artform & those who ain’t do shit having the inability of complaining because ain’t a game to them unless anyone else has actually played it.

A little over a month since DJ Sam Seed introduced himself artistically bridging The Unaligned, we’re now being treated to a Love & Honour sequel that reached the bar it’s predecessor had set & continues what could be Hidden Hobby Records’ biggest year yet. There are some slight improvements within the list of guests most notably towards the backend of it, but it’s really Deckterror’s production that really shines the most.

Score: 3.5/5

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9 Vicious – “Emotions” review

Atlanta, Georgia rapper & producer 9 Vicious dropping his 4th studio LP a week after doing adlibs for Ye formerly known as Kanye West’s 12th album Bully. Breaking out in 2024 off his debut single “U Fancy”, 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, departing when the Uy Scuti Bøyz consisting of diamond* & Tezzus signed. B4EM in January was mostly carried by the production & was curious to hear how Emotions would be following the biggest co-sign of 9’s career yet.

“Talk About It” produced by 406ahmad samples “The Meaning of Love” by Steve Kuhn speaking of people wanting to know how he made it prior to “Amazing” flipping “Sex with Me” by Rihanna thanks to Patrick Garza telling a MILF he ain’t tryna cheat on her. “Posing Tonight” splits itself into 2 halves to depict the gangsta lifestyle until “Rolling Loud” celebrates his upcoming performance at the festival whilst dissing OsamaSon & che.

A couple of A$AP Rocky’s greatest tracks “Fashion Killa” & “Purple Swag” get heavily sampled on the next few songs using the exact same names although I’d rather put on the original versions of them just before “Clock It” talks about having a stripper bitch. “Trevon O’Ryan Echols” will easily go down amongst 9 Vicious’ more profound songs admitting that it’s not easy being him while “Vivienne Westwood (R.I.P.) / O.G. Got the Drop” continues from there with another 2-parter talking about being a real punk.

“Want U” finds himself coming out as bisexual & I’m not trying to say that’s a bad thing in any way shape or form because there are plenty of LGBTQ+ artists I’ve covered in the past, but it doesn’t necessarily surprise me. “Project4Play / SVJ” divides itself in a couple different portions dissing both Tezzus & Young Thug while “Molly Ecstasy” hops over an cloudy R8 beat with heavy 808s, although bars like “she give that head like a MAGA hat” don’t really do it a whole lot of justice.

Kacy Hill producing “Sunset Hill” seems appropriate considering she was signed to G.O.O.D. Music at 1 point, working in a guitar so 9 can represent YSL when he was literally firing shots at Thug earlier. “U Dig Det” continues the 2nd half talking about giving a fuck less regarding all the cap he sees when he wakes up while “My Whole Heart” promises his lover that he’ll give her his all, although the “Listen Up Jews” nod at the end of the 1st verse made me cringe.

“Julia” talks about being in Los Angeles & a woman by that name calling him spewing a whole lot of nothing the way he sees it while “Need” takes a shot at Afrobeats to ask his bae what she needs from him. The instrumental on “Love Album” isn’t any issue although the overly sexual lyrics get quickly tiring while “Italy” responds to Tezzus pulling up to his mother’s house by claiming that it didn’t bother him & how he wouldn’t ever cheat on the person who has his heart when he probably is unfaithful.

Rounding out 3rd, we have 9 trying to make the classic MGMT single “Electric Feel” into his own down to 406ahmad sampling it & “Life’s Funny” samples “Ironic” by “Alanis Morissette” to talk about God having an interesting way of telling him this chick’s the one. “Forgot” confesses to being so locked in to the point where it slipped his mind that he was in a relationship & “Blowing Emotions” sends off the album with 1 more 2-parter that Nosaint of Vanguard Music Group cooked up talking about having so many feelings.

It was confirmed earlier this week by ApolloRed1 that the collaborative project he & 9 Vicious have been planning for a year has now been scrapped because of 9 taking issue with Apollo doing an upcoming tape with OsamaSon & although I did wind up enjoying Emotions a little more than the prelude at the end of January, it’s not by a whole lot. I’ll reiterate the praise I’ve always had regarding his ear for production, although I still adamantly believe his whole shtick of beefing with everyone & “homaging” as many musical icons imaginable to be running dry.

