John Legend – “Muse” review

This is the 10th studio LP from Springfield, Ohio singer/songwriter, pianist, producer & actor John Legend. Becoming the very 1st artist one of my top 10 producers of all-time Ye formerly known as Kanye West signed to G.O.O.D. Music in 2004 & released his debut Get Lifted in tandem with Columbia Records on his 26th birthday, his sophomore effort Once Again as well as Evolver & Love in the Future each have some of his best material too. Making himself home at Republic Records right after Darkness & Light came out. A Legendary Christmas alongside Bigger Love & Legend were all mediocre in their own rights, coming off My Favorite Dream to have Pharrell produce Muse.

The title track opens up with this swaggering intro singing about a woman who knows she can’t take any Ls whereas “Pray for Ya” hooks up a rubbery bassline & some horns arranged by Terrace Martin looking to ask God to help this person who can’t even help themself regardless of the money they have, presumably referring to Ye when it looks like he’s been medicated & getting help. After the “Her” introduction skit, the actual “Her” song itself passionately sings about doing anything for his wife.

“Daylight” blends contemporary R&B, dancehall & reggaetón for the lead single professing that he’s emotionally invested into the love of his life just before “Get Back” sings about this chick becoming fed up of telling people the bullshit she has to put up with & playing it off whenever something goes down. “Are You Ok?” finds John trying to figure out why this woman he’s addressing has become so infuriated & after the “Under the Bridge” introduction skit, “Under the Bridge” kicks off the 2nd half apologizing for any wrongdoing.

We have John promising his partner he’ll get things right with her “Next Time” & after the “Taps” skit, the 3rd & final single “Bodies on the Floor” featuring Clipse proclaims they’re in the middle of a war they no longer wish to fight fusing gospel & hip hop. “Doing Me” however brings back the symphonic elements that’ve heavily showcased itself across Muse singing about how he’s been focusing towards his grind & not having any patience left.

“Fireflies” winds down the album’s final act looking back at his & Pharrell’s respective upbringings honoring those in their lives who didn’t make it out of those troubling times in their youth while “Everything” sings about losing our monarchs over some bouncy bass & pianos, having nowhere to go or anywhere to be. “Sail Off” passionately wraps it all up loving this person like it’s all John has left in him in the midst of them leaving the day behind.

Mind you that I haven’t enjoyed a great deal of John Legend’s music since Love is the Future came out when I began my junior year of high school, so the teasers building up towards Muse had me hoping it would be his greatest musical statement since leaving G.O.O.D. Music to sign to Republic Records & I can gladly confirm that’s what we got. Pharrell’s production sprinkles refreshingly incorporated elements of orchestral, dancehall, reggaetón, funk, gospel, Afrobeats & hip hop music into John’s contemporary R&B style to back his smoothly commanding vocals.

Score: 4/5

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Laila! – “We’ll Never Be This Young Again” review

Brand new sophomore effort albeit major label debut from New York rapper, singer/songwriter & producer Laila!. The daughter of Yasiin Bey formerly known as Mos Def, I myself was introduced to her artistry when she had one of the best features on the single “Problem!” off of Cash Cobain’s 6th mixtape Play Cash Cobain. Her full-length studio debut Gap Year! following the debut extended play In CTRL! impressively distinguished herself from her father, signing to Warner Records for We’ll Never Be This Young Again.

The self-produced “Apartment 419” begins with this drumless orchestral loop singing about being too young to be this upset & feelin’ like she’s losin’ time whereas “Bitch I Love You” goes for an alternative R&B vibe instrumentally explaining that they can’t make her hate the person she’s addressing. “So Much, So Much” brings a bit of a psychedelic flare to the table singing about feeling fresh as fuck leading into “Around the World” explaining the reason this guy won’t ever know another lover is because of her traveling the globe with him.

Teezo Touchdown makes the only guest appearance during “Angel” to sing about their search for a messenger of God’s who they consider extraordinary just before the psychedelic alternative R&B/neo-soul single “Ms. Mango”concludes the 1st act of We’ll Never Be This Young Again telling a tale of lost love & revenge. Kicking off the 2nd half, we have Laila! questioning how one can be the “Greatest Teacher” when they can’t even take care of themselves while the electronic-tinged “Anything Could Happen” sings about what can occur in a changing world.

“Woo! Woo!” smoothly gets the album’s final act going singing about what her romantic interest says whenever she puts that lil’ thing on while “JELL-O” harmonizes over a piano instrumental for 94 seconds comparing herself to gelatin whenever she & her partner lock eyes. “Better Days” blends a guitar & some synthesizers so she can ask herself the possibly of loving this individual when she feels so sad while the title track lets her soulmate know they make everything seem like summer to her.

