maticulous – “no caps” review

maticulous is a 40 year old producer from Brooklyn, New York who originally broke out a decade ago off his eponymous debut EP & then a self-titled debut a few years later. This was followed up with The Chrome Tape in 2016 but after producing a couple albums for Justo the MC More recently, he’s dropping a sophomore EP with a jam-packed cast of MCs coming along for the ride.

“Shouts To…” by Homeboy Sandman starts off the EP with an alluring boom bap propping up those who got him out of a bind whereas “Everything” by Justo the MC & Skyzoo finds the pair putting all on the line on top of some strings. “Close Range” by J Scienide & Kev Brown takes a more soulful route getting at their competition, but then “Home Goin’” by Guilty Simpson is an airy boom bap cut detailing going to a funeral with the killers in the room.

Meanwhile on “Take Heed”, we have Breeze Brewin’ & Al Skratch coming together over a harp-laced instrumental advising to watch your surroundings just before “Bein’ This Nice” by Uptown XO & yU gets in that grimy shit talking bag. The penultimate track “Keep ‘Em High” by Beedie, Justo the MC & Rim has a more smoother vibe encouraging listeners to move with them & the closer “Survival Mode” by Ill Conscious & M.A.V. has some slick guitar melodies speaking on how it’s normal for them trying not to get killed in the hood.

Between this & the self-titled joints, I think no caps has to my favorite solo projects that maticulous has dropped so far. Some of the best beats he’s ever made pop up on here & the guests are a bit more consistent in terms of their performances.

Score: 4/5

Stanwill – “Full Auto” review

Here is the 3rd solo EP from Detroit, Michigan rapper Stanwill. Coming up as 1/3 of the ShittyBoyz with Babytron & TR Dee signing to Lando Bando’s own The Hip Hop Lab Records, he eventually branched out on his own during the COVID-19 pandemic off last summer the debut EP $camwill as well as it’s successor Gifted turning 1 this winter & the debut mixtape Van Gundy earlier this year. However, he’s looking to completely go Full Auto in preparation for a full-length debut studio album.

The self-produced “Slime Ball” starts by talking a whole lot of gang shit whereas “Ándale” flexes that he & the rest of the Dog $hit Militia collective will slide in ア・ベイシング・エイプ, which is one of my favorite clothing brands personally. “Max Payne” references the Rockstar Games-owned franchise of the same name & promising a mugger he’ll get his ass beat if he tries him while “Fast Lane” talks about living in the fast lane.

“Been That” gives a shoutout to Louis Vuitton men’s creator, Off-White founder & RSVP Gallery founder Virgil Abloh for the fit leading into “8 Phones” talking about not giving a fuck regarding the little guns or petty stacks because they got bigger sticks & longer money. “Kick Ass” finishes the Full Auto experience by talking about receiving slow head because the whip’s too fast, spending a total of $400 on 2 steaks.

I wouldn’t rank Full Auto above $camwill or Chosen, but it’s still a worthy Detroit trap solo EP from Stanwill displaying what he’s capable of doing by himself ahead of his inaugural LP whenever he decides to put it out. Production isn’t as interesting as the Van Gundy tape or his first couple EPs, except I like that he holds down the mic by himself as opposed to the guests on Full Auto’s predecessors.

Score: 3.5/5

Meek Mill – “Expensive Pain” review

Meek Mill is a 34 year old MC & songwriter from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania who started out in the battle circuit before T.I. briefly signed him to Grand Hustle Records. Once he left, Rick Ross brought him over to Maybach Music Group & has continued to make himself at home over there to this day. Throughout the last decade, we’ve seen a handful of ups & downs in his career. The critically acclaimed Dreamchasers mixtape series, his beef with Drake & who could forget where he was sentenced to 6 years in prison by a corrupt judge only to be released 5 months later? Meek’s last album Championships was seen as his most mature body of work yet despite being a tad bit bloated but after 3 years of singles & EPs, he’s finally following it up with his 5th full-length album.

