Psycho Les is a 52 year old MC/producer from Queens, New York notable for being 1/2 of The Beatnuts alongside Juju as well as 1/5 of the Liknuts supergroup with Tha Alkaholiks. He eventually started carving a path for himself as a solo artist in the spring of 2007 with the debut album Psycho Therapy & returning almost a decade later for the weed-themed, feature-heavy sophomore effort Dank God. Ahead of the Real Psychos’ eponymous debut with B-Real next month, Eric Bobo & Stu Bangas are getting together to help Escape the Matrix on his 1st solo EP.
“S.O.S.” starts by spitting conscious lyricism over a boom bap instrumental cautioning of the world we know it today being in danger & considering yourself lucky if you’re still alive refusing to get on his Chuck D shit whereas “Crooks” featuring Snyp Life works in more kicks & snares with a delicate backdrop referring to themselves as the last ones of their kind pleading for everyone to take facts over fear. “Fire” featuring Blahzay Blahzay properly ends the EP with Outloud joining Les with PF Cuttin’ on the scratching to talk about the world burning.
Dank God had its high points, but I’ve always felt like it was overloaded with features in comparison to Psycho Therapy. And although Escape the Matrix only became a 3-track EP instead of a full-length studio album, what it offers in nearly 10 minutes is better than a lot of what was on that previous LP almost a decade ago. Eric Bobo & Stu Bangas both recapture the magic of their production throughout their Empires collaborative effort on 4/20 2021 keeping it underground traditional boom bap vibes alive & Les himself offers more politically conscious subject matter.
This is the 14th EP from Cobb County, Georgia rapper SoFaygo. Cementing himself as one of the biggest faces in the plugg/pluggnB & rage scenes in recent memory, he’s since gone on to drop a dozen EPs & it’s even resulted in Houston trap trailblazer Travis Scott signing him signed to a Cactus Jack Records for his long awaited full-length debut Pink Heartz couple years back even though reception towards it was generally mixed. He coincided with the 1-year anniversary of both him making it on the XXL Freshman Class & the release of B4Pink with Go+, returning to once again apply Pressure.
“Big Body” produced by thr6x starts by mixing trap & pop rap together melodically flexing that he’s been on that shit hopping out of the big bodies whereas “Road Rage” takes a bit of a psychedelic trap route instrumental staying geeked 24/7 including a dope reference to Nettspend. “Pointers / Act Up” is a 2-parter to begin the other half of Pressure rockin’ out with the diamonds around his neck making plays in the field & “Minute Maid” properly ties up the EP with an incredibly loud snare leaving the bank boasting that he might let it rain.
There’s been a lot of speculation in regards to whether or not SoFaygo had actually quit making music & not only did he debunk all of that by surprise releasing a 4-track 10 minute EP, but one that serves as a prequel to his upcoming sophomore effort Mania that was originally conceived as a sequel to his 2019 EP War. Even if I think the production is average for the most part, his performances aren’t too bad.
Mitcham, London, England, United Kingdom singer/songwriter Ella Mai celebrating her 30th birthday with her 4th EP. Signing to DJ Mustard’s very own Interscope Records imprint 10 Summers Records, her first few EPs Time as well as Change & Ready were all solid preludes ahead of her acclaimed eponymous full length debut studio album. Her sophomore effort Heart on My Sleeve would also be well received & 2 years later, she’s dropping off a 3-track offering produced by Mustard.
“Hearts on Deck” is this infectiously catchy ass opener singing about how this person’s next move better be the best one whereas “One of Those” samples I’ll Be Around” by Gnarls Barkley frontman Cee-Lo Green of the Goodie Mob subunit of the Dungeon Family collective admitting that she can’t get her boyfriend Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics off her mind. “Little Things” ends the EP on some trap soul vibes wanting to take some time thank y’all & just let you know just how you make her proud.
Introducing a fresh chapter in Mai’s career now that her 20s are behind her, 3 finds her & DJ Mustard’s reinforcing her signature soulful sound bringing listeners into a journey of love, connection & self-awareness. It also mirrors her personal growth & evolution, aligning beautifully with the themes of maturity & discovery reflected throughout the course of a 10 & a half minute listening experience without any features whatsoever.
Tuxedo is a synth-funk/boogie duo consisting of producer Jake One & frontman Mayer Hawthorne. Forming almost a decade ago, their eponymous full-length debut came out a couple months before I graduated high school with a sophomore effort coming down the pipe a couple years later & more recently their previous LP. It’s already been 5 years since we last saw Tuxedo together & since they took a break to focus on their own endeavors, I was thrilled for their 4th album.
