Lucki – “dr*gs r bad” review

Chicago, Illinois rapper & occasional producer Lucki’s highly anticipated 4th LP has finally arrived. Beginning to turn heads in the summer of 2013 when he released his debut mixtape Alternative Trap to critical acclaim, he would later go on to give his fans 6 more tapes & a dozen EPs with the last one being the F1LTHY-produced Wake Up Lucki a week before my 25th birthday in December 2021. The full-length debut Flawless Like Me saw Lucki finding his style & the sophomore effort s*x mon*y dr*gs was the most I enjoyed Tune’s music in a while, coming off Gemini & the divisively received Daysb4bad* to deliver the main course that the latter preluded.

The “Nuppy” intro opens up the first couple of minutes talking about a woman who he feels like is the right one for him whereas “Picky Demons :)” talks about him not being the fastidious type & shit not being for show with him. “No Stars in Maybachs” featuring Rylo Rodriguez & Veeze finds the trio joining forces to trade verses with each other although I think Veeze was the better guest of the 2 while “Stupid Prizes” cloudily talks about what happens when one plays stupid games.

“Supertune!!” gives off a heavier psychedelic trap vibe instrumentally courtesy of Noah Mejia boasting that he feels like a superhero whenever he pops pills leading into “rookie 2 barbie” talks about how far he’s come since his Lucki Eck$ days over a decade ago back when I was in high school. “AllWay2Space” embraces a pluggier sound thanks to Taurus discussing his eagerness of going to the moon just before the “mdnt series” talks about going on a midnight roll driving around in his Maybach.

Lil Baby appears for “Snake Pit Flow” to describe the feeling they have of being made for this music shit over a LulRose instrumental while “(madness)!” shifts towards a more futuristic trap direction stylistically talking about there being hoes with no voices out here. “a theme atp…” expresses his willingness to have his people call him whenever their day’s been rough while “Keep It 1,000, Plz” talks about his desire to have everyone keep it legitimate when speaking to him.

“Brazy” reached the halfway point of dr*gs r bad with what I’d consider more of a brief freestyle than an interlude while “WAYBetter Dayz” featuring the late Chynna talks about being geeked up so much to the point where today could be his last day alive. “Loyal Snake” keeps the synthesizers coming to ask this woman if she could love him the way he loves her while the Detroit trap-tinged “Roundtripski” encourages someone who went rogue on him to do it again because he fucks with it.

Veeze returns again for the “Twin Flow” sequel “Twin FlowGodfather II”, going back-&-forth with each other to save my favorite guest appearance for last while “Ur a Vet!” talks about being on 3 different diamonds every single day & most being unable to keep up. “Gemini Dramatic” wraps up dr*gs r bad’s final moments describing a relationship where he’s got it out the mud & has a hoe who’s for the streets beside him while the outro “Yesterday On My Face” talks about being unable to trust this person.

“Not So Virgo of You” starts the deluxe run with a cloudy trap 2-parter that I’d say is one of the best songs he’s done this decade & once “I Don’t Care…” featuring the current WWE United States Champion Trick Williams’ manager Lil Yachty teams up for a atmospheric jerk single that I liked more than the other one they did at the beginning of the month, “Diamond Stitching” fuses the Detroit sound & tread so he can talk about his newfound wealth.

The single “Free Mr. Banks” combines trap & plugg to call for Lil Durk’s freedom in addition to remind us all of the code of the streets while “Overth!nking” experiments with vaportrap a bit to vent about his internal struggles including experiences of betrayal. The final bonus track “Tuff Luver” is what truly sends off the album, confessing that he’s been feeling somewhat nervous of becoming a superstar & shrugging it off suggesting maybe that’s the Chiraq in him.

Considering that one of the deluxe cuts stirred up controversy when Lucki dropped it through Steve Stoute’s independent distributor UnitedMasters & it’s competitor EMPIRE filing a lawsuit against Tune, some including myself would have to presume that dr*gs r bad fulfills the Chicago artist’s contract with them & I wish him nothing but the best if that’s in fact the case. However, it’s still an impressive trap/Detroit sound album even if it’s an undeniable improvement above Daysb4bad*.

Score: 3.5/5

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Lørd Skø – “Elevator Music” review

New York emcee Lørd Skø following up PiFF with his 4th LP. Getting his start 6 years ago off his debut EP 13th Angel, his profile would grow from there eventually hiring one of the greatest A&Rs in the industry Dante Ross as his manager & showing the world of what he’s capable of doing when he put out his debut Museum. His sophomore effort United Palace was a great dedication to his neighborhood, coming off the Fat Beats Records-backed PiFF to have Statik Selektah produce Elevator Music singlehandedly.