Score: 3/5

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Daniel Son – “Shattered Glass” review

Pretty sure this has to be the 7th EP from Toronto, Ontario, Canada emcee Daniel Son. A member of the Brown Bag Money collective, his profile began to rapidly increase in the underground off projects like the Giallo Point-produced debut mixtape The Gunners or the Futurewave-produced sophomore album Yenaldooshi. He also teamed up with Raz Fresco for the spectacular collab album Northside paying homage to the roots of the Toronto hip hop scene & a few months after reuniting with Futurewave for the first time since Son Tzu & the Wav.God on Bushman Bodega & the Finn-produced Hare Brained Schemes a few months later. Almost a whole year since Baggage Claims though, he & Futurewave are running it back for Shattered Glass a week after Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling (MLP) founder Scott D’Amore crowned The Good Brothers as the inaugural & shortest reigning MLP Canadian Tag Team Champions.

“Old Starter Kit” hops over a drumless jazz loop to talk about doing this shit for his own legacy’s sake whereas “Lil Earl” instrumentally goes for a boom bap vibe so he can discuss cookin’ ‘em all in the same pot. “Shipping Container” has this lo-fi quality to the beat talking about ordering more if you want to pay less prior to “Ticket Sales” featuring Asun Eastwood teaming up so bottom of them can discuss making any money rather than not bringing any in at all.

Moving on from there, “Bear Steaks” strips the drums to talk about making it out of the storm & finding his own directions while “Kolors on Queen” continues to embrace a lo-fi boom bap sound speaking of keeping his head on a swivel during his late night strolls. “Ocean Smock” featuring Sayzee finds the 2 joining forces to talk about the recoil from their firearms making shoulders pop while “Shotgun Draw” clarifies to those who were sending shots at him that they wound up completely missing.

“Broke Routine” winds down Shattered Glass’ final moments observing that some not being built to take any fall while “Late for Dinner” talks about seeing a ghost rockin’ in the hallway making noises every day of the week. “Hogwash” goes drumless again so he can express his belief of the musical oversaturation getting out of control & after “Bow Flesh” prays for chaos to balance his good days, the outro “All My Dice” finishes by talking about his future looking brighter than his past.

Taking the foundation of Soundwave & approaching it in his own way, Daniel Son builds on the energy of the beats & pushes it into something new with Shattered Glass after what had initially started as a simple idea quickly turned into something else with it’s completely separate identity. The transitions & pacing are chaotic in the best way possible, but it never loses direction by maintaining the intentionally raw & unpredictable feeling.

Score: 3.5/5

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Earl Sweatshirt – “Utility” review

Brand new studio LP & the 7th altogether from Santa Monica, California emcee, producer & singer/songwriter Earl Sweatshirt. Beginning his career almost 2 decades ago using the alias Sly Tendencies as the son of Cheryl Harris & late poet Keorapetse Kgositsile, he posted a handful of tracks for a mixtape called Kitchen Cutlery on MySpace, but the tape would never be released to this day. He formed a short-lived rap trio with 2 of his friends called The Backpackerz & planned to release a mixtape together titled World Playground, but they disbanded sometime in 2009. Shortly after, he joined Odd Future & appeared on their 2nd & final mixtape Radical that May. 10 months later, he put out his only mixtape to date Earl with OF’s de facto leader Tyler, The Creator producing a bulk of it. The tape received a lot of buzz until Earl’s mother would send him to a therapeutic retreat school for at-risk boys in Samoa sometime after until February of 2012. He was then granted his own Columbia Records imprint Tan Cressida Records & released his full-length debut Doris a decade ago to critical acclaim right before I started my junior year of high school for his clever rhyme schemes & the gritty production from The Neptunes to even the RZA. He then formed the duo Hog Slaughta Boyz with OF affiliate Na’kel at the beginning of 2015 & released his sophomore album I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside. a couple months after. Many of which consider to be better than Doris for its darker aesthetic. Some Rap Songs not only wound up being my 2018 Album of the Year, but the bastard child of one of my all-time favorite albums: Madvillainy. Feet of Clay the year after marked a new distribution deal Tan Cressida signed with Warner Records was a cool collection of SRS outtakes preluding his full-length debut on the label Sick!, which the flawless Voir Dire produced by one of my top 10 producers of all-time The Alchemist cleared. Last summer’s Live Laugh Love detailed his experiences of becoming a father & has brought the Surf Gang in to produce Utility.