Presenting her unfiltered self throughout a bulk of Gap Year! detailing the chaos of adolescence & her transition into adulthood, We’ll Never Be This Young Again pretty much spends most of the time extending the latter showing the world how much Laila!’s grown up & recapping everything that’s been going on in her life since her previous full-length came out 25 months earlier due to her having to find what she wants to say confident. Her production expands the alternative R&B sound her previous LP predominantly embraced & provides her own take what growing up’s all about.

Score: 4/5

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Wolves in the Throne Room – “Estuary” review

Wolves in the Throne Room is a black metal trio from Olympia, Washington consisting of drummer/bassist Aaron Weaver, guitarist Kody Keyworth & frontman Nathan Weaver. Making their debut 2 decades ago with Diadem of 12 Stars, their sophomore effort 2 Hunters under Southern Lord Records received similar acclaim as did Black Cascade & Celestial Lineage. Celestite has since become the weakest of their discography despite launching their own imprint Artemisia Records, coming off Thrice Woven & Primordial Arcana to drop their 8th studio LP.

The title track comes out the gate with this 7 minute intro throwing it back to the Diadems of 12 Stars era singing about a winter God of the shore rising once again but once “Knights of Tiamat” switches things up with the most sci-fi thing these guys have ever done, tackling the subject of technology & the types of it we haven’t even seen fully realized yet, “Foretold in Reflections” ends the 1st half of Estuary taking a more self-analytical approach topically giving off a My Dying Bride vibe.

Meanwhile on “The Orca Cliffs”, we have Wolves in the Throne Room talking about their steeds growing weary as the light fades leading into “Ghosts Among the Obelisks” providing some cleanly performed vocals that comes off as a mix of doom metal & goth rock depicting someone who travels the expanse, lifeless & haunted drawing inspiration from electronic or techno music. The closer “Wretched Spirits, Land of the Night” concludes the album with possibly the darkest composition here exemplified by the riffs similar to one of the greatest black metal bands of all-time: Emperor.

Of the 4 full-lengths Wolves in the Throne Room have done since forming Artemisia, I’d have to put Estuary at the top above Primordial Arcana alongside Thrice Woven & Celestite respectively. Kody Keyworth brings a 4th dimension the Weavers have been yearning for to life conceptually set a millennium from now imagining a world where nature has reclaimed the Earth further developing the Cascadian black metal components that made Celestial Lineage so beloved.

Score: 4.5/5

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MC Eiht – “The Story of My Life” review

MC Eiht is a 55 year old MC, songwriter, actor, podcaster from Compton, California notable for being the de facto leader of Compton’s Most Wanted. He would also go on to drop over a dozen solo efforts, including his debut We Come Strapped under Epic Records along with his Hoo-Bangin’ Records/Priority Records debut Section 8 & Which Way iz West via Eiht’s own imprint Blue Stamp Music Group in tandem with EMPIRE Distribution. The latter of which will already be celebrating an entire decade next summer, telling The Story of My Life for his 18th studio LP.

“8 Lawz” featuring Glasses Malone kicks things off with both of them linking up to talk about the 8 rules people must abide to whereas “My N***a” continues from there with an ode to a homie of his. “Again & Again” instrumentally leans towards a smoother boom bap vibe talking about the west coast forever staying in the building just before “Dear Neighborhood” turns up the funk so Eiht can pen an open letter to the CPT district that made him who he’s becomes

Conway the Machine appears for “Everyday” talking about making money daily over another boom bap beat & suckas trying to bring them down in every way leading into “IDC” chopping up a soul sample admitting he could give a fuck less anyone does whether they’re tweeting or reading a book. “Throwin’ Hands” aggressively gets in his gangsta rap bag over an instrumental that has a dreary quality to it preceding him suggesting everyone buckles up for this “Journey” he’s taking us through.

“Soul Food” featuring Dave East continues the sampling so both of them can discuss never being caught in a bad mood around other Gs while “Pistols & Palm Trees” ends the 1st half reminding the world of his west coast origins. My favorite track would be “On Go” produced one of my top 5 producers of all-time Pete Rock, beginning off the 2nd leg remind us how they do it while “How the Enemy Lie” talks about a hard muhfucka trying to arrive.

B-Real joins Eiht during “Run It Up” so they can increase the amount of bread they have & warning what’ll come to anyone acting tough around them while “We Been Bacc Here B4” nostalgically talks about screaming “Fuck y’all” until his voice gives out around some parts he’s already familiar with. “N the Mixx” hops over a rap rock beat from DJ Muggs demanding to know if anyone else can outrap him while “All Chrome” talks about the life of a hustler again.