The title track begins incorporating a boom bap instrumental with synthesizers giving us something for all those days he used to play the stairs whereas “How It Is” talks about calling things the way they are. “Better Days” featuring Dave East finds the 2 linking up over a soulful beat to discuss waiting for things in their lives to improve prior to “Northern Lights” featuring B-Real & Smoke DZA finds the trio getting on their stoner shit.

“Drunk Dial” featuring Ab-Soul ends the 1st half on a funkier note instrumentally sliding onto the scene with the meanest gangsta lean but after “Hangman” combines a slowed down vocal sample with some kicks & snares to tackle some mental health issues admitting he’s been hanging on by a thread, “Donnie Brasco” continues the 2nd leg of Elevator Music referencing the crime drama of the same name & wondering if this is where he’s supposed to be.

The song “Wonder” brings a jazzier boom bap vibe to the table pondering the meaning of that very word while “nWo” featuring Andre Lawrence, Kai Ca$h, LIFEOFTHOM, Marco+ & Rhakim Ali likens themselves to the WWE Hall of Famers of the same name & the most dominant faction in WCW’s later years. The soulful closing track “Wish Upon a Star” concludes Elevator Music talking about him staying busy as of late & wanting to admit his exhaustion to his mother.

We’ve already heard Lørd Skø over Statik Selektah production a handful of times within the past several years, so for the latter to handle all of Elevator Music’s beats raised my expectations for it significantly & can say with confidence that it’s the greatest thing Skø has done. From his sharp penmanship to the jazzy boom bap production the Showoff Records founder has become known for, it’s like simultaneously bridging generations of New York hip hop & pushing the culture forward at the same time.

Score: 4.5/5

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Hexxx – “Endless Night” review

The 4th extended play from Los Angeles, California emcee Hexxx has finally arrived. Coming up a decade ago off his debut extended play Samhain, he would go on to follow it up 3 years later with his 2nd EP West Coast Wicked Shit prior to his full-length debut Demon Season & the sophomore effort Tales of a Cursed G becoming west coast wicked shit classics in their own rights. Coming off the Suerte EP last summer, he’s coming back for an audio description of an Endless Night over 2 months after Persephone ended Mercedes Moné’s reign as CMLL Mundial Femenil Campeon & a couple weeks since Templario became a 2-time MLW World Middleweight Champion.

“Rock, Paper, Cemetery” reemerges out the dusk to talk about this shit being hereditary to him whereas “Crash Out” goes for a trap vibe admitting that he’s been feeling like a ghost drowning his pain away. After an interlude, “The Real” talks about his future plans of staying independent & shouting out the legitimate who’re still with him just before things take a darker turn instrumentally to discuss feeling like a “Freight Train” as of late.

After the “Ghost Dog” interlude, “Westside Samurai” keeps the west coast wicked shit coming talking about it taking a lot of pain for him to get the kinda shine he has while “Loco” gets on his g shit over a ratchet beat. “Entrance Theme” kinda has a Memphis-inspired atmosphere dedicating itself to all his fellow gangstas & once “Chrome Clouds” talks about keeping the wave moving, “Friday” sends it all off with a jazzy west coast outro for a weekend celebration anthem.

Despite putting out Suerte almost a whole year ago next month, Hexxx spent a great deal of 2025 taking a break from touring so he could dedicate all of this time towards making Endless Night the greatest thing he’s ever done in his career yet & I can definitely say it’s not too far behind the predecessor regarding his EPs. The production ranges from jazz rap to ratchet to Memphis rap & lyrically, the procurator of west coast wicked shit answers a few questions he’s had bubbling in his mind.

Score: 4/5

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BNYX – “Genesis FM” review

This is the full-length studio debut from Upper Darby Township, Pennsylvania producer, songwriter & occasional rapper BNYX. Mentored by Jean Baptiste & later joining the Working on Dying production team known for pioneering tread music, he’s also known for being an extensive collaborator of Yeat, signing to the latter’s Lyfestyle Corporation imprint under Field Trip Recordings & Capitol Records distributed by Universal Music Group. His debut extended play Loading… made for a decent prelude & Genesis FM has arrived 7 months afterwards.