“Hate on Me” kicks things off with Cardo sampling the Nas joint “Hate Me Now” as well as Meek going at his detractors whereas “Outside (100 MPH)” gets boastful over a more darker instrumental with a bassy switch up during the final verse. “On My Soul” contains a sumptuous Fuse beat with Meek talking about getting everything leading into Lil Baby & Lil Durk going back & forth with him on top of a Bulgarian sample for “Sharing Locations”. The title track has a moodier sound talking about the shit he went through with this money just before “Ride for You” serves as a boring attempt at a lovey dovey radio hit.

“Me (Fuckin’ With Me)” has a skeletal Boi-1da instrumental as Meek & A$AP Ferg saying no one’s on their level, but then Moneybagg Yo tags along for the uneventfully-produced “Hot” bragging about being those dudes. “Love Train” has a more lush sound to it with Meek venting about people switching on him while “Northside Southside” with Giggs murkily gets on their gang shit.

“We Slide” with Young Thug emotionally opens up on the struggles throughout their lives with a perfectly suiting piano instrumental from Tay Keith whereas “Tweaking” almost has a boom bap flare to it saying he’s too rich to pay hoes referencing Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. I think it’s pretty cool how “Love Money” works in some guitars talking about how he doesn’t love the paper anymore & “Blue Notes 2” with Lil Uzi Vert serves as an average sequel to the Dreamchasers 4 cut of the same name.

“Angels” is an emotional tribute to the late Lil Snupe just before finishing off the “Cold Hearted” trilogy with the hazy “Cold Hearted III”. The penultimate track “Halo” despite it’s nondescript production opens up about knowing too many angels & the 30 Roc-produced “Flamerz Flow” ends the album with a hungry freestyle.

As much of a fiery comeback Championships was, I didn’t really expect much from Expensive Pain given that most of the singles were mid. Lo & behold: That mediocrity carries it’s way onto the album. You got barely more than half of it being straight up bangers & the rest is just completely forgettable.

Score: 3/5

Summrs – “Nothing More Nothing Less” review

This is the latest full-length album from Lafayette rapper Summrs. Coming up as a member of the Goonie-founded Slayworld collective, he’s made his presence known in the plugg scene by constantly dropping projects whether it be the All Summr trilogy or his most recent EP What We Have which in my opinion would the recommended go to if you’re unfamiliar with the kid already. However only 4 months later, he continues to grind his ass off by putting out Nothing More Nothing Less.

The titular intro begins the album with Summrs & Goyxrd atmospherically looking back at going from the loser in his high school to being the man leading into the cloudy “Never Ever” addressing a person faking the funk. “Like a Band” smoothly details his exquisite life whereas “In the Name of U” glossily speaks on getting high to honor a woman named Brenda who’s no longer in his life.

“From da Heart” is quite possibly the most personal cut on the album detailing his emotional pain with a moody instrumental just before the nocturnal “Blood Always Thicker” pays tribute to his friends, family & fans. “Can’t Make This Up” has some lush synth melodies getting romantic, but then the Autumn!-produced “Da MVP” serves as a mellow victory lap.

Meanwhile on “First 48”, we have Summrs entrancingly getting in his gangsta back & “Back 2 da Basics” comes through with a killer off-the-top freestyle lasting a couple minutes. The penultimate track “I’m Ready” speaks on keeping the Draco with him at all times over some synths & hi-hats while “Where We Left Off / Real Me” is a well sequenced 2-parter that finishes the album talking to his lover.

Coming away from Nothing Less Nothing More, it’s probably my favorite album of his thus far & I’m curious to hear how Evolved II is gonna sound in a couple weeks. He puts his own unique spin on the plugg sound by continuing to infuse elements of R&B as shown on What We Have, but I would love a project from him produced entirely by Autumn! because they’re the plugg equivalent to Future & Metro Boomin’.

