Jae Skeese – “The Good Part” review

Here is the 5th extended play from Buffalo, New York emcee Jae Skeese. Starting in 2010 off his debut mixtape W.A.C.K. (Women, Alcohol, Cash & Kicks), it wasn’t until a decade later where he & 7xvethegenius gained wide exposure as the very first signees to Conway the Machine’s very own Drumwork Music Group. The Big Ghost Ltd.-produced 3rd EP Authenticity Check & the sophomore effort Abolished Uncertainties both elevated Skeese’s popularity in the last couple years. Coming off the Superior-produced Testament of the Times & elevating from Ground Level though, Ill Tone’s producing The Good Part succeeding 40 Hours.

“Paralysis” chops up a soul sample to get things going talking about feeling like nobody’s above him whereas “Accelerant” featuring Conway the Machine & Stove God Cook$ finds the trio aggressively going at the throats of those who got the game wrong. “Curt Menafee” featuring Cory Gunz goes for a summery direction instrumentally talking about putting it all on the line leading into “S.W.G.M. (See It, Want It, Got It, Mines)” end the 1st half by speaking of taking what’s his.

Fuego Base & Sule appear on “Raiden” kicking off the 2nd leg with all 3 of them aggressively talking about wanting the finer things closer in reach just before “Worldwide” featuring Talib Kweli & T.F links up so they can discuss how far they wanna take it musically. “Mua” hops over a victorious beat to talk about getting his cake up & winning in the biggest ways while “No After No” featuring Brother Tom Sos & Consequence finishes with each artist explaining that they never stopped chasing their goals after being counted out.

I completely understood what Jae Skeese was doing trying give lesser known local artists a bigger platform although I’m still on the fence with that EP over an entire year later, but The Good Part has to be my personal favorite project of his since Testament of the Times. From the penmanship to the higher profile guest appearances & Ill Tone’s production, it’s already been implied that they’re gonna make an entire series out of this & this inaugural entry checks off every box regarding why they should.

Score: 4.5/5

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Ty$ – “Girl Music” review

Los Angeles, California singer/songwriter, rapper, musician, producer & EZMNY Records founder Ty$ is back for a brand new extended play of material. Becoming popular during my 1st half of high school when his 3rd mixtape Beach House dropped. Signing to both Atlantic Records & Taylor Gang Entertainment, his full-length debut Free TC in the fall of 2015 was welcomed to warm reception although Beach House 3 & Featuring Ty$ were both merely average compared to it’s predecessor. He’s also a part of the duos MihTy with Jeremiah & of course ¥$ alongside one of my top 10 producers of all-time Ye formerly known as Kanye West, the latter making their debut with Vultures during Super Bowl LVII weekend & dropping a widely panned sequel almost 6 months later. Tycoon would become the biggest entry in his solo career thus far & has decided to make some Girl Music.

“Nobody Has to Know” blends R&B & trap soul to get things going singing for the woman he’s with to take his soul whereas “3,000,000,000” produced by DJ Camper & Wax Motif tells this female that she’s been looking for love in all the wrong places. “Bad Bitch Alert” hooks up a guitar & some finger snaps to sing about how stunning his partner is while “Intention” featuring Brandy finds the wanting to know each other’s plans. “Miss U 2” featuring Leon Thomas III was a solid alternative R&B/trap soul single telling their lovers how much they miss them & “Good to Me” ends by singing about the one he needs over a piano.

From what I understand: Airplane Mode 2 & Purple Moon are still coming out, but an evening out in New York where Ty$ was at a restaurant where the DJ was playing all the right music had him constantly thinking of what kind of music women would like to hear & leans heavier towards the R&B side of his versatility throughout Girl Music than Tycoon & he’s already hinting at more installments going forward. Instrumentally, it’s a natural return to his R&B origins & to hear where he’ll take it on the next few entries does have me intrigued.