After the titular intro, “HunchO Step!” by Quavo begins with what I consider to be one of the stronger singles getting all the baddies to dance whereas “squEEze !i” by Lancey Foux was another track I enjoyed from the instrumental to the lyrics about being on go. “luv yoU right” by Chromeo stylistically shifts gears so the latter can confess to meeting their match just before “what’s happenin?” by Ledbyher talks about being with a woman thicker than his accent at the end who loves fake acting.

“Telepathy Love” by Clara La San goes for a poppier R&B sound so she can describe a relationship that feels rather psychic leading into “Fuëgo” by Peso Pluma & Yeat reaching the halfway point for a bilingual anthem about going loose off the alcohol. “OVERLOADDD” gets the 2nd leg of Genesis FM going on a more compositional note embracing an EDM sound while “I wanna know :)” by Big Sean & Clara La San links up for a pop rap duet where they’re trying to hear the truth.

Alt-pop, Atlanta bass, synthpop, electro, alternative R&B & indietronica all collide on another highlight single “Everywhere I Go (Remind Me)” by KiD CuDi interpolating the Röyksopp track “Remind Me” while “Science” by Nippa sings about his lover’s being a test subject for analyzation. “FANatic” by Beau Nox expresses a desire to touch the sights that’ve been speaking out & once “Fallen” by Don Toliver sings about falling for someone, “Time’s Slipping Away” by Anatole Muster bittersweetly ends yearning for 1 more day with this person.

I went into Genesis FM expecting to enjoy it more than Loading… because I adamantly believe BNYX is one of the greatest mainstream producers of this decade & as much as it pains to me say it, his debut album isn’t much better in terms of consistency. Happy an instrumental version happened since the pop rap, electropop, alt-pop, alternative R&B, electro hop, EDM trap, freestyle, indietronica, Atlanta bass & synthpop production is magnificent. However, the guest list once more feels hit or miss.

Score: 3/5

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Telehealth – “Green World Image” review

Telehealth is a post-punk/synthpop duo from Seattle, Washington consisting of Alexander Attitude & Kendra Cox. Their 2023 debut Content Oscillator properly introduced themselves combining both of those previously mentioned styles with new wave as well as egg punk, garnering the interest of locally historic indie label Sub Pop Records & they were officially signed a few months earlier. So for Alex & Kendra to make their debut for the imprint through their sophomore effort seemed like it could be the pairing’s biggest breakthrough yet.

After the “(user onboarding sequence)” intro, “The Telehealth Shuffle” begins with this compositionally playful & quirky dance-punk opener whereas “Kokomo 2” goes for a new wave/egg punk vibe singing about a machine rendering a senseless future to be useless. The 3rd single “Donor Country (A gOoD cAuSe)” asks why can’t we coexist & trying to find some charitable context leading into “Age of Muralcide” embracing a synth punk sound to explain capitalism & consumerism.

The 2nd single “Things I’ve Killed” embraces the a heavy Devo influence singing about a subreddit blaming millennials for all the industries that they blame for destroying prior to them asking for the “Cost of Inaction” to kick off the 2nd half incorporating elements of new wave, synthpop & dance punk. “Silver Spoon” humorously sings about being unable to afford death & taxes anymore considering everything’s getting more expensive while the lead single “Cool Job” describes looking for an occupation that would actually be fun.

“Yassify Me” for the 4th & final single explains the result of a $0 budget, a dream & Kendra’s aunt Becky absolutely committing to the bit while “Maria, Machine” takes inspiration from Devo once more with hints of Sparks or Zolar X. The penultimate song finds the duo embracing their “Villain Era” & confidently looking to take the crown while the outro “Living, Laughing, Loving, Trying” pretty much sums up the way most of us have been doing for the past year & a half.

Continuing their mission of financializing any difference of opinion over how the in-shambles local “music scene” should proceed, Telehealth’s 2nd album & Sub Pop debut vertically integrates itself towards the average Seattleite & consumers around the globe who are also ready to financialize their own passion for music. Green World Image has a more predominant post-punk feeling than synthpop except they’re progressively evolving beyond both styles in favor of exploring art punk, synth punk, dance-punk, egg punk, new wave & art rock.

Score: 4/5

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TopOppGen – “Peace Doesn’t Reside on My End” review

TopOppGen is a 20 year old rapper from Charlotte, North Carolina who dropped his debut mixtape Mind of a Menace in the summer of 2021. He would go on to follow this up with 3 extended plays & 6 mixtapes including TopOppBusiness, All I Know is 6, ?, 6orry for the Wait, House Arrest Tingz, The Last 6ixer…, love, topopp & imperfections until signing to Columbia Records. The full-length debut fake pills & real scars along with the sophomore effort kalon have both been making waves & the singles building up towards his 3rd album made it seem like it could be his most defining statement thus far only hours after Cedric Alexander ended Leon Slater’s reign as TNA X Division Champion.

