Chino XL – “Map of Bones” review

Right in front of us is the 7th full-length studio LP albeit 2nd posthumous offering from East Orange, New Jersey emcee Chino XL. Breaking out in the mid-90s after signing to American Recordings & releasing the classic full-length debut Here to Save You All, he eventually went on to beef with 2Pac & I genuinely feel sorry for anyone who writes him off because of that. Especially since that I Told You So, Poison Pen & the Viper Records-backed RICANstruction: The Black Rosary all contain some of the best songs in his whole discography. Stu Bangas was brought in to produce God’s Carpenter couple summers & that became a near-flawless comeback, with Darkness & Other Colors recorded back in 2020 foreshadowing his own death from beyond the grave. Continuing to warm up for God’s Carpenter 2, what would’ve been Chino’s 51st birthday is being commemorated with Map of Bones recorded between 2008-2012.

“Hard to Kill” opens up by ruggedly suggesting that you should come heavy if you ever making threats & getting at his best when things get intense whereas “Die 4” angrily asks if anyone wants war with him. “Not Ok” works in these prominent horns so he can tackle the theme of mental health from beyond the grave leading into the heinous “Monster” talks about his beast status.

As for “I’ve Seen”, we have Chino over heavy sampling telling us everything he’s experienced during his time in the music industry just before “‘Til Death Do Us Part” shows his affection towards his wife-now-widow. “Capable” talks about people casting doubt over what he’s competent of doing, but then the chaotic boom bap hybrid “Keep Diggin’” speaks of staying loyal to the code o until the streets phase.

“The Search” becomes 1 with the ocean Jesus once walked on while “Numb” featuring Roc C triumphantly sees the pair back on the block. “You First” gets split into 2-parts with an EDM flare during the 1st half & boom bap for the other getting bloodthirsty while “Still Sailing” refers to every word he wrote as a symphony. The title track hauntingly rounds it out by talking about the suicidal thoughts that sadly took him.

Word’s been going around since last fall regarding Chino XL having a collaborative effort with Dheezy called The Mantis coming out at the end of 2025 & we’ll have to cross that bridge until we get there to see if that actually happens, all I know is that I appreciate Map of Bones for feeling as complete of a product as Darkness & Other Colors was. Even if I find myself preferring Body Bag Ben’s production on the latter, DJ Fokus’ left-of-center style is a bit refreshing & hearing Chino continuing to foreshadow him taking is life over a decade ago hits differently.

Score: 3.5/5

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

Tha God Fahim – “Lethal Weapon 2” review

In front of us is the 57th EP from Atlanta, Georgia emcee/producer Tha God Fahim. Starting as an affiliate of Griselda Records as well as being 1/3 of the Dump Gawds alongside Mach-Hommy & Your Old Droog, we also can’t ignore the massive discography that he’s managed to build for himself, some of the standouts include Breaking Through tha Van Allen Belts & Dump Assassins. He’s been putting out amongst his best material in the past few years like the Camoflauge Monk-produced Dark Shogunn Assassin, the Nature Sounds-backed Iron Bull, the Nicholas Craven-produced Dump Gawd: Shot Clock King series, the Oh No-produced Berserko, Dump Gawd: Rhyme Pays produced by Mike Shabb, Tha Supreme Hoarder of All Pristine Wealth. Supreme Dump Legend: Soul Cook Saga produced by Cookin’ Soul & Machine Gun Vocabulary produced by Cartune Beatz. Taking another break from the Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap, I totally get why Drega33’s coming back in the picture for a Lethal Weapon sequel.

“ATK on Titan” is this jazzy intro likening his wraps to the dark fantasy anime series 進撃の巨人 whereas “Analytics” featuring Jay NiCE talks about their styles being a mix of the almighty Wu-Tang Clan & It Was Written. “Sacred Tablets” strips the drums creating his own lane & overcoming the rough patches in his life while “Lethal Force” hooks up a pitched vocal sample to talk about specializing in spreading viruses.

The song “Final Justice” starts the 2nd leg of Lethal Weapon 2 by hopping over these prominent horns telling everyone to move out his way unless you want chaos to ensue & him having something to prove just before “Ain’t No Way” blends chipmunk soul & drumless talks about having 0 distractions in his path. “Aura Farming” ends the EP with a jazz rap single he dropped this past weekend referring to himself as hip hop royalty.