Score: 3.5/5

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The Scythe – “Strictly 4 the Scythe” review

The Scythe is a Memphis rap/trap collective consisting of Denzel Curry, A$AP Ferg, Bktherula, Key Nyata, TiaCorine, iloveit!, BEAUTIFULMVN, Oogie Mane, ilykimchi & Swaggyono. All of whom had appeared on Zel’s most recent mixtape King of the Mischievous South 2 & the best example of that being the “Hot One” single despite everyone having their own individually established histories of making music already. Loma Vista Recordings would go on to sign them as a unit right when 2026 began & are looking to make their official debut with a new mixtape succeeding nearly half of it being already released as singles.

BEAUTIFULMVN produces the group’s eponymous intro with TiaCorine & Ferg talking about slicing anyone who fucks with the crew whereas “Lit Effect” by Zel featuring Lazer Dim 700 hops over a murky instrumental from BNYX of Working on Dying to speak of people beefing on the internet because they’re broke. “Phony” with Ferg & Key Nyata featuring Juicy J goes for a Memphis vibe thanks to iloveit!, ilykimchi & Oogie Mane talking about being numbers only, but then “Mutt That Bitch” featuring 1900Rugrat was the only single of the 3 that I wasn’t head over heels for.

“Hoopty” by TiaCorine featuring Smino gets the 2nd half of the tape going by making all the girls going crazy until switching up in favor of a lyrically repetitive outro while the Miami bass-influenced “You Ain’t Gotta Lie” by Denzel Curry featuring Luh Tyler & 454 finds the trio showing off their wealth. “Tan” gives Bktherula & TiaCorine a few minutes for them to shine together talking about heading out for a trip to Hawaii while “Up” by A$AP Ferg featuring Rich the Kid ends with the 2 asking their type of women if they wanna roll with them.

Putting aside the couple underwhelming guest appearances here & there, The Scythe’s inaugural mixtape expands on the creative chemistry each of the 5 artists & 5 producers all bonded over a couple summers ago when King of the Mischievous South 2 dropped & have confidence of them possibly outdoing themselves if they ever came out with a full-length debut. From the Memphis-style trap production that the Working on Dying members/affiliates cook up to every single rapper having a distinctive personality of their own, one of the newest & most popular hip hop crews today have made their arrival.

Score: 3.5/5

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Nettspend – “Early Life Crisis” review

This is the full-length studio debut from Richmond, Virginia rapper & songwriter Nettspend. Blowing up in 2023 off his debut EP Kickdoor, he would also team up with Hooligan Lou for the poorly received collab EP 3rd Knock preceding him signing to Grade A Productions & Interscope Records a few months afterwards. His debut mixtape Badass Fucking Kid was welcomed to divisive feedback although I personally enjoyed it more than Kickdoor or Nettgenes’ eponymous debut EP. I also can’t forget to mention the beef he had with fakemink, squashing it in the middle of delaying Early Life Crisis last weekend.

“you ready?” produced by CXO begins with this rage-inducing lowend intro getting the audience prepared for what’s to time whereas “ce” named after his childhood friend Connor talks about not wanting to pull up because of the Gucci he’s dripped in. “pain talk” featuring OsamaSon finds the pair over a gyro instrumental flexing that their Black Range Rover shoots flames leading into “crack” talking about taking his time with this woman prior to calling her back.

Moving on from there, “still standing” keeps the hypertrap vibes going boasting that he hasn’t been knocked off his axis because of the bands he’s making just before “who tf is u?” talks about using his stick to kill 2 birds with 1 stone. “trap house 2016” discusses burning the trap house down to ashes whenever the cops come out & the Glock being too big for his lap while “masked up” featuring YoungBoy Never Broke Again links up for a decent rage-inducing gangsta rap track.

“stab” talks about feeling paranoid due to the way he’s living & his way of thinking being altered by the drugs & money that come with the fame while “halftime” references his past feud with fakemink that was recently put to rest whilst describing what he does during the late night hours. “meet me in richmond” kicks off the 2nd half talking about how nobody else is doing shit the way he is while “no sleep” expresses a desire to keep speaking to this woman he’s attracted to.

