Pasto Flocco – “R.O.A.M. (Rich Off A Mic)” review

This is the 2nd mixtape from Queens rapper Pasto Flocco. Originally a Lil Tecca associate, he’s been seeing quite the success off his own with the Surf Gang collective since their falling out dropping his first 2 albums March Madness & Dreams 2 Reality as well as a debut mixtape Surf to Kill (SGBSTK). This was all followed up over the fall when Pasto put out his 3rd album Disturbing the Peace while opening up for Lucki on the Wake Up Lucki Tour but after dropping a couple singles earlier this month, Pasto is returning in the form of R.O.A.M. (Rich Off A Mic).

“Warning” is a cloudy opener produced by J6 talking about how he’s too drippy whereas “Wizard” follows it up on a more suspenseful note spitting that gun talk. “4dagram” works in some synthesizers from J6 & Pasto himself talking about having to call a whip after a bitch tried to play him just before “Bands Up (B.V.P.)” takes a more futuristic route to flex his wealth.

Meanwhile on “Life I Chose”, we have Pasto over an psychedelic instrumental from Cade talking about keeping a blick on him because the streets is cold leading into the cloudy “T.M.U. (Turn Me Up)” that Feardorian laced calling out his haters. “Better Clone Me (Lifestyle Chosen)” has a more euphoric sound venting about how he ain’t gotta pop shit ‘cause cats know it, but then “B.S.A. (Money or Fame)” returns to cloud rap turf encouraging to look back & see how much he’s changed since 2018.

“GLE Freestyle” goes into a pluggier direction talking about refusing to let a thot finesse him of his profits while “Mercy (Just Woke Up)” is absolutely perfect for moshpits during future shows in every way. “Out of the Mix” follows it up with an atmospheric ballad declaring himself an underground legend while the song “Buckz Up (ADHD)” comes through with some braggadocio even though CCC’s production ain’t it. The penultimate track “Melly” picks it up with a repetitive bop produced by Zaytoven & lastly, “30Bandz” is a chilled out closer talking about moving like a vampire.

I’ve been a fan of Pasto ever since my little brother Jake introduced me to his music a couple years back & I gotta say: This tape is a little disappointing. I like how’s he doing all this fast-tempo shit & a decent amount of his performances are infectious, but I wish it was a little fully fleshed out.

Score: 3/5

Choirboy Dank – “The Road to Demon City” review

This is the full-length solo debut from Dodge City’s very own Choirboy Dank. Coming up as 1/2 of Swag Toof alongside Ouija Macc, the duo saw quite some success in the early/mid-2010s to the point where they were supposed to sign with Psychopathic Records in 2017, but disbanded due to a falling out between both members & Ouija ended up under the Insane Clown Posse’s wings as a solo act. Choirboy has since kept himself busy by dropping some singles & EPs of his own, the most notable of them all being his 2nd EP Must Warn Øthers produced entirely by Blockhead. However, all of those singles have been leading up to The Road to Demon City over here.

“Theatre School Dropout” starts off the album with a guitar-laced trap beat confessing that he’s been unable to relax lately whereas “Stir Up the Pot” follows it up with a more nocturnal tone talking down to his competition. “Get Your Guns” takes a more minimal route encouraging to bring the gats if you wanna have some fun just before “Call Your Mom” expresses his desire to tell his mother that he made it on top of a twangy trap instrumental.

Meanwhile on “Water & Bread”, we have Choirboy admitting that he’s never been this low or poor over a dejecting beat leading into the bombastic “No Favors” talking not needing any handouts. “O.K.” works in a glistening trap instrumental expressing optimism that he’ll be so much more than that, but then “Take Me Home” is yet another guitar ballad talking about dying alone.

“Hood Angel Baby” goes into a cloudier direction proclaiming he’ll take whatever he wants while “Song for My Son” of course is a touching ballad about fatherhood. “Deranged” incorporates some acoustic addressing those who’ve called him crazy while “Sunday 3X” has a more intoxicating feel talking about taking it easy.

Following that, “Domestic Violence” returns to a gloomier sound comparing how hard his music hits to such while “Spark Something” sepulchrally talks about the shit he’s seen. “Code Names” has a more playful tone advising not to get attached while the song “Ms. Fortunate” brings back the acoustics getting romantic. The penultimate track “Jack’s Idle Hands” is a bassy-trap jam talking about being a bully on his shit & “The Rain (Broken)” ends the album with a powerful look at depression.