“Hold Us” is a g-funk opener co-produced with DJ Battlecat reminiscing of the late, great king of hooks Nate Dogg to melodically detail shit sounding expensive so they pour up wanting to know if you know anything about that whereas “This is 4 You” brings a nu disco flare to the table reserving this ballad for a specific person in particular tonight. “Back 4 More” has a boogie driven direction singing of a love that’s never felt this good & “Think Twice” goes synth-funk advising both of their romantic interests not to overthink.
As for “Good Time 4 Ever”, we have Tuxedo maintaining a synth-funk vibe making sure you have a good time for the rest of your life & “Cake” right after the “Jake’s Groove” interlude inspired by DJ Quik of course throws it back to the Parliament-Funkadelic days a bit. “Ride with Me” returns to a g-funk edge homaging Nate once more, but then “Windows Down” charismatically throws it back to the Zapp/Roger Troutman era. The upbeat “4 Sure” dances on the ceiling above the floor & “We Made It” properly finishes the LP by shifting towards a smoother direction celebrating the duo’s success.
Bonding over a shared love of Parliament-Funkadelic & Zapp amongst other Zodiac signs in funk music altogether, Tuxedo finally make their comeback after their longest gap between releases yielding a bevy of absolute slappers that are packaged perfectly for dance floors in 2024 whether it be Jake One’s production pulling from g-funk to synth-funk & boogie or Mayer Hawthorne’s catchy vocal performances detailing the duo’s exuberant lifestyle.
The Cure are a well regarded post-punk/goth rock band from Crawley, West Sussex, England, United Kingdom consisting of bassist/keyboardist Simon Gallup, keyboardist Roger O’Donnell, guitarist Perry Bamonte, drummer Jason Cooper, guitarist Reeves Gabrels & frontman Robert Smith. They’ve made some of the most essential music within both subgenres like 17 Seconds, Faith, Pornography, The Head on the Door, my personal favorite Disintegration, Wish & even the eponymous effort that Ross Robinson produced. 16 long years later, they’re back together for their 14th album.
“Alone” starts by fusing goth rock with dream pop & ethereal wave drawing it’s inspiration from the Ernest Dowson poem “Dregs” whereas “& Nothing’s Forever” is a slow & string-heavy number singing about a promise Robert made to be with someone on their deathbed. “A Fragile Thing” crosses over into alt/goth rock turf with additional influences from drean pop & baggy music clarifying there’s nothing you can do to change the end, but then the gloomy “Warsong” sings that we’re all born for war.
To get the 2nd half going, “Drone:Nodrone” easily stands as the catchiest & most upbeat moment on the entire LP from a musical standpoint acknowledging a tumultuous relationship just before “I Can Never Say Goodbye” passionately laments the death of Robert’s brother Richard for 6 minutes. “All I Ever Am” sings about way love turns out every time from his perspective will never be enough & “Endsong” wraps things up with a 10-minute epic of a closer inspired by a starlit night that reminded Robert of a similar evening in 1969, stargazing in the back garden with his father when Apollo 11 landed on the moon.
The goth rock/post-punk icons return after an over a decade dealing almost exclusively in death, dying & the relentless march of time inspired by David Bowie’s 26th & final album ★. The songs move slowly & many go on for minutes before Smith opens his mouth. No pop hits, no hooks & really no fun. It’s also some of the band’s most engrossing work, a statement that like most great Cure songs can’t be taken lightly.
This is the 3rd full-length studio LP from Detroit trap star DaeMoney. Coming up as the nephew of one of the 2 biggest artists in the city right now Babyface Ray as well as a now former member of the WRLD Tour Mafia collective, he broke out on his own by dropping his debut mixtape Young Sexual Misconduct & his debut EP Slae Season accompanied by his 2nd EP Rockstar Lifestyle & Slae Season 2. Slae went on to sign to EMPIRE Distribution couple summers ago & celebrated in the form of his Slayer’s Coming EP fully produced by Trees shortly after as well as the final installment of the Slae Season trilogy & a sequel to Rockstar Lifestyle. He was surprisingly dismissed from WRLD Tour this spring due to scamming through Slam A Slut Records & is returning as The Godson.
The title track sets the tone of what’s to come with this mafioso trap instrumental letting y’all in on the family business & explaining the way he got out of the hood whereas “Snotball” featuring Babytron brings the 2 together for a Detroit trap highlight. “All My Sons” featuring Peezy continues to apply pressure under Detroit trap tip showcasing both the subgenre’s different generations while “Fuck Slae” hooks up pianos & 808s getting smarter with age.