As for “<3”, we have Nettspend talking about feeling like his state’s version of the grim reaper after trying to love while “paris hilton” addresses the photo of him with the polarizing socialite that was taken a few months earlier. “sick” wants to know what this bitch will do if she ain’t having shit & putting his competition in flu season while “cross ‘em out” talks about being a Badass Fucking Kid instead of a pacifist, copping new guns with switches.

“shades” samples “23” by Juicy J, Miley Cyrus & Wiz Khalifa so he can describe being in the club high off Percocets wearing sunglasses while “plan b” talks about being a rebel with the right clientele. “make it bleed” breaks down living tax-free & modeling for Miu Miu while “hey, hello” confronts a hoe that he’s been communicating with regarding her being jealous of his other girl. “lil bieber” sends off the LP by talking about his desire to take no more Ls & the bridges he burns lighting the way he cruises.

Would I consider Early Life Crisis to be an equally groundbreaking rage album as Psykotic or Rest in Bass? No, but Badass Fucking Kid’s mixed reception got & the beef with fakemink had people quick to say that Nettspend was beginning to fall off or that his 15 minutes of fame are up when there are some considerable upgrades made here compared to that previous tape. The production for this style of trap makes some great usage of samples & the biggest change would be the more personal approach that was taken in terms of songwriting.

Score: 3.5/5

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La Reezy – “Leader of da Uth” review

This is the 6th EP from New Orleans, Louisiana based emcee/producer La Reezy. Introducing himself in 2023 off the full-length studio debut Reeborn, he would go on to follow it up with the debut EP We All Need Help as well as both Welcome to La Reezyana & Pardon Me, I’m Different preceding the self-produced Lareezyana Shakedown this past September. The latter I would personally tell you is the greatest thing he’s made so far. Coming off Free99$ however, the Leader of da Uth isn’t looking to slow down.

“Potna” comes off the rip with a boisterous dirty south instrumental talking about him getting ready to flip in this bitch while “Respect da Yungin’” once again throws it back to late 90s era No Limit & Cash Money Records demanding some due regards put on his name. “Da Coldest Prophet” leans towards a more soulful vibe talking about striving for greatness & after the “You Got It” skit, the final song “Man of da Hour” finishes his proclamation as Leader of da Uth by speaking of being the holy one.

Whether it’s the co-signs from Tyler, The Creator & J. Cole or spitting a verse during that Rap’s New Class cypher On the Radar recently put out, La Reezy has been continuously making case after case as to why he’s one of New Orleans’ most interesting artists on the rise & Leader of da Uth will most likely make up for anyone who found themselves on the fence with Free99$. The production here is stronger than the latter, fluctuating between the dirty south vibes from almost 3 decades prior & sampling chops to keep dropping the playful yet mature subject matter he’s been known for.

Score: 4/5

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Doggystyleeee – “Calm Before Riches” review

Here is the 8th EP from San Bernardino, California emcee Doggystyleeee reemerging for his 6th EP. Coming up 7 years ago off his full-length debut Into Somethin’, he would go on to put out his last 7 EPs as well as 5 mixtapes & a couple more albums garnering interest to the point where WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg almost signed him to Death Row Records not too long after purchasing the label from MNRK Music Group to revive it. Blame It on My Crippin’ & Split Personality produced by AC3Beats as well as & Music with Substance were all welcomed to divisive reception although I enjoyed them personally, reaching the Calm Before Riches.

“Gangsta” samples quite possibly Tha Dogg Pound’s greatest song “Let’s Play House” coming to the realization that his girl ain’t ever been with a g before whereas “Play Yo Part” sends some subtle advise over a cloudy Mobb beat. “Over You” goes for a g-funk vibe instrumentally talking about his refusal to waste any time on a desperate ass bitch while “Let’s Play House” puts a soulful spin on the 90s west coast sound so he can talk about driving hoes crazy.

The song “Majestics” luxuriously kicks off Calm Before Riches’ celebrating SoCal altogether while “Don’t Make Me Trip” warns not to push him over the edge because he stays about that gangsta shit in addition to getting money & staying out the way being the only 2 concerns of his. “Different Flavors” lastly sends off the EP with 1 last Mobb instrumental assuring he could be considered a kingpin the way he slangin’ & getting it out the mud.