Even though I’d have to say Must Warn Øthersis my favorite thing Choirboy has done on his own, The Road to Demon City is absolutely behind it. Some of the production could’ve been a little better in my opinion, but I really admire how the dude has nothing to hide lyrically & confesses about his life as much as he can.

Score: 3.5/5

T.F. – “Blame Kansas” review

T.F. is a 36 year old MC from Los Angeles, California who I first heard after he was featured on “Tookie Knows, Pt. II” off ScHoolboy Q’s magnum opus Blank Face LP. He then dropped his debut EP No Hooks only 7 months later, which was followed up by his full-length debut ErThangSkanless & then a 2nd EP called OktoberFest. Then after appearing on Flee Lord’s 8th EP Hand Me My Flowers produced entirely by Buckwild & put out 2 more EPs on his own, T.F. eventually signed to Lord Mobb Music & dropped his sophomore effort Skanless Summer last spring. But now after releasing Big Moon a few months back, T.F. is back in effect for his 3rd album produced by Mephux & Roc Marciano.

The title track sets off the album with a pillowy boom bap cut talking about violence coming from everyday arguments whereas “Olathe” with Conway the Machine & Roc Marciano finds the trio on top of a narcocorrido sample getting in their mafioso bag. BVNGS tags along for “Death Wish” to talk about needing to be killed if you ain’t loyal to the game on top of a despondent beat just before “Crash Bandicoot” goes into a jazzier direction saying he’s been focused lately as well as doing it for the dead ones.

After the “Intermission” interlude, we have Crimeapple coming into the picture for “Friend of God” working in a Spanish vocal loop spitting that g shit leading into the Lil Bunko-assisted “Cuban Links” taking a more climatic route as far as Marci’s production goes saying you gotta talk to God instead of them. The song “Betty Crocker” of courses gets back on the drug dealer tip over an eerie sample while the penultimate track “Long Way Home” with Zoo jumps into drumless territory talking about the rate they’re going. “Fuck the Rest” with Flee Lord then ends the album with an orchestral loop talking not fucking with anyone but his homies.

If you’ve enjoyed T.F.’s features in the past & are looking to get into his solo work, then Blame Kansas would be a great introduction in my personal opinion. There are a couple of lackluster features, but a good majority do a good job at breaking up any monotony & the dude himself sounds hungrier than ever. On top of that, both Mephux & Roc absolutely SCHOOL it behind the boards.

Score: 4/5

Jynx716 – “Careful What You Wish For” review

Jynx716 is a 33 year old MC from Niagara Falls, New York who came to my attention in 2020 off his debut mixtape The Green Album. This was followed up last spring with his debut EP The 33 & now just a month after killing a verse on Che Noir’s sophomore album Food for Thought, he’s enlisting Che to produce his 2nd EP from top to bottom & it definitely had me curious to check it out.

“Focus” kicks off the EP with some bells & a high-pitched vocal sample talking about avoiding trouble whereas the Ransom-assisted “Legacy” finds the 2 proclaiming themselves as legends on top of a captivating instrumental. “Electrifying” encourages listeners to stash more & stay in the moment over some fresh ass guitar licks while Stove God Cook$ tags along for the soulful “Lava Lamp” talking about going from broke to where they are now. Jamal Gasol’s verse on the penultimate track “Bitcoin” is a little underwhelming even though I like the chipmunk soul inspired production & “Wake Up” ends the EP on a cinematic note talking about how it’s his turn.

Dude’s been raising this for a few months now & to finally hear it, I can say Careful What You Wish For is the best thing he’s has done yet. Che Noir’s production is incredibly consistent & Jynx is just bringing his A-game rapping his ass off. If he keeps it up at this rate, I feel like he’ll be getting even better over time

Score: 4/5

Conway the Machine – “God Don’t Make Mistakes” review

This is the long-awaited Shady Records album from Buffalo emcee/entrepreneur Conway the Machine. Blowing up in late 2015 as part of the 3 OGs of Griselda Records alongside his brother Westside Gunn & their cousin Benny the Butcher, the trio have had hip hop on lock by their constant work ethic balancing quality & quality as well as vividly detailing their lives in the streets on top of boom bap production kin to that of RZA & Havoc in their music. Con’s full-length debut From King to a God was my Album of the Year for 2020 & last year, we were treated to his 8th EP If It Bleeds It Can Be Killed produced entirely by Big Ghost Ltd. & his 11th mixtape La Maquina. But in light of Conway announcing earlier this week that he’ll be amicably departing Shady & Griselda to focus on his very own label Drumwork Music Group, what better way to fulfill his contracts than to drop God Don’t Make Mistakes?