“High Like” featuring Brotha Lynch Hung hops over a crooning instrumental simultaneously keeping it elevated & gutta while “Hubcity” featuring Jay Worthy feels like a generational passing of the torch, talking about there being bread to spend. “Remember Us” winds down the last few moments of the album addressing his legacy & being recognized everywhere he goes while the closer “Tippin’” wraps up The Story of My Life with a jazzy CMW reunion.

Official, Lessons, it’s sequel & Revolution in Progress were all average at best even if they have some cuts that I still revisit nearly a decade later. That said: If The Story of My Life truly marks the end of MC Eiht’s illustrious career dating back to the 80s like he said 13 months ago, then I can’t complain since it’s a consistently tasteful reflection of his legacy from the production to the guests & usual street narratives people know & love him for.

Score: 3.5/5

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Young Chris – “Catch a Vibe” review

Young Chris is a 43 year old rapper from North Philadelphia, Pennsylvania notable for being a member of the State Property crew & 1/2 of the Young Gunz subunit. He has since dropped a total of 16 solo mixtapes as well as a couple extended plays & 2 collaborative projects within nearly 2 decades, with the Cardiak-produced The Revival being my personal favorite of the bunch. Coming off the drumless Made in Philly with MadeinTYO this spring, he’s mainly holding down his 3rd EP by himself since The Network 3.

“Still Fine Dining” kicks things off with this 105 second intro hopping over a luxurious boom bap beat talking about being the one who weathers the storm whereas “Sativa on the Rooftop” goes for a drumless vibe instrumentally reminding us that he’s made it & some bitch on the verge of getting her boots knocked. “Disappointed” featuring Freeway & Icewear Vezzo finds the trio talking about not letting anyone get ahead of them while “Making Drops” balls on all these bluffin’ cornballs who stay cappin’.

Peezy appears for “The City Up” produced by Swaggyono of Working on Dying so they can talking about shaking up their respective hometowns of Philly & Detroit rollin’ with the pros in the club just before “Was It Ever Luv?” soulfully asks if what he had with this woman was legitimate or fraudulent. “This Life Get Crazy” spends the remaining minutes of Catch a Vibe treading the acoustic trap waters talking about the highs & lows of existing.

Hearing that Fine Dining collaborative EP he put out with Dave East the summer prior had me hoping Young Chris would go solo again sooner or later regardless of me still putting it above Made in Philly & despite it’s own flaws, Catch a Vibe attests to the former Roc-A-Fella Records signee’s longevity whether it be the 3 guest verses or the interesting production choices & Chris’ distinctive style drawing comparisons to the now defunct Def Jam Recordings imprint’s founder JAY-Z.

Score: 3.5/5

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Olēka – “Human Error” review

This is the full-length studio debut from Houston, Texas singer/songwriter, producer & audio engineer Olēka. Known for being a member of Quadeca’s touring band, she even made a couple guest appearances on the latter’s previous LP Vanisher, Horizon Scraper a year & a half ago until he signed her to his independent label X8 Music around that same time period. It’s almost been 3 weeks since Life 1 dropped & he’s taking it upon himself to handle the mastering process of Human Error.

“Meta Cognition” fuses alternative rock, neo-psychedelia, noise rock & math rock asking how she’s supposed to clean up this mess when she’s a fool at her greatest thrwhereas “Want to Find It” sings about deciding what matters most to ourselves. “Floating” moves on from there assuring this person she’ll always stay by their sides in every alternate reality one can think of just before the grungy “Heavy Handed” sings about occasionally being convinced she’s living in someone’s dreams.

The title track blends indie & art rock so she can explain that the world only knows what you tell along with God’s awareness of what we meant leading into “Somewhere Out of Reach” describing the ability this individual has of singing her to sleep regardless of whether or not they’re far apart from each other. We later have Olēka singing about always checking “Around the Corner” for someone although it’s not because she thought they were confused until “Who’s Watching the Kids?” clarifies the world’s cold but here.

“See the World” winds down the last few moments of Human Error embracing an electronic atmosphere to it wondering whether or not anyone would like to envision a place without her while the ambient outro “Peace” sings about nothing in this world offering her tranquility. “Sunshine When It Rains” still deserves a nod regardless of it being left off the final version because I consider it a touching remembrance of her grandmother who passed away.