Blizzard – “Duel with Death” review

Blizzard is a 29 year old artist from Detroit, Michigan notable for co-founding the Yung Fam Mafia back in 2007 & more recently becoming an in-house producer for Middle Finger Music a little while after it’s inception. But to celebrate his born day, he’s treating fans to a full-length debut showcasing his production skills & bringing along a promising lineup of local MCs.

After the “Tao of Death” intro, the title track by Aztec the Barfly & Kid Vishis starts the album off with some angry battle bars on top of dusty drums & a haunting soul sample whereas “Flying Guillotine” by J-Classic & Ty Farris eerily proclaims themselves as the last of a dying breed. “Barrage of Tigers” by the Twin Towers vaingloriously stomps at their opposition’s necks leading into an operatic instrumental being worked in on “8 Gates” for Big Herk, Hatch Wiseguy & P.L. to talk their shit.

Meanwhile on “Lotus Leaf”, we have Blizzard taking things into a jazzier direction as A-Minus & Finale to talk about letting the hate in their hearts go just before the piano-tinged “Drunken Boxing” by Bang Belushi & Vstylez speaks on holding it down for their city. “Konichi Death Squad” by C.R.I.M. & Miz Korona brings in some horns to quench for blood, but then “Pray 4 Death” by Spoda uncannily gets on his ignorant shit.

The song “Praying Mantis” by 2 Door Coupé has a bit of a chipmunk soul flare reminding everyone that Middle Finger Music is taking over the game while the penultimate track “Slummz” by Guilty Simpson briefly but powerfully details what it’s like in his hood. “Like Water” by Isaac Castor & even Blizzard himself then finishes the album off on some spacey boom bap shit saying this ain’t for amateurs.

Of all the producer album that I’ve heard this year, I think Duel with Death could very well be the best one of them all. I love that Blizzard demonstrates his versatility behind the boards & how he brought in everyone from the OGs to the newcomers to let them do what they do best on the mic.

Score: 4/5

Crimeapple – “Cartagena” review

Crimeapple is a 35 year old MC from Hackensack, New Jersey who came onto my radar in the fall of 2017 with his 4th EP Sweet Dreams along with his Big Ghost Ltd. produced full-length debut Aguardiente that following spring. His profile began to grow after dropping the DJ Skizz-produced Wet Dirt & the DJ Muggs-produced Medallo the next year, but his output since then has been either hit or miss with me personally. However, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t excited to hear that he was re-enlisting Muggs for his 7th album right here.

“Grey Skies” is a glorious opener about him waking up feeling unstoppable whereas “Bathtubs Full of Veuve” takes things into boom bap turf spitting that fly shit. “Tony 2C” goes into a drearier direction reminding us he got that dope on demand leading into Stove God Cook$ tagging along for the battle rap piano ballad “Mermaids”.

“Meanwhile on “Papas”, we have Crimeapple jumping on top of a Daringer-inspired boom bap instrumental talking about getting a bag just before “Cheap Work” has a bit of a dark industrial sound letting us know he’s in that getting money stage. “Designer Label” has an unsettling atmosphere in the production detailing how it is from the cradle to the grave back to the cradle, but then “Reputation” has a more celebratory vibe saying he don’t care about the bullshit.

“Some More Paper” has some chilling organ harmonies confessing that’s all he really needs at this point whereas “Kleenex” brings in a guitar saying he’s been to shit since seeing TGIF on Fridays. The song “Swish” continues the rock vibes proclaiming the throne to the rap game while the penultimate track “Peligrosisimo” grimily flexes his Spanish. “Fly Shit” with RLX then ends the album by going at those who envy them.

From the moment Muggs initially announced Cartagena, I knew he was gonna give Crime what his last couple projects have been lacking & am more than satisfied with the end results. He’s been one of the nicest lyricists to come out of New Jersey in recent memory & that hasn’t changed at all, but the production on here in comparison is like night & day.

