Serial Killers – “This Thing of Ours” review

The Serial Killers are a west coast supergroup consisting of B-Real, Demrick & Xzibit. Joining forces on Halloween 2013 by dropping an eponymous debut mixtape under Open Bar Entertainment, they would go on to follow it up a couple years later with The Murder Show & followed it up with the Day of the Dead extended play. Their debut album Summer of Sam would come out in the fall of 2020 despite its title getting more political than the trio’s earlier output, reuniting to have Scoop DeVille produce the sophomore effort.

“SK Anthem” sets the tone with this grisly boom bap intro spitting the kind of raps that’ll make you wanna punch someone in the face whereas the title track aggressively talks about the trio building a circle of trust together. “Call the Cops” gives off an old school hardcore vibe dropping bars that’ll make people snitch to the Feds leading into the horn-infused “Fired Up” advising against people trying their luck because each of them being vexed.

Moving on from there, “Levels” talks about improving oneself if anybody’s striving to reach the top just before “Hand Grenade” goes full rap rock so they can end the 1st leg boasting that they can walk through Hellfire & communicate with the dead. “High Energy” continues the 2nd leg of the album talking about life being this much of a trip & time being money while “Anarchy” encourages those listening to start promoting the strength we have instead of that other bullshit.

“Slippin’” nears This Thing of Ours’ conclusion incorporating some strings talking about keeping an eye out for the other side & not letting them catch you fuckin’ up while “By Any Means” speaks of constantly staying more solid than the concrete & representing the west coast. “We’re the Killers” finishes up the album with this ghostly boom bap outro talking about fearing no man & the lyricism of each member proving to be more deadly than fentanyl.

Summer of Sam to me was a lot enjoyable than The Murder Show or Day of the Dead were, but the Serial Killers return a little over halfway through the 2020s with Scoop DeVille behind the boards to make This Thing of Ours the greatest LP of their entire existence. Scoop’s production hits harder top to bottom as opposed to the predecessor having a couple lackluster moments instrumentally & I like that they refrained from having any guest appearances to focus more on their synergies.

Score: 4/5

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T.F. – “Don’t Call Me Lucky” review

Los Angeles, California emcee T.F. joining forces with local veteran DJ Muggs to produce his 7th LP. Initially hearing him on “Tookie Knows, Pt. II” off ScHoolboy Q’s magnum opus Blank Face LP, he subsequently dropped his debut EP No Hooks only 7 months later, which was followed up by his full-length debut ErThangSkanless & then a 2nd EP called OktoberFest. After appearing on Flee Lord’s 8th EP Hand Me My Flowers produced entirely by Buckwild & put out 2 more EPs on his own, T.F. eventually signed to Lord Mobb Music & put out Blame Kansas produced by both Mephux & Roc Marciano. Last we heard from him was when Khrysis produced The Green Bottle, returning 10 months later cautioning Don’t Call Me Lucky.

The title track opens up shop with an ominous boom bap beat wanting to know if his court-ordered therapy sessions was luck or faith whereas “Water Whip” featuring Rome Streetz aggressively talks about everything being scandalous with them. “Clap” featuring Ghostface Killah kinda has a vintage 70s vibe to it referencing 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 leading into “The Scorpion Sting” returns to the boom bap talking about the squad fitting into picture frames.

“Reese’s Pieces” featuring Meyhem Lauren & O.T. the Real brings the trio together so they can ruggedly make it clear that ain’t shit sweet with either of them while “Ya Heard” featuring Roc Marciano soulfully talks about people sticking you up for your diamonds & gold. “Cha Cha Chicken” gives off a spookier vibe instrumentally speaking of cooking up crack rocks just before the horn-infused “Pool Sports” reaches the halfway point talking about being top floor with the bars.

After an interlude, “Money in the Wall” featuring Heartbreak JC drumlessly make way for both of them discussing people dying every day over chains & social media posts while “Luchador” angrily talks about possibly crashing surface due to living so fast. “$100 Bill” rawly speaks of breaking bread interpolating the iconic Prodigy single “Keep It Thoro” during the hook while “Star Studded” talks about daydreaming over a sped-up soul sample.

“El Sancho” wraps up Don’t Call Me Lucky’s final moments likening himself to WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg’s portrayal of Rodney in Baby Boy directed by the late John Singleton while the final song “Ride Out” featuring Boldy James preceding the outro makes great use of the album’s final minutes by having the 2 lyricists teaming up over a bluesy boom bap beat to talk about their respective experiences of living like gangstas from the west coast to the midwest.