Caught in tha Moment a few months earlier was catered more to the ladies because of a desire Doggystyleeee had to increase his female audience & I completely respect it despite not enjoying it as much as the other handful of EPs that came out last year, but he preludes The Reawakening by taking it back to basics for Calm Before Riches. I like the fact he selected only a few producers on board instead of a singular beatsmith to recapture that 90s west coast hip hop aura & tell stories of the gangsta life.

Score: 4/5

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LaRussell – “Something’s in the Water” review

This is the 32nd extended play & Roc Nation Records debut from Vallejo, California emcee LaRussell. For the past 8 years, the man originally known under the moniker Tota has been steadily hustlin’ in the west coast underground by putting out his last 31 EPs along with 5 full-length albums & 7 mixtapes as of me writing this. Personal favorites include the Hit-Boy produced Rent Due, the sequel Rent Paid, the Mike & Keys-produced Party on the Westside & Black Boy Fly. However, he’s having Lil Jon fully producing Something’s in the Water.

“I’m From the Bay” after the “United Bay of America” gets things started with a hyphy beat talking about coming from the northern parts of the sunshine state whereas “Wigglin’” succeeding the titular skit goes for a bit of a g-funk vibe almost counting money until his face turns blue. The synthesizers continue to seep their way through expressing a desire to do “More for Me” & after the Marshawn Lynch skit, “Wake Shit Up” reaches the halfway point talking about his involvement in bringing this crunk shit back.

After the “Chuy Gomez” skit, Kalan.FrFr joins LaRussell to moderately recall a “Hot Summer Night” out in the west coast while “Get Off Me” does a better job at maintaining the hyphy vibes talking about how saucy he is. “I Got Flavor” instrumentally keeps throwing it back to ‘06 when “Blow the Whistle” became amongst Too $hort’s most celebrated singles once again boasting his distinctiveness, but then “You’ve Reached LaRussell’s Phone” turns out to be the 5th & final skit.

“How Far Can You Go?” winds down the final minutes of Something’s in the Water posing that very question to the world & further elaborating the reality of those who don’t put in any effort never knowing if they’ll achieve any art of success until Malachi appears on the outro, helping the leader of the Good Compenny collective in making the kind of music that would make a “Thug Cry” & having a heart full of regret soon as the doves start soaring in the air even if his feature wasn’t much better than Kalan’s.

Something’s in the Water marks a full circle moment after LaRussell was listening to “Tell Me When to Go”by E-40 featuring Keak da Sneak or the previously mentioned $hort Dog single “Blow the Whistle” on the radio 2 decades ago, getting Lil Jon to snap out of that whole guided meditation phase he was in the middle of a couple years ago & nostalgically celebrating his hometown for a hyphy-lenient Roc Nation debut although neither of the guests stuck out in addition to the amount of skits being unnecessary. Can’t forget him concerningly saying that Jeffrey Epstein was “heaven sent” during a set.

Score: 4/5

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Rob Zombie – “The Great Satan” review

Rob Zombie is a 61 year old singer/songwriter, producer, filmmaker & actor from Haverhill, Massachusetts originally known for being the frontman of White Zombie. The band’s most iconic single “More Human Than Human” would become amongst the greatest industrial/groove metal tracks of all-time, disbanding in the summer of 1998 following Rob’s iconic solo debut Hellbilly Deluxe: 13 Tales of Cadaverous Cavorting Inside the Spookshow International under Geffen Records. I should also mention that House of 1,000 Corpses & The Devil’s Rejects are both classic horror films despite 3 from Hell disappointing me. The Sinister Urge & Educated Horseswere both ok, but I did enjoy the Roadrunner Records-backed Hellbilly Deluxe 2: Noble Jackals, Penny Dreadfuls & the Systematic Dehumanization of Cool as a sequel to his debut. Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor would come out through Rob’s own label Zodiac Swan Records & it was cool, although The Electric Warlock Acid Witch Satanic Orgy Celebration Dispenser & his Nuclear Blast Records debut The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy both produced by his engineer Zeuss were both much more enjoyable. So when I heard they were going for a 3-peat with Rob’s 8th album, of course I was excited for it.