“purple fluid” opens things up talking about falling in love with drugs after having his heart broken whereas “don’t cry” fuses rap rock, trap & emo rap assuring his partner that she doesn’t have to do him wrong if he does it initially. “chemistry” talks about love not meaning anything to him until “scrimmage” for some reason admits to stalking this woman’s page when he knows he has better stuff to do.

The 2nd & final single “love war” suggests maybe he’s better off in his deathbed when most would consider it to be the worst case scenario while “don’t wanna do that” talks about being on drugs that his homies have never heard of previously. “emo girl” wraps up the 1st leg of the LP proclaiming the chick he’s been with to be dumber than Patrick Star leading into “everything” talks about remembering all he & an ex have done together.

“I hate relationships” kicks off the 2nd half warns everyone who wants to kill him that he has guns of his own at the crib while “features” talks about being mesmerized by the beauty of this pretty girl with a cold heart. “rampaging” touches base regarding him being on lean for 3 straight weeks & pondering if he’s been losing his feelings while “heartfelt message” blends a guitar & hi-hats expresses hope of him never seeing a hoe’s face again because of their love dissolving.

The song “blow me away” winds down Peace Don’t Reside on My End’s final moments advising to let him be if someone finds him bleeding out all over the ground & his partner’s absence causing him to begin hallucinating while “cavity” talks about making it out the hood even if he couldn’t take the hood with him. The closing track “way past 10” spends the full-length’s last couple minutes taking inspiration from the late XXXTENTACION’s emo-folk stuff, primarily 17.

Proving himself to be one of emo rap’s most prominent forces within the past year, TopOppGen extends the back-to-back streak he’s been on since signing to a major label & making it a 3-peat considering how much Peace Doesn’t Reside on My End feels like a continuation of both it’s predecessors. The production refines his style by maintaining the secondary influences of gangsta rap, pop rap, rap rock & trap and he refrains from having any guests join him in expressing his pain.

Score: 3.5/5

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Nick Grant – “Smile” review

This is the 5th studio LP from Atlanta, Georgia emcee Nick Grant. Blowing up a decade ago off his debut mixtape ’88 along with the Epic Records-backed full-length debut Return of the Cool, his next tape Dreamin’ Out Loud would prelude the acclaimed God Bless the Child produced by Tae Beast of the Top Dawg Entertainment in-house production team Digi+Phonics followed by Carolina Diaries & Welcome to Loveland. I did like Sunday Dinner & I Took It Personal was a great perspective on the industry itself, but he’s returning with a Smile on his face.

“Another Classic” hops over an orchestral boom bap beat from the Trackmasters to talk about the realest stepping on business for as long as he lives whereas “Money Problems” works in a chipmunk soul sample so he can break down his experiences with financial issues. “The Algorhythm” featuring Punch incorporates a flute so they can talk about some of these people dancing to the same song over & over leading into the gospel-influenced “Back Up” sending a warning to those who want to put him down.

Westside Gunn & Young Chris join Nick on “Price Tag” sampling “Love (I Guess That’s the Fool in Me)” by City Limits so they can talk about nothing being free in this world to end the 1st leg while “Bullsh!t” featuring CyHi the Prynce & Ransom references the late アイアンマンヘビーメタル級チャンピオン, TNA World Tag Team Champion, WCW World Television Champion, 2-time WWE United States Champion, 7-time WCW World Tag Team Champion, 4-time WWE Intercontinental Champion & 2-time WWE Hall of Famer Scott Hall.

“Generational Runs / No Shortcuts” kicks off the last leg of Smile with a 2-parter expressing his desire or being placed amongst the greatest when his run’s up just before “Dope Bitch” talks about the girl he’s with being awesome in her own ways. “Sensitive Gangsta” spends a couple minutes poking fun at these so-called street dudes who’re overly in their feelings & “Everyday I Wake” concludes Smile by spitting pain some wouldn’t understand over a soul sample.

Agreeably considered to be one of the most slept-on lyricists of this decade, Nick Grant continues to validate those claims with Smile striving to become a timeless artist. He’s trying prove to his audience that anything’s possible now that he’s at a place where he doesn’t want people to forget who he is & learning that our experiences are the true meaning of life, bringing a handful of guests who’re all on their own plateaus of potency rather than continuing to spit verses by himself over a varied batch of production.