“Lock Load” starts off the album with Beanie Sigel & Conway talking about always carrying a strap on them on top of a spooky Daringer instrumental whereas “Tear Gas” with Lil Wayne & Rick Ross works in a high-pitched vocal sample calling out those who weren’t there for them when they needed them most. “Piano Love” of course brings in a dreary piano instrumental from The Alchemist talking about being the richest in Buffalo, but then “Drumwork” is pretty much “Crack in the 90s” & “Sister Abigail” on steroids.

Meanwhile on “Wild Chapters”, we have T.I. joining Conway on top of a dispirited boom bap beat from Hit-Boy talking about the story of their lives just before the Bink!-produced “Guilty” goes into soulful turf encouraging to focus on his lyricism than his appearance. “John Woo Flick” follows it up with a disgusting Griselda posse cut in the same vein as “Spurs 3” leading into the spacious boom bap banger “Stressed” pondering if anyone cares about his mental well being.

“So Much More” encourages listeners not to “let ’em tell you 1 side of the story” on top of angelic vocal loop provided by the J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League while the Jill Scott-duet “Chanel Pearls” gets on some smooth Bonnie & Clyde shit. The penultimate song “Babas” incorporates some organs talking about going from king to a god (no pun intended) & the title track finishes the album off by airing out all these questions he has with The Alchemist providing a lush musical backdrop.

Conway’s been hyping this up for a good minute now & for it to be his final Griselda project as well as the only one on Shady, we got ourselves an early album of the year contender & some of the best work of his career. The production is superb, the features are all well picked out & it’s amazing how personal he’s getting on here. I wish him all the best on his own.

Score: 4.5/5

EARTHGANG – “Ghetto Gods” review

This is the 4th full-length album from Atlanta, Georgia duo EARTHGANG. Consisting of Olu & WowGr8, the pair started out a little over a decade ago dropping 3 mixtapes along with 2 albums & an EP independently before J. Cole signed them to his Interscope Records imprint Dreamville Records in 2017. This resulted in a trilogy of EPs leading up to their major label debut Mirrorland, which revealed themselves to be one of the best artists that the label has to offer. They went on to give their Spillage Village collective some shine by dropping their 4th album Spilligion on Dreamville the next year but now, they’re back in effect with the long-awaited Ghetto Gods.

After the “GLOW” intro, the title track opens the album with the duo talking about how anyone who thinks they can fuck with them are crazy on top of a symphonic trap instrumental whereas the Future-assisted “BILLI” is pretty much their own “Life is Good” down to the way it’s structured except this is way more exciting. [J.I.D] & J. Cole tag along for the funky “WATERBOYZ” talking about getting this money & fucking the fame leading into the “HEY BOO” interlude.

Meanwhile on “AMEN”, we have EARTHGANG coming through with a decent R&B flavored slow jam just before “ALL EYES ON ME” takes a cloudier route with the help of JetsonMade talking about wanting their homies free. “LIE TO ME” follows it up with some intoxicating synth melodies asking to be true but then after the “JEANS” interlude, the duo bring Baby Tate into the picture for “BLACK PEARLS” trying to brag about their women getting new bodies & falling flat on their faces.

After the “NEEZY’S WALK” interlude, the lead single “American Horror Story” returns to funk turf expressing their desire to be free while “POWER” comes off as an passionate pro-black anthem. After the “ZAZA” skit, the song “SMOKE SUM” goes into boom bap territory to talk about blazing some trees while the penultimate track “STRONG FRIENDS” is a fiery ode to being mentally healthy. “RUN TOO” ends the album with a spacey banger talking about what a life it’s been for them.

It took them a little over 2 years to finally give Ghetto Gods to us & at the end of the day, I like it a little bit more than Mirrorland. Few songs I could’ve done without, but the whole concept of finding God in you is very well thought out & their production game is continuing to progressively improve.