“F.T.W. ‘84 (Fuck the World ‘84)” begins with this heavy intro singing about taking it back 4 decades earlier because of the times we’re living in presently whereas “Tarantula” proclaims to be a God amongst the Theraphosidae family of spiders. The 3rd & final single “(I’m a) Rock “N” Roller” blends industrial & groove metal for a homage to the late David Bowie single “Moonage Daydream” leading into “Heathen Days” throwing some thrash metal undertones in the mix singing about the days when chaos & war were constantly at our backs.

After the “Who Am I?” interlude, “Black Rat Coffin” continues the industrial metal vibes comparing the human race to a bunch of mice fading away inside of a casket just before Rob portrays a pirate by the name of “Sir Lord Acid Wolfman”. We get a fusion of industrial & trash metal on the lead single “Punks & Demons” ending the 1st leg encouraging those 2 kinds of people to keep bleeding on while “The Devilman” puts us inside the shoes of an entity who was meant to desecrate the shadows of the holy land.

“Out of Sight” pushes the 2nd half forward singing about wanting to be left alone as well as time eternally running out for everyone & all of us going down but after “Revolution Motherfucker” shows a more rebellious side to Rob getting wasted off the booze as much as he wants, “Welcome to the Electric Age” issues a stark warning regarding all the changes to our government & society at large within the past 13 months going on 14.

To wrap up The Great Satan’s final act, “The Black Scorpion” combines elements of thrash & industrial for a brief 93 seconds experiencing another nervous breakdown & praying for death until the final song explains his perspective of society being “Unclean Animals” in the grand scheme of things continuing the parallels between people & rats that we heard earlier. “Grave Discontent” however spends the last minute hooking up a synthesizer & some live drums.

Although I seem to be in the minority of people who enjoy The Electric Warlock Acid Witch Satanic Orgy Celebration Dispenser & The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy a lot more than most people do, The Great Satan surpasses both of them in becoming the greatest full-length Rob Zombie has done with Zeuss to date. The overall sound is much like White Zombie’s revered coda Astro-Creep: 2000: Songs of Love, Destruction & Other Synthetic Delusions of the Electric Head in that it’s predominantly based around the industrial & groove subgenres of metal music, taking it back to Rob’s roots over 4 decades later.

Score: 4.5/5

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Gorillaz – “पर्वत” review

Gorillaz is a virtual band from London, England, United Kingdom masterminded by Blur frontman Damon Albarn. Their eponymous 2001 debut produced by Dan the Automator as well as their 2005 sophomore effort Demon Days produced by Danger Mouse & lastly the self-produced Plastic Beach have all become classics in their own rights, even though The Fall & Humanz would leave audiences divided. The Now Now was more moderately received & Song Machine was hailed as their best in a decade, coming off their Cracker Island to declare their independence from Parlophone Records & Warner Records with their 9th album.

Black Thought appears on “The Moon Cave” after a primarily compositional intro desiring for a better bond if forever actually comes whereas “The Happy Dictator” blends synthpop, neo-psychedelia, new wave, art pop, psychedelic pop, zolo to sing about false promises of happiness. “The Hardest Thing” fuses art pop, psychedelic pop, electropop, neo-psychedelia, progressive pop & bedroom pop to explore themes of loss & heartbreak leading into “Orange County” featuring Kara Jackson singing about losing somebody through separation crossing over art pop, indie pop, neo-psychedelia, pop reggae, psychedelic pop & bedroom pop.

“The God of Lying” by Joe Talbot made for a decent neo-psychedelia, art pop, psychedelic pop, pop reggae, dub & trip hop single singing about grief & political division just before “The Empty Dream Machine” featuring Black Thought reunites the pair so they can discuss being chastened men. “The Manifesto” by Proof & Trueno however comes through with a 2-parter pulling from experimental hip hop, neo-psychedelia, folkhop, Indian pop, pop rap, psychedelic pop, hardcore hip hop, art pop & Latin rap to talk about morality.