“SpongeBob & Patrick” has this energetic Detroit trap vibe throughout flexing that his naysayers can’t stand it when he be goin’ hard just before the wavy “King of the Hill” talks about coming from the trenches. “Vice City” has a meditative trap atmosphere rockin’ 20 venues straight leading into the cloudy Detroit trap hybrid “07 Melo” compares himself to Carmelo Anthony in his prime.
Rally joins Slae for the slow-tempo “Sam Called Me Billy” talking about how late really far from the millions while the synth-driven “Kurt Cobain” produced by LulRose flexes a bitch blowing brains exactly like the iconic Nirvana frontman. “Manifest” pushes further down the 2nd half of The Godson doing everything differently prior to “Painting” explains the streets being dangerous due to the snitches & snakes.
“Can’t Sleep” gets the final leg of the LP going on a psychedelic note boasting that there’s no trading for the WRLD Tour Mafia even after the fact that him & Rafa had fallen out with each other while “Superstar” takes a couple of minutes of our time to show off his current status. “Game Winning Speech” ends by reflecting on going from chillin’ in the projects to where he is now.
Becoming a fan of WRLD Tour about 2 & a half years ago when DaeMoney was still a part of the group, I still look at him as one of the most talented members & will continue to support him on his solo endeavors as is the same with Slam A Slut. What about The Godson? It’s another consistent Detroit trap project that you’d expect from him. He pretty much breaks down his titular position playing a significant role in his success & the production mainly basing itself around the city’s unique take on trap.
New York emcee/producer Bishop Nehru self-producing his 3rd LP. Starting out dropping a couple beat tapes before emerging in the underground off the solid debut mixtape Nehruvia, he profile would only begin to increase in 2014 by signing to Mass Appeal Records & form the duo NehruvianDOOM alongside the late MF DOOM & putting out an overlooked self-titled effort together that same fall. Bishy would leave Mass Appeal a couple years later to drop 2 full-lengths Elevators & My Disregarded Thoughts on his own, both of which I look at as some of the best shit he’s ever done. He would also drop 7 EPs & 5 more mixtapes, the most recent being Kult Life: From Pain to Paintings. To start November though, Nehru’s finding Solace in Shadows.
“Seeking Solace” is a heavy sample-driven opener talking about Bishy Chulo searching for comfort whereas “I Don’t Know” soulfully promises to make everything all his despite if he doesn’t know if the vision’s seen. “Been So Cold” takes the boom bap route instrumentally flexing how long he’s been in the game killing shit leading into “Defying Odds” keeping the kicks & snares in tact making it to the stages after days in the hallways.
Meanwhile on “Vanilla Frosting”, we have Nehru sampling a woodwind taking a break from the mic for 135 seconds so he demonstrate his sampling skills flipping a prominent woodwind prior to the “Breaking the Rules” talking about tryna take it to the next level over a bagpipe & later the hardcore “Rap Leonardo da Vinci (So Please)” flexing his artistry. “I Don’t Care” boasts him taking the unclear road, but then the crooning “Good Thing I Know” promises you won’t come back if you cross him.
“Mr. Pessimistic” starts the encore of Solace in Shadows admitting that life’s been crazier than a Tesla in the fast lane while the orchestral boom bap hybrid “Look Within” telling you how you can change outside. “Mind over Matters” takes it further down the basement explaining the only thing that really matters while “All in the Plan” soulfully reassures that this God’s plan. “The Best Me” ends by talking about giving y’all the best version of himself.
I did enjoy the first entry of the Kult Life series of EP & several months later, Bishop has outdone himself by putting out an album that lives up to both of it’s predecessors. The production that he cooked up all by himself is a step above the previously mentioned EP that we got from him early into 2024 & conceptually, he’s taking us through the experiences of him finding comfort within the shadows.
Indiana emcee Freddie Gibbs returning after Halloween for his 5th LP. Coming up in 2004 with his debut mixtape Full Metal Jackit. he would then sign to Interscope Records for a brief period of time until he left without dropping an album with them. This was made up for with the mixtapes The Miseducation of Freddie Gibbs & Str8 Killa No Filla, which would catch the attention of Jeezy & land Freddie a contract with CTE World in 2011. However, Gibbs eventually left CTE the following year after releasing the tapes Cold Day in Hell & B.F.K. (BabyFace Killa). In 2013, he decided to form his own label E$GN Records & finally dropped the full-length album E.$.G.N. (Evil $eeds Grow Naturally). He & iconic Oxnard producer Madlib would drop their MadGibbs debut Piñata the year after that, which is EASILY one of the greatest hip hop albums of the previous decade. Gibbs continued to grow his profile after that with Shadow of a Doubt, You Only Live 2wice, Freddie, the Curren$y collab EP Fetti & who can forget MadGibbs’ sophomore effort Bandana or Alfredo produced by The Alchemist? E$GN signed a new distribution deal with Warner Records in tandem with $oul $old $eparately to positive reception & returning to that You Only Live 2wice essence on You Only Die 1nce.