Score: 4.5/5

Gavlyn – “Say Less, Love More” review

Gavlyn is a 31 year old MC from San Fernando Valley, California who first emerged nearly a decade back off her debut album From the Art, which was later followed up by Habit That You Blame as well as Modest Confidence & Make Up for Your Break Up. But she’s been working very closely with former Funk Volume in-house producer DJ Hoppa since 2016, her last 2 outings Why Wait? & Headspace both going onto become what I believe are her best bodies of work yet. However, they’re back from a 3-year hiatus for Gavlyn’s 7th full-length outing.

After the titular intro, the first song “Creative Muscle” starts out meditatively tells the listeners to exercise such whereas “About Us” smoothly tells listeners that she feels accomplished. “Break the Mold” spaciously pleads to help define her leading into “There’s Only 1” goes into boom bap turf saying ain’t nobody like her.

Meanwhile on “Nothing To It”, we have Gavlyn soothingly reminding everyone that life comes & goes just before “Stepping Stones” serves as a piano trap banger saying she’s come to far to stop. “Self Love” is a jazzy boom bap ode to one’s own happiness, but then “Born with It” vibrantly talks about her shining like a jewel.

“Take It Slow” comes through with a sensual romance ballad while the song “Audrey May” is a twangy depiction of her life up to this point. The penultimate track “Feel a Way” goes back into boom bap territory addressing an unnamed lover & “Stop Trippin’” ends the album with another jazz-tinged cut advising not to lose your inner person.

Say Less, Love More could very well be Gavlyn’s magnum opus in my eyes. You can really hear her growth as a lyricist throughout it’s half hour runtime & DJ Hoppa continues to bring the best out of her, as he takes his production game to a whole new level.

Score: 4/5

D Smoke – “War & Wonders” review

D Smoke is a 35 year old MC from Inglewood, California most notable for being the older brother of R&B singer/Top Dawg Entertainment signee SiR. He made his full-length debut in the spring of 2006 with Producer of the Year, but re-emerged in 2019 off his debut EP Inglewood High & then the Grammy nominated sophomore album Black Habits only 4 months later. However after keeping things on the low throughout a bulk of this year, D Smoke is returning in the form of his 3rd album.

The title track is a bouncy opener saying only 1 voice matters in a world between good & evil, but then “Dirty Mercedes” has a bit of a smooth boom bap feel talking about how he got ways to go. “Shame on You” takes a mistier direction going at those who don’t understand his shit leading into the Dem Jointz-produced “Road Rage” thunderously proclaiming the streets as his.

Meanwhile on “Mind My Business”, we have D Smoke going into detail about why he stays in his own lane on top of an laidback instrumental whereas the Tobe Nwigwe-assisted “Find My Way” goes back into boom bap turf looking back on their younger days. Shady Records’ very own Westside Boogie hops on board for the stripped back “Crossover” going at those faking the funk just before “Common Sense” with SiR finds the siblings on top of some jazz shit pondering the price we pay for the titular topic.

“Why Run?” is a rich reminder that life’s what you make it & “Stay True” is a jazz trap fusion about always keeping it real. “Say Go” brings in some Viking-esque horns talking about his homies hydroplaning while “Good Thing” serves as a vibrant banger about positivity coming in many forms.

Fireboy DML pretty much dominates “Sleepwalking” getting romantic with some acoustic while the song “Better Half” is a chipmunk soul-tinged tribute to D Smoke’s lady. The penultimate track “Clockwork” is an R&B-tinged cut about being loved like the world is ending & “Free Write” rounds it out with a funky fresh freestyle.

For those who dug Inglewood High & Black Habits, I think you’re gonna like War & Wonders evenly. Sure there are some portions that’re blatantly inspired by Kendrick Lamar, but I dig the whole concept of him detailing what it was like for him growing up in the city of Inglewood.