Kevin Abstract & Sugar Cherry were already established by the time they signed to X8 Music whether it be the latter’s extended plays or Kevin’s former role as the de facto leader of the now defunct BROCKHAMPTON collective, so there’s been a lot of hype around Olēka for the past year & Human Error makes up for the delays it’s suffered with a gorgeous debut album. Her addicting vocal performances compliments the singer/songwriter, indie folk, post-rock, chamber folk, slowcore, alternative rock, neo-psychedelia, noise rock, math rock, indie rock & art rock production for the beginning of what I believe will be a promising career.

Score: 4.5/5

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Sleazy F Baby – “Northern Quarter Confidential” review

Northern Quarter, Manchester, England, United Kingdom emcee/producer Sleazy F Baby dropping off a new solo extended play of material. A member of the Cult of the Damned collective, he would sign to Blah Records in 2015 & make his full-length debut that year with All Blahk Tracksuit. He would also form the Super Sag Bros with Black Josh towards the end of 2017, coming off the Dirty Dike-produced sophomore effort Blaxploitation under Melonskin Records to drop Northern Quarter Confidential a week after Leon Slater became the youngest TNA World Champion.

“Cruise” gets the 4-pack going with a piano instrumental talking about the Cult always sending trends & being those muhfuckas prior to “Anti Hero” ending the 1st leg of the EP hooking up a woozier instrumental clarifying that he isn’t anything like the other weirdos he’s been compared to. “Whatever You Like” kicks off the 2nd half experimenting with plugg wanting to know the type of things the woman he’s addressing tends to enjoy & “STFU” finishes Northern Quarter Confidential on some cloudy, hardcore boom bap vibes.

So apparently Northern Quarter Confidential marks the beginning of a new series where Sleazy F Baby can keep building with 4 Limbs for as long as they like & it’s smooth introduction to where things will eventually go. The latter’s production doesn’t blow me away like All Blahk Tracksuit or Blaxploitation did although I appreciate the variety of styles ranging from drumless to boom bap to plugg despite primarily embracing a jazzier sound, suiting the more introspective approach Sleazy takes to his songwriting.

Score: 3.5/5

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Kid Rock – “Halfway 2 Jesus” review

This is the 13th studio LP from Romeo, Michigan rapper, singer/songwriter, producer, DJ & WWE Hall of Famer Kid Rock. Coming up as a b-boy for The Beast Crew in the late 80’s, he wound up signing to Jive Records & RCA Records for his full-length debut Grit Sandwiches for Breakfast before they cut ties with him due to comparisons to Vanilla Ice. Bobby then dropped The Polyfuze Method & Early Mornin’ Stoned Pimp on his independently owned Top Dog Records, but got Atlantic Records to help back Devil Without a Cause & the success of that rap rock classic lead to him shifting away from hip hop to teeter between classic rock & country for the last 2 decades even to this day. This foray has been either hit or miss with me personally, but I can’t deny the success of “Picture” & “All Summer Long” (the latter of which has been revealed in recent years even by the producer Mike E. Clark to have been originally made for the Insane Clown Posse) or how much I enjoyed the Rick Rubin-produced Born Free since it originally came out back when I was in middle school. Coming off the universally panned Bad Reputation in 2022, he’s claiming to have found God & went full gospel for Halfway 2 Jesus.

“James 1:7 (Jesus is King)” after the “Freedom” intro comes through with a below average Christian/southern rock single explaining the titular bible verse was the whole inspiration for this whereas “7 Sins” featuring Lil Wayne finds the pair combining those 2 sounds with hip hop admitting they’re guilty of committing the titular 7 deadly sins. “Why Don’t You Look Into Jesus?” poses the titular question since He has the answers leading into Eminem reuniting with Bob for the first time since “Fuck Off” almost 3 decades ago during “Heal My Faith” talking about remaining friends despite their political differences.

We have Kid Rock asking why Jesus would turn his “Water Into Wine” embracing a southern rock vibe altogether just before the title track featuring Gary LeVox & Jimmie Allen unites the trio singing about seeing the light. “I Don’t Drink the Whiskey Anymore” reaches the halfway point of the album making a public declaration of him quitting the distilled alcoholic beverage that I myself admittedly enjoy, but then “Me & Jesus” commences the 2nd leg singing about needing nobody else other than the son of God.

“God is Good” portrays himself as someone who was always doubted which I personally consider ironic because of his wealthy upbringings although I suppose it’s better he combined them into 1 track instead of splitting them while “Into the Setting Sun” pleads for Jesus Christ to guide him as he rides off in the sunset. “Broken Hearted People” sings about turning the page with a little bit of love when his authoritarian bootlicking speaks for itself while “‘Til You Can’t” pointlessly covers the Cody Johnson track of the same name.