Score: 3.5/5

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Jane Remover – “Status Update Music” review

Here is the 7th mixtape from Newark, New Jersey musician Jane Remover. Aside from the 3 full-lengths under deadAir Records including Frailty as well as Census Designated & most notably Revengeseekerz, they have also released the Ghostholding mixtape on the label & 4 tapes pioneering the Dariacore sound. Coming off the Indie Rock mixtape last summer & Young Dabo’s sickeningly transphobic “Bleed” diss towards them however, Jane’s back to give the world some Status Update Music.

“If You Think I’m a Bitch, You Should Meet Jane Remover” blends Dariacore, hybrid trap, industrial hip hop, deconstructed club, xtra raw, jerk & complextro for an energetic intro mentioning underscores whereas “XO Tour Llif3” experiments with hyperphonics, speed house, electro house, hybrid trap, electro house, future bass & complextro to distinguish itself from Lil Uzi Vert’s biggest hit.

Brostep, Dariacore, rawstyle, EDM glitch hop, complextro & hardstyle all collide on the emotional “I Did This for Us” single while “…Like Watching a Zombie Turn” would debatably be amongst my top 3 tracks here due to the way future bass, changa tuki, UK hard house, brostep, psystyle & power soca are all mixed with hyperflip. “Crowdkilling 101” on the other hand explores bass house, electro-industrial, hard techno, complextro, speed house & French electro whilst maintaining the hyperphonics elements.

“Nothing Lasts Forever (Every Detail U Have Ever Told Me)” was a too 5 moment personally expanding beyond Dariacore in favor of rawstyle, speed house, hybrid trap, bubblegum bass, complextro, future riddim, festival progressive house, alternative rock & bass house while the manically dense “Chase This Feeling” bringing secondary influences of hyperflip, future bass, speed house, bubblegum bass, changa tuki, hard trance, rawphoric & rawstyle to the table.

Dariacore, deconstructed club, complextro, changa tuki, electro, nu skool breaks & bass house each have their own distinctive presence throughout “#BoyLetMeKnow” kick off the 2nd half of Status Update Music while “The Summer I Pretty” comes through with a mechanical melting pot of bass house, industrial techno, hyperflip, deconstructed club, complextro, Detroit techno, electro-industrial, hard techno, French electro, bass house & tearout.

“Right Nowww (Tear Me Apart)” would be my 2nd favorite song on the tape maximally meshing Dariacore, happy hardcore, hard trance, freeform hardcore, speedcore, buchiage trance, UK hardcore, hyper techno, psytrance, nightcore, midtempo bass, hardtek & bouncy techno while “L.A.M.B. (Love.Angel.Music.Baby.)” bears it’s name after Gwen Stefani’s timeless solo debut despite being stylistically rooted in brostep, hyperphonics, rawstyle, tearout brostep & hybrid trap.

The rhythmically buzzy “I Belong to Nobody (But Tonight I’m Yours)” keeps pushing boundaries of Dariacore drawing further inspiration from neoperreo, deconstructed club, digicore, lento violento, snap, jerk, trap, xtra raw & rawstyle prior to “Get Ugly” containing it’s individual sections varying between French electro, electro-industrial, hyperflip, drumline, industrial metal, ballroom, Jersey club, deconstructed club, neoperreo, midtempo bass & rawstyle.

“In Every Lifetime (Together Like This)” nears closer towards Status Update Music’s conclusion with a melodically polyrhythmic bass house, Dariacore, alternative R&B, hard techno, bubblegum bass, indietronica & speed house while the outro “Summer Fling” ends in the form of this perfect dance-pop, contemporary r&b, funky house, Baltimore club, akishibu-kei & 2-step anthem in time for next month.