Much of the discourse centered around Lethal Weapon a few weeks ago were generally mixed & I can’t be too mad at the successor here being much more well received from what I’ve been seeing across the spectrum. Drega33’s production still relies on samples dabbling with drumless, chipmunk soul & jazz rap this time around on top of the lyrics feeling like a long lost scroll getting deciphered in the middle of the Sahara desert.

Score: 4/5

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

J-Classic – “The Jordan Rules” review

J-Classic is a 36 year old MC from Ypsilanti, Michigan who I first met in 2018 after Middle Finger Music put out their inaugural release with Aztek the Barfly’s 3rd album Line King & was even signed to the prominent Detroit underground label for a brief period of time. We’ve heard him on multiple features up until this point & is celebrating his born day by putting out his debut EP, which is ultimately the 1st time ever solo project in his discography that’s been a very long time coming after I was in his city this weekend for Astronomicon meeting both former AEW Women’s World Champion and アイアンマンヘビーメタル級チャンピオン Britt Baker alongside the current TNA World Champion Joe Hendry who also held the recently retired TNA Digital Media Championship for a record-holding 266 days on top of making former 4-time WWE world champion, 3-time WWE United States Champion, future WWE Intercontinental Champion and 5-time WWE tag team champion Sheamus believe at this year’s Royal Rumble couple months ago.

“Somewhere” begins with a slowed-down vocal sample talking about beating the game in the hardest setting or difficulty whereas “6 Rings” compares himself to the greatest basketball player of all-time Michael Jordan. “Ragnarok” produced by Foul Mouth refers to an important event in Norse mythology while “Baba Yaga” with Tru Klassick talks about the prominent figure in Slavic folklore. “Pinball Pete’s” shows off Game 7 intensity fusing jazz & trap until the title track finishes by keeping a 12 with no name on it.

I used to tell people to keep an eye out for J-Classic for several years & The Jordan Rules finally gives the underground a sense of why I’ve been co-signing him for so long. Its production explores a myriad of sounds including boom bap, jazz rap, trap & use of samples refraining from having any guests joining him so he can hold the bars down by himself carrying his own weight through these versatile musical backdrops the way I imagined he would’ve.

Score: 4/5

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

Percaso – “Fast Car Music” review

Orlando, Florida rapper & producer Percaso setting out to make bigger waves in the jerk scene by dropping a debut mixtape. Introducing himself during the winter of 2023 off his debut EP 15, he would later follow it up with 3 more EPs in MGN which is my personal favorite of the 4 along with Outta da State & Enough respectively. Not even a month after the latter, he’s cooking up some Fast Car Music to start the 2nd quarter of 2025 & further teasing a debut album whenever he’s ready for it.

“Handmade” is this self-produced plugg intro asking why you’re in his lane & cautioning for everyone to get the fuck up out his way whereas “Rick Jeans” takes a bombastic route instrumentally talking about getting his jeans from the west coast fashion designer Rick Owens. “Close My Eyes” brings a rage-inducing vibe to the table so he can talk about seeing demons whenever he gets shuteye while the organ-driven “Money Rush” breaks down the cash flow.

Luh Tyler joins Percasso on “Koolin’’” so they can admit to thinking of the demons that’re already upside their heads just before the dark plugg-inspired “Decline” talks about getting dough with his 9 & refusing to answer calls on his phone. “Enough” featuring Polo Youngin’ has a standard plugg flare discussing knowing what each others’ limits are leading into “Get Off” sampling “Let It Go” by Playboi Carti talking about his racks being achievements.

“She a Slut” shows a rage influence once again to rock out a show in Miami while the synth-driven “So Kool” featuring Polo Youngin’ keeps old blues on them making newer money. “Southside” featuring reddglk finds the 2 telling everyone to get their bread up & after “Denim” speaks on his lifestyle, “Explain” featuring Wizz Havin uncannily ends with them moving dope.

Wasn’t too familiar with Percaso until I got a suggestion over the weekend to give this tape a listen & regardless of its flaws, I can very much hear the amount of potential he has artistically. The production he solely handles shows a myriad of influences including jerk, trap, rage, plugg & dark plugg except that he’s outperforming a vast majority of the guests joining him since their contributions primarily punch under their weight.