“Status” is this drumless intro talking about currently being at the throne of the rap game whereas “Cosmo” works in these exuberant ass piano chords continuing to win as long as everyone else keeps singin’. “Wolverine” produced by 454 stays in the castle since the streets ain’t worth the hassle hookin’ up some layering & background vocals, but then the soulful trap crossover “Brick Fees” gets in his hustler bag.
Moving on from there, “Rabbit Island” discusses life being exactly what you make of it over this calming & crisp instrumental while “It’s Your Anniversary” offers a west coast flare likening his MCing abilities to that of a crack attack. After the “Nobody Like You” interlude, “30 Girlfriends (Yeah Yeah)” shifts into a lush trap direction refusing to let anyone make a move on him just before the highlight “Steel Doors” that BNYX of Working on Dying laced with iloveit! seals his legacy.
“Walk It Off” starts the final leg of You Only Die 1nce on the symphonic trap tip courtesy of 454 pointing out how everyone wants to see us against each other while the chilled out “Ruthless” featuring Leon Thomas III on the remix thanks to Freddie’s manager Lambo interestingly talks about maintaining the titular mentality. “Origami” finds BNYX excellently dabbling with boom bap so Gibbs can try to get paid & “On the Set” gives his flowers to the late Rich Homie Quan.
Starting the deluxe run, “Outside” talks about staying strapped whenever he’s out in the streets while “Axxtion” after the “Pain from Paradise” interlude samples “Flex” by Mad Cobra encouraging a woman to get in his 2-seater to fuck. “Immigrants” details laughing to keep himself from crying & a homicide staying on his mind over a Boi-1da beat while “Summertime Homicide” brings in a Swaggyono instrumental to talk about driving with the top off regardless of the weather.
“Torture” confesses that the fame has left him scarred & being unable to handle it but after the “Heartbreak in Heaven” interlude, “Rabbit Mode” boasts the fact that his shows have been selling out when Instagram constantly banned him for the wild memes he posted. The final bonus track “Nobody Like You” ends on a more self-reflective note talking about his childhood experiences & relationships with women.
Coming off one of the best verses of his entire career on “Back to Me” off ¥$’ debut album Vultures at the beginning of the year, You Only Die 1nce proves quite the treat for devotees for his razor-sharp raps. The production ranges from boom bap to drumless, jazz rap & trap holding off on having any guests join him, giving himself further room for the Freddie Kane persona’s return now that he’s off Warner.
Here we have the 8th studio LP from Buffalo, New York emcee, songwriter, entrepreneur, curator & now professional wrestling promoter/booker with the foundation of his own 4th Rope independent circuit promotion Westside Gunn. Proving his legend status & that he’s to be a force to be reckoned with all in nearly a decade whether it be running one of the hottest hip hop labels in recent memory to his first 2 full-lengths FLYGOD & Supreme Blientele. He just put out the 11th installment of his infamous Halloween mixtape series Hitler Wears Hermes yesterday & is now following up And Then You Pray for Me with Still Praying.
After the “Waly Fay” intro & the “Justin Roberts” skit provided by the AEW Yapper Dapper who started in WWE over 2 decades ago, the first song “Beef Bar” produced by Denny LaFlare & Statik Selektah is a lavish boom bap opener welcoming everyone to the lifestyles of the rich & famous whereas “Max Caster” named after the former AEW World Tag Team Champion & AEW World Trios Champion of The Acclaimed dustily worries about the almighty dollar. “Dr. Britt Baker” featuring Brother Tom Sos named after the former AEW Women’s World Champion keeps it in the basement thanks to DJ Muggs introducing y’all to the dentist who gave them multi-million dollar smiles & “I Know Verdy” maintains a boom bap edge refusing to show pity.
“Speedy 40” hopped over this slow, morbid instrumental from long-time Griselda in-house producer Daringer talking about being too greedy while the cutthroat “Duran Duran” that JR Swiftz laced salutes Jeff Hardy of the current 3-time TNA World Team Champions The Hardy Boyz. “Runway Pieces at the Last Supper” works in a mellow backdrop mixed with kicks & snares reflecting on the war they used to have while “Free Shots” by Hall ‘N Nash or hip hop’s equivalent to former 2-time AEW World Tag Team Champions, ROH World Tag Team Champions, AAA Mundial Parejas Campeons, IWGPタッグチャンピオン, & 5-time WWE tag team champions FTR after “Bike Air” interlude pays homage to incarcerated Drumwork Music Group artist Shots Almigh over a Conductor Williams beat.