“this2shallpass” clarifies over an ambient plugg beat from Evilgiane & Harrison that the only destination going forward is up whereas “:( again :)” goes for a more general plugg vibe talking about finding the strength to get up again. The 3rd & final single “Home on the Range” instrumentally combines plugg & trap confessing he’s not quite over the hill yet while “React” talks about going from basic to advanced training.

Meanwhile on “Hot Water (Cahuilla)”, we have Earl laughing off the idea of him folding & that the hate on the way down be the realest just before “Rectangle Lens” goes for a more experimental vibe talking about shit getting more serious by the day. “Leadbelly” featuring MIKE blends plugg, cloud rap, ambient & experimental hip hop putting a minimal emphasis on each of their distinctively abstract styles just before “quikk” feels like a 2 minute compositional intermission.

“Ew!” would rank amongst my top 5 tracks from the beat to the lyrics about anyone trying him only stumbling & stacking up all kinds of cheese in the cut while the lead single “Earth” fuses cloud rap, ambient plugg, lowend & experimental hip hop speaking of having to scratch the surface so he could breathe. “Chali 2na” compares himself to the Jurassic 5 member of the same name & references WWE Hall of Famer Mr. T while “Sisyphus” talks about freezing over Hell on a daily basis.

Lerado Khalil joins Earl on “Locusts” to discuss how they’re steaming now rather than smoking while “Tour de France” talks about a little mouthful whenever he’s feeling content. “Chicago” compares himself to a merchant the way he stays outside over a Tony Seltzer beat while “Book of Eli” assures he won’t ever go away despite quieting down here & there. “AOK” looks back at when all he wanted was a tub & his father while “Don’t Worry!” sends it all off talking about him deserving to be burnt the 1st time around.

Right when “Making the Band (Danity Kane)” came out on SoundCloud a couple years ago, I knew the possibility of the Surf Gang producing an entire body of work for Earl Sweatshirt was a guaranteed & it’s as brilliant as I would’ve imagined. I already prefer the production more than Live Laugh Love mostly because it’s a lot different than what those who’ve become familiar with Earl’s discography would expect, expanding on the previously mentioned loosie’s cloudy plugg ideas & demonstrating his capability of rapping over anything.

Score: 4.5/5

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MIKE – “Pompeii” review

Here we have the 9th studio LP from Livingston, New Jersey emcee & 10k Global founder MIKE. Breaking out a decade ago off his debut mixtape Winter New York, he would continue to make a name for himself by churning out 4 more tapes as well as his previous 6 albums & 8 EPs full of amongst the finest abstract hip hop that you’ll hear within the last decade. Standouts include May God Bless Your Hustle, War in My Pen & even the Wiki collab effort Faith is a Rock entirely produced by The Alchemist. Burning Desire, Pinball, its sequel & Showbiz! have all become acclaimed for their own different reasons too & he looks to raise the stakes by having the Surf Gang produce Pompeii.

“The Fall” comes out the gate jumping over an Evilgiane beat to talk about swerving the most overseas whereas “My Worst (Rebuke)” takes a more psychedelic approach instrumentally admitting that he’s gonna do everything he did at his lowest once more. “Da Bid” featuring Jadasea joins forces for a 2-parter produced by Harrison & Earl Sweatshirt talking about wearing their hearts on their sleeves just before “NOT 4TW” featuring Anysia Kym cloudily speaks of no longer paying attention to those copying because it ain’t for free.

An early favorite would have to be “The Pope” from the euphoric beat to the calmly delivered lyrics about staying remote leading into “Afro” him recollecting the craziness of how much love has passed. The lead single “Minty” blends plugg, trap, cloud rap, lowend & plugg taking jabs at supposed gangstas who take talents off LinkedIn just before Niontay provides my 2nd favorite guest appearance on “F.E.A.R.”, spitting hardcore verses back-to-back without the need of a hook.

“Tampering” only clocking at 73 seconds long is a shame considering that I really enjoy the plugg instrumental talking about having to interfere with a hoe while “Shutter Island” happens to be the exact same length talking about trusting lies & bloody swords over a beat that somewhat reminds me of Odd Future’s early output. “Back LA” featuring Na’Kel Smith links up so they can speak of living in danger while the 2nd & final single “Back Home” passionately talks about dismantling systems.