Score: 3.5/5

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

Ouija Macc & Ricky Hil – “Problem Children 2” review

This is the 2nd collaborative album between Las Vegas, Nevada emcee Ouija Macc as well as New York recording artist & Limosa Nostra Records founder Ricky Hil. The latter of whom came up in 2009 in the cloud/emo rap scenes & the other is the CEO of the Psychopathic Records subsidiary Chapter 17 Records who has been the only other current artist on the label that runs beneath the streets other than the Insane Clown Posse themselves for pretty much the current decade. Ricky recently got a shoutout on the highlight “Olympian” off Playboi Carti’s 3rd album MUSIC last month & is linking up with Ouija again for a sequel to Problem Children ahead of Ouija appearing on the upcoming 2nd leg of JCW Lunacy’s Hella Pain & Diamond Rain Tour.

The title track produced by Devereaux starts with both of them giving middle fingers to everyone & spraying the walls with blood over a guitar-trap instrumental whereas “Upside Down” takes a cloudier route thanks to former Good Charlotte guitarist Billy Martin with Ouija giving props to Psychopathic Don & the wicked clowns’ manager Billy Bill for giving him game. “‘Till I Die” finds the pair talking about staying until the day where they take their last breaths while “Fucc ‘Em Up” fuses hardcore hip hop & trap thanks to 808 Mafia co-founder Lex Luger.

SosMula formerly of the City Morgue joins both of the Problem Children on the “Tavernity Trinity” introducing a new underground supergroup over a trap metal beat leading into “Ginsu” talking about death knocking on their doors & them eventually answering it. “In Vein” brings a trap metal flare back in the fold so they can tackle themes of death just before the internal emo rap-tinged “To Feel” talks about having loneliness to fulfill in their lives.

“Crème Brûlée” boasts that the weed they’re smoking on is significantly sweeter than dessert itself prior to “Nightmare Boyz” talking about people sneak-dissin’ only for the simple reason because of them not being legitimate competition in either of their eyes whatsoever. “Pray 4 Me” finds both of them discussing having 0 sympathy for their enemies due to life itself being an entire tragedy, but then “Buffalo Sauce” showcases a fun back-&-forth chemistry.

As for “Gone in the Wind”, we have Ouija & Ricky talking about death calling ‘em again & it all being lights off in the end while “Low Battery Warning” suggests to enjoy your emptiness since it’ll be as good as it can get. “I’d Probably Rot” shows an emo rap influence again talking about having nothing while “Storm Come Rolling In” admits to pain swallowing them again. “Moon Through the Blinds of the Bando” finishes by stripping the drums with parts of them feeling like they’re in Hell’s Pit.

The eponymous introductory LP was a fun marriage between Ouija Macc’s horrorcore twist on the SoundCloud aesthetics & Ricky’s cloudy emo rap hybrids, returning after 3 years to take it up another level since Ouija has evolved so much artistically since the last time he teamed up with Ricky. Their respective styles all come back & mesh well together once again to take every redeemable quality of its predecessor to newer levels.

Score: 4/5

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

Jane Remover – “Revengeseekerz” review

Jane Remover is a 21 year old musician from Newark, New Jersey known for pioneering the Dariacore microgenre. They made their breakout debut in the fall of 2021 with Frailty under deadAir Records & it wasn’t until exactly 24 months later when former BROCKHAMPTON leader Kevin Abstract called Jane Remover’s sophomore effort Census Designated his favorite album of that year where I personally got introduced to their music. Continuing the bi-yearly release cycle, their 3rd album has finally arrived after high anticipation.

“Twice Removed” begins with this digicore intro explaining that 2022 feels like a million years ago to them by now & shit getting old to them so quickly whereas the EDM-driven “Psychoboost” featuring Danny Brown finds the 2 talking about both of them feeling as if they’re a part of each other. “Star People” blends hyperpop & trap so they can ask if you’re either their bestie or their enemy prior to the chaotically noisy “Experimental Skin” talking about seeing no evil.

Moving on from there, “angels in camo” returns for more of a digicore vibe trading names with demons & refusing to let the creeps win just before “Dreamflasher” takes the sound of the previous cut & meshing it with EDM asking God to save them since they’re so turnt at the current moment. “Turn Up or Die” brings a glitchier flare to the table giving this bitch a proper sendoff by blowing his head off while “Dancing with Your Eyes Closed” perfectly showcases fusing hyperpop, electropop, digicore, bass house, future bass, electro hop, electroclash, Dariacore & rage influences.