Score: 4/5

Truth – “For All Intents & Purposes” review

This is the 3rd full-length album from Queens emcee Truth. Coming up as 1/3 of Gods’Illa, it wouldn’t be until the year after the group’s full-length debut Believe in Gods’Illa where he would start to build up a solo discography for himself with From Ashes to Kingdom Come. He then followed it up 3 years later by dropping the sophomore effort The Fight for Survival & now with the 3 year anniversary of that coming up next month, Truth is enlisting Da Beatminerz to produce For All Intents & Purposes in it’s entirety.

After the “Power of Truth” intro, the first song “Let’s Do It” is a dusty boom bap opener encouraging those who want problems to pursue it whereas “Duck Dodge Hide” takes a more blood-curdling route talking about watching your step around him. “Where You At?” goes into a more orchestral direction getting on his Queens shit just before “Listen Up” sends a chilling warning to anyone who wants to step to him in a battle referencing WWE Hall of Famer, former WWE Champion & WWE Tag Team Champion The Iron Sheik.

Meanwhile on “Aim to Kill”, we have Truth delivering some deadly battle raps leading into “Fistory in the Making” following it up with a full-blown fight anthem. “Stomped Out” picks up where the previous cut left off topically except it works in some pretty cool horns, but then “Brutality” samples “I’m Alive” by Johnny Thunder to talk about his rapping prowess. “Attack” has some funky undertones into the production to rap circles around his opposition once more while “Take ‘Em Down” goes into bluesier turf talking about never letting up.

The penultimate song “Entourage” with Joe Fatal, Large Professor, Ras Kass, Tragedy Khadafi & Treach is an absolutely stellar posse cut with a haunting yet relaying vocal loop & after the “Pardon the Disruption” interlude, “The Eternal Forces” ends the album with a beautiful ode to those in his life who couldn’t be here today.

If you ask me, this is easily the best thing that Truth has put out yet & it exemplifies why he could be the illest of the Gods’illa camp. He & Da Beatminerz all take it back to the essence on here from the rugged lyrical content to the raw boom bap sound that the production duo blew up off of 3 decades ago & even the scratch hooks.

Score: 4/5

Mach-Hommy – “Dump Gawd: Triz Nathaniel” review

Mach-Hommy is a 39 year old MC from Newark, New Jersey breaking out in 2017 when he dropped his sophomore album H.B.O. (Haitian Body Odor) under Griselda Records. However, he & Tha God Fahim fell out with them shortly after only to reconcile a little over a year ago & then Mach returned to the label over the spring with one of best albums of last year: Pray for Haiti. Then he followed it up a couple months back with Balens Cho but given the significance of yesterday, Mach is enlisting Conductor Williams to produce his 12th EP from top to bottom.

“Fernet-Branca” sets off the EP with Jay NiCE & Tha God Fahim accompanying Mach on top of a slowed down piano instrumental asking what you know about them while the song “Eskimo Bros.” with Your Old Droog showing an incredible back & forth chemistry over a hallucinogenic beat. The penultimate track “D’Paramountcy” works in a bass guitar as Mach goes back & forth with Fahim as well as he did with Droog, but then both MCs stick around for “Leisure Earned” which is a lavish boom bap closure bragging that they got all the styles.

I’ve been wanting Mach to drop a full project with Fahim & Droog for a minute now, but I think this is the closest thing we’ll get to that for now. Conductor Williams’ production is abstract as fuck, Mach continues to reign as the current King of New Jersey as far as lyricists from that region go & the guests mesh really well with him also.

Score: 4/5

Black Josh & Milkavelli – “Swegasus” review

Runcorn, Cheshire, England, United Kingdom veteran Lee Scott solely producing Manchester emcee Black Josh & London emcee Milkavelli’s collaborative studio LP. The latter of whom was a member of the Children of the Damned & the other joined its succeeding collective the Cult of the Damned. So considering the intertwining history both of these guys have with the Blah Records founder comprising 1/2 as the B-Movie Millionaires & the Mcabre Brothers respectively, I can understand the intention behind Swegasus.

“Fisher Price” opens up with a boom bap instrumental assuming life’s a joke until we all die from laughter whereas “La La La” mellowly references Jamiroquai’s 3rd album Traveling Without Moving containing their biggest hit “Virtual Insanity”. Anyway, the song “Doin’ Bits” continues from there dippin’ to the crib in a whip that eventually flipped just before “Sherbert” dustily reaches the halfway point talking about being 6 feet in their graves with weed in their papers.