We have Gorillaz confronting “The Plastic Guru” only to call him out because or his impure intentions while “Delirium” sings about calling for change after a more powerful force coming from the outside bringing fear & destruction emerges. “Damascus” by Yasiin Bey was actually a finalized outtake conceived during the Plastic Beach sessions combining dabke, experimental hip hop, electropop, electro hop & neo-psychedelia celebrating refugees as new arrivals while “The Shadowy Light” sings about obliviousness to the truth.

“Casablanca” winds down the last several minutes of The Mountain staring into an abyss & having the feeling that a tunnel to suburbia will be opening sooner rather than later while “The Sweet Prince” emotionally remembers Damon’s father Keith who passed away a couple years earlier. “The Sad God” featuring Black Thought finishes with both of them sharing the microphone 1 last time talking about each of them giving their lives in paradise only for there to be nothing left.

Being a fan of Gorillaz ever since I was in elementary school, पर्वत surpasses Song Machine for their best offering in the 2020s & couldn’t have been a better way to begin this new era of independence for them. The production leans towards a prominent neo-psychedelic art pop & electropop direction with lesser influences of synthpop, Hindustani classical music, hip hop, psychedelic pop, new wave, zolo, pop reggae, dub, trip hop, folkhop, Indian pop, pop rap, Latin rap, dabke & electro hop honoring those in the band’s lives who can’t be with us down to the slew of posthumous guest appearances.

Score: 4.5/5

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DJ Chase B – “Be Very Afraid” review

DJ Chase B is a 35 year old DJ, producer & songwriter from Houston, Texas known for being a longtime in-house producer/DJ for Cactus Jack Records. He also dropped a few stand-alone singles under Columbia Records at some point during the late 2010s/early 2020s like “Mayday” by Sheck Wes & Young Thug or “Cafeteria” by Don Toliver & Gunna, departing in 2022 & continuing to tease a curated solo debut with that “Ring Ring” track he dropped by Don Toliver & Huncho Jack few summers ago. He finally announced Be Very Afraid formally last weekend & Cactus Jack’s ready to put it out without a major label distributor.

After the titular intro, “Satellite” by SoFaygo samples “KELEBU” by Rema for a Mania outtake asking for his partner not to turn her back on him whereas “Rain” by Sheck Wes talks about pulling up with his squad being the only thing he needs. “Facts” by Big Sean & Travis Scott flips “1 Love” by Cleo Sol looking to capture a W if it’s a big one leading into “365” produced by Cardo experimenting with the Detroit sound even if Babyface Ray & GT’s verses clear Zona Man’s.

“Back in My Bag” by Dougie F might be one of the weaker cuts here mediocrely talking about being in his zone once again & after the compositional “Seoul Glow” intermission, “Off at 7” by Sheck Wes talks about being only a couple hours away from having his lover by his side. “Street Sweeper” by Swae Lee was more enjoyable than “Flammable” suggesting he’d call this a comeback despite never actually leaving while “Ring Ring” was a tolerable pop rap single with secondary influences of trap & contemporary R&B.

HVN gets a song of his own with “Options”, rounding out 3rd with another snoozer talking about turning his lifestyle into a hobby while “1st Round Pick” by SoFaygo & Wallie the Sensei tells the women they’re romantically involved with to quit acting like they can’t stand either one of them when they’re actually looking forward to the day they become their bitches. “Indie**” by bribandz wraps up Be Very Afraid talking about chasing a legacy rather than clout & money endlessly coming her way.

It’s already been hinted that DJ Chase B intends to make a whole entire series out of Be Very Afraid & although every artist presently signed to Cactus Jack Records making an appearance on his was a given, I still found myself on the fence with it a lot more than I had initially anticipated to. Both of the instrumental cuts caught me by surprise since I didn’t think he would drop them without having a performer over them & the guest list is alright, but it can feel dated at times.

Score: 2.5/5

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