“Fadeoutz” talks about feeling the same affection the standard popstar receives & likening fast love to fast drugs while “Professional Vengeance” balances digicore & pop punk returning from California with a bag 10x the price of what they were sold. “Dark Night Castle” admits to feeling like they don’t deserve the business prior to the outstanding digicore, rage, experimental hip hop, industrial hip hop, dark plugg & emo rap closer “JRJRJR”.

There are artists in the digicore scene I’ve given props to like Bear1boss or che & Polo Perks no question, except Jane Remover reclaims the sound that made them popular on the occasion of presenting the most flawless listening experience I’ve had in 2025 as of right now & a landmark in that style. The glitchcore aesthetics get uniquely branched out to the likes of experimental hip hop, electronic dance music, rage, hyperpop, hard dance, bass house, industrial hip hop, hardcore EDM, dark plugg, emo rap, electropop, future bass, electro hop, electroclash & of course Dariacore seamlessly.

Score: 5/5

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

Rick Hyde – “In Plain Sight” review

This is the 12th EP from Buffalo, New York emcee/producer Rick Hyde. Amongst the most notable artists on Benny the Butcher’s very own Black Soprano Family Records, his debut album Plates that came out at the very beginning of 2019 was pretty solid on top of 11 EPs & a sequel to his full-length debut. The last time I covered Ricky was during the summer of 2023 when Chop-La-Rok & Rare Scrilla produced Lupara homaging hip hop’s golden era, returning In Plain Sight starting the 2nd quarter of 2025.

The intro sets it off with a drumless opener with some background vocals produced by Haas Almahdi keeping the grass cut so we can keep an eye out for the serpents whereas “God’s Timing” produced by his son Myles takes a shot at trap showing self-awareness of him being unable to stop grindin’. “Wish You Would” goes for a boom bap direction flexing he’s been doing this way before everyone else found their voice while “Minimal Effort” featuring Benny the Butcher & Lo Pro finds the trio dropping a verse with no hook.

“Exodus” featuring GoToMar$ maintains a boom bap vibe so both of them can get to the bag properly instead of sittin’ around leading into “2Gether” stripping the drums once more talking about saying Amen as soon as he comes back home. “10,000 Hours” fuses chipmunk soul & trap boasting that the love B$F has for each other is ocular, but then “What More Can I Say?” finishes by telling everyone to listen closely wanting to fax rap & dissing everyone pumping out dull music.

Starting the deluxe run, we are treated to a sequel to “Come Up” off Plates II making it clear that he’s still hungry over a piano instrumental while “Work Wednesday” incorporates more keys to do some soul-searching off the top for a few minutes. The final bonus track “Shine’n” sends things off officially by talking about hard times never mattering to him all that much since he’s survived all of them.

Similarly to Lupara couple years ago, In Plain Sight once again sees Ricky taking a backseat behind the boards allowing a couple notable names & mostly lesser-known producers to take the wheel although I personally find myself going back to Lupara more. The production ranges from drumless to trap, boom bap & chipmunk soul with Benny having my favorite guest verse of the 3 as well as Rick coming harder than he did on R.I.C.K. (Realizing It Can Kill) last Halloween.

Score: 3.5/5

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

Allegaeon – “The Ossuary Lens” review

Allegaeon is technical death metal band from Denver, Colorado consisting of lead guitarist Greg Burgess, rhythm guitarist Michael Stancel, bassist Brandon Michael, drummer Jeff Saltzman & frontman Ezra Haynes. These guys have been making themselves at home with Metal Blade Records for the past 15 years ago putting out 7 albums & the most notable being their last 4; Elements for the Infinite, Proponent for Sentience, Apoptosis & Damnum. Beginning the 2nd quarter of 2025 however, they’re coming back after 3 years to deliver their 8th studio LP.

After the “Refraction” instrumental intro, the first song “Chaos Theory” begins with a progressive technical death metal vibe explaining an abysmal dissolution causing chaos to be restored in life whereas “Driftwood” maintains the prog-tech-death approach talking about the shadows of your past taking you eventually. “Dies Irae” promises to spare no one while the technical death metal-tinged “The Swarm” asks to give ‘em falling skies to take their eyes.

“Carried by Delusion” maintains the tech death flare talking about his ghost carrying the sword & standing in a shallow grave immortalized just before “Dark Matter Dynamics” featuring Adrian Bellue devours all light where questions roam with answers being kept tight-lipped. “Imperial” asks to what degree is our fate sealed & to what end do we allow while “Wake Circling Above” morbidly explains being on his way out & never finding himself again. “Scythe” ends by talking about Hell opening alongside fear dying a long time ago.