Earl joins MIKE for “Kirkland”, saving would I personally considered to be the best feature for last to wind down the last few minutes of the album discussing keeping it simple when doing it big while “#FREE #MIKE” talks about the surprising revelation that even his haters are happy his crew’s around & not changing up on family. “Man of the Month” spends the last 3 minutes explaining that he bled for his dreams to be lived out over a Niontay instrumental despite the other half of it being a simple outro.

Both entries of the Pinball series & Showbiz! all contain some of MIKE’s greatest tracks like “On God” for example, but my favorite song on the latter “Belly 1” exponentially raised my expectations for Pompeii & it sure enough isn’t too far behind May God Bless Your Hustle or Burning Desire for a spot in the top 3 of his entire catalog. The Surf Gang’s production emphasizes the plugg undertones of Pinball II, additionally sprinkling hints of cloud rap & ambient plugg to reflect on the destruction of civilization as we know it.

Score: 4.5/5

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Coyote – “Machetes & Micheladas” review

This is the 4th studio LP from Los Angeles, California duo Coyote. Consisting of the Morales brothers LadiesLoveGuapo & Ricky Blanco, they went on to gain traction in late 2022 off their debut album Thicker than Water noted for its witty punchlines & East coast influences. Their 2024 sophomore effort L.Aliens quickly became their breakout project to the point where people were recommending to me & easily understood the appeal, coming off yoteLAndia to have Statik Selektah fully produce Machetes & Micheladas in it’s entirety a month after Penta became the new WWE Intercontinental Champion and 24 hours away from current AAA Mundial Mixtas Parejas Campeon Lola Vice becoming the new NXT Women’s Champion.

After the “ApeXzibit” intro, the first song “Gimme a Hell Yeah!” featuring Conway the Machine joins forces over a boom bap instrumental to spit hardcore gangsta lyricism whereas “No Rest for the Wicked” ruggedly talks about there being a blizzard outside. “Whippin’ Cream” featuring The Psycho Realm brings both groups together for a mafioso single discussing the paper just before “Blasphemy” talks about looking to trade narcos for vitamins & fish oils.

“Love Me Love Me Not” keeps the boom bap vibes going admitting that they’re unsure & after the “Shoebox Money” interlude, the actual “Shoebox Money” track itself featuring Sirrealist goes for a jazzier direction talking about getting what they deserve. “Nothing Changes If Nothing Changes” featuring Curren$y soulfully gets on some real life shit topically while “Letter to My Son” featuring Berner gets the 2nd half going talking about fatherhood.

John Solo’s appearance on “Cali Dreaming” was ok despite the soulful beat & the love they have for their hometown but after the “Welcome to America” interlude, “What’s Peace?” featuring Locksmith & R.A. the Rugged Man finds the quartet taking a more conscious approach to songwriting. “Kid Named Johnny” simultaneously gets in their storytelling bags & continue to demonstrate Statik’s ear for sampling while “I.D.K” talk about only having winners surrounding themselves.

“Cortez on My Feet” featuring Lil Mr. E nears towards the end of Machetes & Micheladas with a nostalgic boom bap flavored sneaker anthem of their own while “Fuck Everybody” featuring Daylyt aggressively embodies that “Fuck the World” mentality the late 2Pac was on. “Church” hooks up a crooning vocal flip making a bunch of witty religious references while “Huff & Puff” sends it all off with a jab at the people who get their egos hurt by their presence.

Being a fan of these guys for a couple years already, the teasers we’ve gotten ahead of Machetes & Micheladas gave me all the confidence of LadiesLoveGuapo & Ricky Blanco topping both L.Aliens & yoteLAndia. Lo & behold: They begin the 2nd quarter of 2026 with what’s undeniably the greatest thing they’ve ever made a couple weeks since Hechiero ended Claudio Castagnoli’s reign as CMLL Mundial Pesocompleto Campeon. Statik Selektah’s jazzy boom bap production is a huge improvement over Coyote’s last couple of full-lengths, the guest list is filled with heavy hitters & the Morales brothers themselves are in top form.

Score: 4.5/5

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