Score: 3.5/5

Blu – “The Color Blu(e) review

Blu is a 38 year old MC from Los Angeles, California who became notorious in the underground in 2007 when he & Exile dropped their debut album Below the Heavens: In Hell Happy with Your New Imaginary Friend. Since then, he’s managed to put out a handful of collab projects & solo efforts of his own. The most notable being: Her Favorite Colo(u)r, the M.E.D.-assisted Bad Neighbor produced by Madlib, the Oh No-produced A Long Red Hot Los Angeles Summer Night & the Damu the Fudgemunk-produced Ground & Water. But with the 1-year anniversary of the 3rd Blu & Exile album Miles: From an Interlude Called Life passing by over the summer, Blu is enlisting Nature Sounds to back up his 7th full-length solo outing right here.

“I Am Blu(e)” starts off the album with some keyboard embellishments going on about how magnificent he is whereas “Everyday Blu(e)s” has a bit of a jazz flare to it saying he shakes off negativity every day. “People Call Me Blu(e)” incorporates an ill ass blues sample reminding everyone who the fuck he is, but then “Because the Sky’s Blu(e)” harmoniously proclaims himself as a reflection of God.

Meanwhile on “You Ain’t Never Been Blu(e)”, we have Blu jumping on top of some pianos to get conscious leading into “I Was Born to Be Blu(e)” flipping the Ella Fitzgerald cut of the same name telling us he was destined for this. “Blu(e)r Than Blu[e]” fuses orchestral & boom bap bragging about himself just before “We’re Darker Than Blu(e)” serves as a heavenly pro-black theme.

The song “Mr. Blu(e) Sky” is an upbeat ode to living in the moment while the penultimate track “Mr. Blu(e)” has some crooning vocals & trumpets sending a message to the youth. “Blu(e) World” ends the album with an angelic sample & paying tribute to the coolest kid in his city named Ricky.

This dude’s been in the game for nearly 15 years at this point & still come together with incredible music like it’s nothing because I think The Color Blu(e) is amongst his best solo efforts. Blu’s jots down some of the most personal lyrics of his entire career & the production is very creative.

Score: 4/5

The Grouch & Eligh – “What Would Love Do?” review

The Grouch & Eligh are a duo from California who both came up in the mid-90’s as members of the seminal West Coast underground outfit Living Legends & unified as a pair in 2000 off their full-length debut G&E Music. This was followed up with No More Greener Grasses in ‘03 & then Say G&E! in ‘09, but started focusing on other projects after the release of 333 in 2014. However about 7 & a half years later, they’ve seen fit to reunite in the form of their 4th album.

After the titular intro, “Love Feels” is a beautiful piano-laced opener asking if the listener is vibing with them leading into “Dreams” euphorically going back & forth about some of the dreams that they’ve had themselves. “Handball” weaves in a mesmerizing vocal sample putting both of their charisma on display whereas the Mistah F.A.B.-assisted “Ghost” has a bit of a snappy instrumental comparing themselves to the supernatural.

“Because” basically describes being married to the game accompanied by a hollow beat just before “The Call” serves as an empowering tribute to all the Kings & Queens in the world. “Piano God” does it’s job mystically painting an image of the titular behind, but then “Good as You” comes off a sweet letter to their significant others.

Meanwhile on “Don’t Say”, we have G&E going into tropical turf telling listeners that only love can bring you to a new day leading into Eli-Mac tagging along to express their desires to be “Like Water” & the downtuned guitar tone kinda reminds me of “Laffy Taffy” for whatever reason.

“Train Song” comes through with a somber traveling man anthem, but then “Never Kill” whips up a minimal beat speaking out against murder. After the titular interlude, the title track smoothly ponders if love was an actual person & then “Girl Be Loved” rounds out the album with a touching letter to the duo themselves.

For as long as it took, I think What Would Love Do is a welcoming comeback for the duo. Their chemistry is still one of a kind after being in the game for over 2 decades & the production (mostly handled by Eligh) sets a different vibe for each cut.

Score: 3.5/5