Most would say Dariacore 2: Enter Here, Hell to the Left is the best thing Jane Remover had done under the leroy moniker, but Status Update Music surpasses it 5 years later. Their production nearly perfects the Dariacore subgenre of hyperpop & EDM microgenre Jane created eclectically mixing it with hints of hard dance, hybrid trap, industrial hip hop, deconstructed club, xtra raw, jerk, complextro, speed house, electro house, future bass, rawstyle, EDM glitch hop, hardstyle, changa tuki, UK hard house, brostep, psystyle, power soca, bass house, electro-industrial, hard techno, French electro, bubblegum bass, future riddim, festival progressive house, alternative rock, hard trance, rawphoric, nu skool breaks, industrial techno, Detroit techno, tearout, happy hardcore, freeform hardcore, speedcore, buchiage trance, UK hardcore, hyper techno, psytrance, nightcore, midtempo bass, hardtek, bouncy techno, tearout brostep, neoperreo, digicore, lento violento, snap, trap, drumline, industrial metal, ballroom, Jersey club, midtempo bass, bass house, alternative R&B, indietronica, dance-pop, contemporary R&B, funky house, Baltimore club, akishibu-kei & 2-step.

Score: 4.5/5

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Ankhlejohn – “Everything Beautiful Died Early” review

Here we have the 8th mixtape from Washington, D.C. emcee/producer Ankhlejohn. Breaking out off his Big Ghost Ltd.-produced sophomore effort Van Ghost, he’s given the underground his last 7 tapes as well as 8 EPs & 7 full-lengths in almost a decade. Other favorites of mine in his discography include the Navy Blue-produced As Above, So Below, the Rome Streetz collaborative effort Genesis 1:27, the Cookin’ Soul-produced The Michelin Man & the August Fanon-produced Live! at the Disco last summer. A whole year later & V Don’s producing Everything Beautiful Died Early.

“Origins” gets things going with a 125 second intro talking about being paid to prove cases over a drumless orchestra backing him whereas “No Specifics” goes for a boom bap vibe instrumentally referencing The Sopranos, which is one of my top 3 shows. $ha Hef joins Lordy so they can talk about some “Monyun” over a sample & some drums while “Trauma or Tragedy” incorporates a more laidback beat to talk about being there when the powder was still stone.

Babymaine joins Ankhlejohn on “Inglorious” for a gangsta rap/boom bap crossover detailing their experiences living in The Bronx & the DMV just before “Stoneisland” wraps up the 1st half of Everything Beautiful Died Early looking back at when Juelz Santana was a big inspiration to him. “Vegan Goose Down Silence” kicks off the 2nd leg talking about making this tape because he felt like the game needed him leading into “King, Pawn & Rook” featuring Crimeapple breaking down the mafioso lifestyle.

“Solar Faxx!” aggressively talks about his desire of making educating ourselves more mainstream while “Laugh & Cry” once again touches base regarding the subject of the gangsta life, explaining that it’s pretty much a cycle. “Day 1” talks about his refusal of disrespecting the plates he came from & his knowledge of the game dating back since the beginning while “Packback” ends by observing the amount of love since his youth that’s faded.

Next fall will be a whole decade since Ankhlejohn introduced himself by taking the underground on a trip through The Red Room & for the past 14 months, he’s been dropping the greatest output of his entire career from The Michelin Man to Live! at the Disco & now Everything Beautiful Died Early. There are only a small handful of guests on this one rather than Lordy holding down the mic all by himself throughout the predecessor last spring, but they’re all carefully selected since everyone flows well over V Don’s distinct production style.

Score: 4.5/5

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Stray – “Blink of an Eye” review

Stray is a 33 year old rapper & songwriter from New Haven, Connecticut who formed the Rogue Hollow collective during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. His solo debut extended play Witherman would come out the next fall as did his full-length debut Cloudy Alibi in the summer of 2023 & more recently his previous EP Enjoy the View this past July, enlisting his crew’s newest in-house producer Charlie Beans to handle all of the beats for Stray’s 3rd EP coming off producing most of James Joyce the Squatch’s 4th album Discomfort Inn last month.

“Cicada” after the “Change of Plans” intro starts off with an aggressive boom bap instrumental pleading to dig up this world that’s been underground for too long while “Foul Ground” featuring James Joyce the Squatch talks about the difference between them & the rest. “Out Alive” depressively speaks of sleeping under a cypress tree forever & after “Frost Bite” assures it’s ok if one can’t keep up, the final song “Perfect Timing” preceding the “Epilogue” outro ends by explaining the very thing life has never had.

Gearing up for his upcoming sophomore effort Flinch also entirely produced by Charlie Beans later this fall, I’m getting a huge impression that it’ll top Cloudy Alibi to become Stray’s greatest LP yet since Blink of an Eye surpasses both Witherman & Enjoy the View as far as his EPs go. Between the Sky Swamp Orange frontman’s lyrics & Charlie’s dark production, it could also be looked at as Rogue Hollow’s continuation of making shockwaves across the underground.

Score: 4/5

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