Meanwhile on “Golden”, we have Josh & Milk flowing on top of a boom bap beat with synths talking about things being far from over for either one of them musically leading into “Proper” shifts towards a west coast vibe a bit boasting their lyrical proficiency combined. “Take a Chance” shows off Lee Scott’s ear for sampling to talk about life being a fat joke other than keeping their heads to see the sun in the clouds & “Die to This” wraps up Swegasus sends it off with a boom bap outro.

Blah Records would unfortunately drop Milkavelli only months after Swegasus came out when it was revealed he was scamming fans, making Swegasus the last time the prominent UK hip hop label would release anything that had his creative input. It’s a shame too because not only did he & Black Josh really had someone beginning to develop in terms of abstract chemistry, but Lee Scott’s lo-fi boom bap production was the most suiting musical soundscape conceivable.

Score: 3.5/5

ShittyBoyz – “Trifecta” review

This is the sophomore album from Detroit trio ShittyBoyz. Consisting of Babytron alongside Stanwill & TR Dee, the group dropped off their debut mixtape 3-Peat under Lando Bando’s own The Hip Hop Lab Records in the summer of 2019 & quickly became one of the city’s biggest acts in recent memory. Their full-length debut New Year, Same Scams came out 7 months later & the last we heard from them as a unit was almost a year ago with their 2nd tape 4-Peat. However after taking some short time focusing on their solo careers, the founding Dog $hit Militia members are back in town in the form of Trifecta.

“Red Wings” opens the album with a mystic trap beat from Jakesand talking about shining from out the dark whereas “Gotham City” follows it up with a more darker tone saying they don’t lane switch referencing both 14-time WWE world champion, 4-time WWE tag team champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion & WWE United States Champion Randy Orton followed by 3-time WWE world champion, 5-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion, 9-time WWE tag team champion, 3-time WWE Hardcore Champion, 3-time TNA World Champion, 2-time TNA World Tag Team Champion, ROH World Tag Team Champion, HOG Tag Team Champion, ΩCW Heavyweight Champion, ΩCW New Frontiers Champion, 2-time ΩCW Tag Team Champion & The Crash Mundial Parejas Campeon Jeff Hardy. “Big 3” takes a more vibrant route to talk about their star power just before “Soul Bleed” mixes chipmunk soul with trap continuing to flex.

Meanwhile on “Taliban Ties”, we have the ShittyBoyz picking up where the previous cut left off sonically talking about their connections to the mob leading into the flute-laced “Visa Magicians” getting back in their scamming bag. “Red Light, Green Light” is pretty much their own take on the Squid Game concept down to the sample Danny G chops up, but then the instrumental that “Sly Cooper” brings to the table of course pays homage to one of my favorite video game series growing up talking about taking computer’s from internet thugs & dissing the weirdos with no money.

“Night on Collins Ave” almost has a bit of an orchestral quality to it detailing how it is on the titular street here in Detroit while “Ghetto Elegance” returns to chipmunk soul territory to show off their wealth. “Payday” works in some catchy vocal melodies hanging in the background painting pictures of the lives they live while “TMZ” incorporates a sitar to talk about being married to the paper.

Following that, “Bill Nye” goes into a more synth-heavy direction calling out those who ain’t never chased a bag prior to “Blizzard Mode” throwing some bells in the mix talking about how nothing they achieved was luck. “Triple Dog Dare” comes in with a more entrancing tone challenging a fed after pulling up to right & TR Dee making a reference to 16-time WWE world champion, 4-time WWE tag team champion & 5-time WWE United States Champion John Cena while “Supervillain” sinisterly compares themselves to that of.

The amount of beat switches on “Time Travelin’” are completely fuckin’ insane as they let their competition know they ain’t scared of them while “Rob Dyrdek” addresses their hustle referencing UFC Hall of Famer & former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Forrest Griffin alongside the Justice League franchise owned by the Warner Bros.-owned DC Entertainment. “NFL” of course samples the Twilight Trio’s theme tune for the titular company making a bunch of clever sports references while the song “Kung Fu” over a weepy instrumental talking about being bound to blow. The penultimate track “Pedal Pushin’” has some cloudy undertones to the beat talking about pulling up when the money calls & “On 1” ends the album with an opera sample & talking about working magic.

Between this & the new Babyface Ray album Face, I feel like this is gonna be a great year for the city as far as rising talent goes. It’s always amazing to me how each member of the trio stands out in their own way & their style remains unmatched in comparison to some Detroit trap artists painting themselves in a corner stylistically.

Score: 3.5/5