Ezra’s return after a decade represents several different viewpoints of death further touching on some classic Allegaeon science-related topics such as chaos theory & dark matter while also strumming the chords of more introspective topics such as alcoholism, relationships & perseverance embracing a new subgenre called melotech bringing melodic death metal & technical death metal together to display the band at their most cohesive.

Score: 4.5/5

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

Black Country, New Road – “Forever Howlong” review

Black Country, New Road is an experimental rock band from Cambridge, England, United Kingdom consisting of bassist/vocalist Tyler Hyde, saxophonist/flautist/vocalist, Lewis Evans a.k.a. Good With Parents, violinist/vocalist Georgia Ellery, keyboardist/vocalist May Kershaw, drummer Charlie Wayne & guitarist Luke Mark. Signing to Ninja Tune, the band’s debut For the 1st Time & the sophomore effort Ants From Up There have both quickly become the most important post-rock & art-rock albums of the current decade receiving universal acclaim. Taking 3 years off, they’re returning for their 3rd studio LP.

“Besties” blends progressive pop, chamber pop, baroque pop, sunshine pop & soft rock dealing with unrequited love for a best friend whereas “The Big Spin” dabbles with country singing about a restrictive domestic life unwillingly enforced on a person. “Socks” gives off progressive pop & art rock vibe explaining our lives hold a light no life has held before while “Salem Sisters” finds Tyler singing about happily being in a tree with a fire biting beneath him.

The country influences once again on “2 Horses” asking if Georgia found a man she can finally lean on leading into “Mary” heading for a minimal direction in terms of general sound taking the lyrics from diary entries followed by “Happy Birthday” crossing over progressive pop, baroque pop, art rock, folk rock, piano rock, chamber pop, indie rock & neo-canterbury teaching us privilege doesn’t bring happiness.

“For the Cold Country” carries over the progressive folk, art rock, chamber folk, progressive rock, choral, post-rock & neo-canterbury elements focusing on a journey of self-reflection while “Nancy Tries to Take the Night” tells a tragic tale ending in suicide. The title track returns to a minimalistic flare with a winding approach to the songwriting & “Goodbye (Don’t Tell Me)” finishes with an acoustic ballad admitting to Georgia falling in love with a feeling.

The modern day experimental rock trailblazers reemerge with a meticulously detailed album that includes everything from folk to prog via baroque pop & touches of alt-rock yet all the while retaining that unmistakably unique sound that only this combination of musicians can come up with. Although hugely varied & expansive, Forever Howlong also feels deeply cohesive & focused as it takes 3 distinct voices & styles & seamlessly intersperses them into a new collective sound.

Score: 4.5/5

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

Σtella – “Adagio” review

Here we have the 5th full-length album from Athens, Attica, Greece singer/songwriter Σtella. Introducing herself with an eponymous debut, both it’s follow-ups Works for You & The Break would result in Sub Pop Records signing her and making the Redinho-produced Up & Away a decent debut for the Seattle, Washington indie label. 3 years later, she’s returning by putting out Adagio & the singles teased for it until this point seems like it could shape up to be better than Up & Away or even dethroning The Break for her strongest material.

The title track was a bedroom pop & samba intro asking why she’s being tormented likening herself to a spy with her 400 eyes taking her from A to B whereas “Ta Vimata” sings about the steps bringing her to the narrow path. “Omorfu Mou” finds her wanting her romantic interest when they leave & missing them while she stays just before “Baby Brazil” featuring Las Palabras suggests to let the feeling roll since the individual she has in mind likes control as much as they do.

“Can I Say” asks if she can tell her partner exactly how much she misses them while “80 Days” acoustically sings about going by the rules even if they don’t apply. “Too Poor” groovily explains the way she’s attracted to her lover & after the “Corfu” instrumental cut, the closing track “Caravan” officially wraps up her Sub Pop Records sophomore effort singing about her only real partner in crime at the moment being Father Time itself.

Inspired by an 11-minute boat ride to Anafi roughly 6 years ago, Σtella sounds more at ease & comfortable than she’s ever been on Adagio displaying new approaches to her songwriting. The end result turns out to be a pop LP that feels like a warm blanket due to the way it swaddles its listeners with nylon-string guitars, featherlight percussion, psychedelic keyboards & staccato drums offering a meditation on love, desire, rest & time.

Score: 4/5

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