The title track featuring Benny the Butcher, Boldy James, Conway the Machine & Stove God Cook$ pushes towards the final moments of Still Praying with this insane 7-minute Griselda posse cut while the song “Underground King” featuring Rome Streetz returns to the boom bap talking about how both of them are the greatest of all shit talkers including a reference to former 2-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, 2-time WCW World Television Champion, 3-time WCW World Tag Team Champion & 5-time WWE United States Champion Lex Luger. “LeSalle Station” properly finishes the album by reflecting on all the people that he’s lost back to back.
Coming off the most personal project that West has ever made Hitler Wears Hermes XI only 24 hours ago, he’s continuing the hot streak with a follow-up to And Then You Pray for Me that I think people are gonna like a lot more than the predecessor. The production is rooted in the traditional boom bap sound Griselda is known for in contrast to the trap heavy influences of last time & the guests all maintain his level on the mic.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania rapper & singer Lil Uzi Vert starting November with their 4th LP. Becoming a household name in the trap scene with their 2015 mixtape LUV is Rage & then Lil Uzi Vert vs. the World the following year, Uzi has been entangled with a nasty legal battle with Generation Now Entertainment/Atlantic Records from their debut LUV is Rage 2 until the sophomore effort Eternal Atake came out in March of 2020 to moderate reception & followed it up a week later with the far superior Lil Uzi Vert vs. the World 2 that spawned the deluxe version trend where artists would drop a “deluxe version” of their newest project that’s basically an entirely new album. Red & White was a solid prelude to The Pink Tape which received mixed feedback, so they’re making an Eternal Atake sequel to fulfill their long-standing Generation Now/Atlantic contract.
“We Good” produced by WondaGurl & Cashmere Cat perfectly begins with this booming trap instrumental admitting they’ve been going through a Nitrous addiction much like Ye formerly Kanye West did whereas “Light Year (Practice)” works in a rage beat from Brandon Finessin’ of Working on Dying to talk about their love for ratchet bitches including a reference to the great one Wayne Gretzky of the Edmonton Oilers & Los Angeles Kings. “Meteor Man” samples the theme from the Halo video game series flexing their aura just before “Paars in the Mars” talks sipping wock with a bunch of vocal effects.
Meanwhile on “The Rush”, we have Big Time Rush of all groups joining Uzi for the psychedelic trap vibes so Uzi can pay homage to them getting high feelin’ like he’s flyin’ until “Not an Option” goes into hypertrap territory once again telling everyone to stop saying they don’t got guap. “She Stank” atmospherically explaining why they ain’t wanna fuck this bitch, but then the triumphant “Mr. Chow” flexes the check.
“Lyft ‘Em Up” starts the 2nd half of EA2 runnin’ through shit over a rich trap beat from BryceUnknwn while the bombastic “Chips & Dips” applies further pressure likening their bands to braids referencing AEW’s newest signing Bobby Lashley of The Hurt Syndicate who was also a former 4-time TNA World Champion, TNA X Division Champion, 3-time WWE United States Champion, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion & 4-time WWE world champion. “Black Hole” pulls a bit from the drill scene reflecting on the days when they were broke & doing better now while the mellow “Chill Bae” gets in their breakup bag tackling a relationship that feels like a chore at this point.
The final leg kicks off with “Goddard Song” talking about a chick is trying to eat their swag up on top of a nostalgic trap instrumental while the trippy “PerkySex” obviously talked about having sex under the influence of percocets. “Conceited” publicly tells their girlfriend JT of prior City Girls fame that they can’t live without her & “Space High” is the highly anticipated Ebro Darden diss, which I enjoy as a diss down to the Trgc beat & since I’ve said in the past that I’m not a big Ebro fan.
The Pink Tape still very much had it’s highlights & some of Uzi’s best songs regardless of the low points on there like the shitty System of a Down cover. With that being said: Eternal Atake 2 here is basically similar to ¥$’ sophomore effort Vultures 2 except worse. Mike Dean’s mixing/mastering is perfect & Cashmere Cat producing more than half of it was a good call since I got put on him through his early EPs, it’s that Uzi’s addiction to nitrous also known as whippets or galaxy gas is really spiraling out of control. Hope they get the help they need like Ye did, who’s now currently working on his upcoming 11th album Bully in Japan.