The song “High Road” winds down Halfway 2 Jesus’ final act singing about life being too short to be bothered & heading down a dignified path while “Procession” embraces a more classical tone although him AI-generating it when he’s a self-taught musician’s certainly a choice. “God Bless the USA” concludes with this “patriotic” anthem when the rise of fascism in the land of the free & the home of the brave he kisses up to doesn’t make it great on top of his failed attempt at going up against this year’s Super Bowl halftime show performed by Bad Bunny, which was pre-taped.

Being someone who believes in God & in the afterlife, a huge reason Halfway 2 Jesus seemed humorous on paper is due to a line Kid Rock had when he made “Cool, Daddy Cool” for the Osmosis Jones soundtrack with his late hype man Joe C. saying “Young ladies, young ladies, I like ’em underage. See some say that’s statutory, but I say it’s mandatory”. Other than Wayne’s verse & the reunion with Em, this would be the LAST example of gospel music & he also confirmed usage of Suno for vocal choir/orchestral arrangements.

Score: 0.5/5

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DJ Scratch – “The Pivot” review

DJ Scratch is a 58 year old producer & DJ from Brooklyn, New York City who most remember for being the former DJ of both EPMD & Flipmode Squad. He also filled in for Ali Shaheed Muhammad when A Tribe Called Quest was working on their final album We got it from Here…Thank You 4 Your service a decade ago, coming off producing Saturday Afternoon Kung Fu Theater & King’s Dominion for RZA & Planet Asia respectively to make a bold pivot for the Albany Park Records founder’s full-length solo debut.

“The Interview” opens up with this 4 & a half minute spoken word intro accompanied by a funky instrumental whereas “Electric Stew (We Can Get Down)” flips “Mystic Brew” by Ronnie Foster for a respectable house track. “Go” continues from there sampling “Inside My Love” by Minnie Riperton with some 4-on-the-floor kicks layered with claps or snares on beats 2 & 4 but after “What We Do is House” shows more love towards the titular EDM subgenre, “Baby Powder on the Floor” ends the 1st half on some electro house vibes.

As for “Wall to Wall”, we have Scratch kicking off the 2nd leg with a more soulful spin to the house sound while “Dance with Me” by Bobby Brown & Ramona Keller puts a bigger emphasis on what we was trying to do with the previous cut. “I Like More House” by Grand Puba & Jane Dough finds the pair linking up to talk about wanting to love each other more but after “The House is Yours” samples “I Love Music” by Ahmad Jamal for the longest composition here, “Gimme Some More House” ends with a house remix of the opening theme to the Alfred Hitchcock horror film Psycho.

Being a fan of house music since its early days, DJ Scratch began conceiving The Pivot when he noticed other DJs were playing their own records when performing at electronic dance music festivals & respect what he was trying to do here although it feels equally average as Daft Punk’s 3rd album Human After All except a huge difference being that Scratch puts more of a house spin on the samples that’re ingrained in classic hip hop singles than the previously mentioned LP’s predominant electroclash/post-industrial style.

Score: 3/5

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Mr. Green – “F.U. S.M.D. 3 (For U, Some Musical Distraction 3)” review

Here we have the 3rd solo extended play from Highland Park, New Jersey producer Mr. Green. For nearly 2 decades already, this guy has produced for some of the most prolific artists across the entire underground hip hop spectrum from the Army of the Pharaohs to R.A. the Rugged Man & Westside Gunn. He also has multiple beat tapes under his belt, coming off his previous EP F.U. S.M.D. (For U, Some Musical Distraction) & the sequel to deliver a trilogy chapter under Roc Nation Records.

“planets evolve” kicks things off rapping about getting shit confused if one think he came to take Ls even though the AI usage ruins it, but “ovomaltine” soulfully makes up for it talking about mixing shit up. “All My Life” featuring Macy Gray bridges the EP singing about war not being the answer & how love’s the key, but “Good Food” and “blessed” featuring Ab-Soul & KG both left me disappointed because of AI making it’s way back in the mix.

F.U. S.M.D. 2 (For U, Some Musical Distraction) 2 has been completely wiped from all streaming platforms & the original can still be found on Bandcamp, but I’m sad to say this could be my least favorite of the 3 entries in this 4 month saga. I can appreciate him being more serious as a performer & actually rapping instead of the original F.U. S.M.D. (For U, Some Musical Distraction) feeling like some karaoke shit, but it’s unnecessary he incorporated AI into 60% of the production when he doesn’t need to.

Score: 2/5

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