I wasn’t sure if it was possible for T.F. to top Blame Kansas preceding The Green Bottle coming out last summer, but I was expecting Don’t Call Me Lucky to do the exact same thing based off the singles & it testifies him only getting better with time. There aren’t as many guest appearances than last time, which I’d say works in his favor considering how well Muggs’ signature production style fits his sharp streetwise lyricism like a glove.

Score: 4.5/5

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WTM Solid – “$uper Amazing $uper Rich” review

Detroit, Michigan rapper WTM Solid returning 3 months since his sophomore effort for his 3rd studio LP. A member of the WRLD Tour Mafia, he also embarked on a solo career of his own beginning a few years back with the debut EP Originatour followed by both Matter of Time & What’s the Difference?. Bigg as well as the full-length debut Imagine That at the start of last year elevated himself as an individual amongst the rest of WRLD Tour, following up Killa $eason as well as Touropean & Street Gospel to discuss being $uper Amazing $uper Rich.

“It’s a Life$tyle Tour” works in a cinematic Detroit trap instrumental talking about touring being a way of life the way he sees it whereas “Biggest Boss” incorporates some sampling techniques & interesting effects on his voice boasting his lifestyle. “Deadboylife” has a more eerier approach to the Detroit sound rapping his life over these beats leading into “Deadbeat” talking about making money in his city & in Atlanta, Georgia similarly to what his homegirl Rachel did.

Wrapping up the 1st half, “$olid Checkin’ In” produced by WTM Niketech gives a nod to the adlib his WRLD Tour brethren Rafa has become known for whenever he begins to spit verses while “Cross $tate Mafia” featuring Babytron has to be a top 3 track uniting the Cross $tate Boys & the Dog $hit Militia crews. “Livin’ in a Double Cup” was another favorite of mine from the cloudy Detroit trap vibe LulRose & WTM Miles give off instrumentally to the lyrics about his squad having the power of changing the government while “$ubway $urfer” references WWE Hall of Famer, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion & 3-time WWE Tag Team Champion Rikishi.

“IDK What Tour Wear” goes for a synth-heavy Detroit sound talking about his indecisiveness of picking out an outfit for the day while the timing of “$ora” makes me laugh considering the recent news regarding the AI app parodied by the Paramount Skydance Corporation subsidiary Comedy Central hit series South Park almost 5 months ago being shut down. He hops over this warmly uplifting beat to describe his position as the “Man with the Plan” & after “5 Stars*” boasts about making $25K in a quick manner, “Kendricky with Kapital” ends the album hitting the road without a driver.

$uper Awesome $uper Rich takes it’s name after a song from Killa $eason last summer baring it’s initials after the Slam A Slut Records label that the WRLD Tour Mafia built together as a family & it’s an exceptionally great follow-up to Street Gospel although I prefer the latter more. The cloudy Detroit trap production’s a little less plugg influenced than it was at the beginning to the year, handling a majority of the verses by himself other than Tron & further embracing the love he’s always had for The Walt Disney Company subsidiary Marvel Entertainment owned Spider-Man franchise. He also announced last night that he’s currently recording Touropean 2 over at the UK, which I’m interested in hearing that considering both “Kash Doll Skirt” & “Support > Hate” are some of his best songs.

Score: 4/5

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Coyote – “Machetes & Micheladas” review

This is the 4th studio LP from Los Angeles, California duo Coyote. Consisting of the Morales brothers LadiesLoveGuapo & Ricky Blanco, they went on to gain traction in late 2022 off their debut album Thicker than Water noted for its witty punchlines & East coast influences. Their 2024 sophomore effort L.Aliens quickly became their breakout project to the point where people were recommending to me & easily understood the appeal, coming off yoteLAndia to have Statik Selektah fully produce Machetes & Micheladas in it’s entirety a month after Penta became the new WWE Intercontinental Champion and 24 hours away from current AAA Mundial Mixtas Parejas Campeon Lola Vice becoming the new NXT Women’s Champion.

After the “ApeXzibit” intro, the first song “Gimme a Hell Yeah!” featuring Conway the Machine joins forces over a boom bap instrumental to spit hardcore gangsta lyricism whereas “No Rest for the Wicked” ruggedly talks about there being a blizzard outside. “Whippin’ Cream” featuring The Psycho Realm brings both groups together for a mafioso single discussing the paper just before “Blasphemy” talks about looking to trade narcos for vitamins & fish oils.

“Love Me Love Me Not” keeps the boom bap vibes going admitting that they’re unsure & after the “Shoebox Money” interlude, the actual “Shoebox Money” track itself featuring Sirrealist goes for a jazzier direction talking about getting what they deserve. “Nothing Changes If Nothing Changes” featuring Curren$y soulfully gets on some real life shit topically while “Letter to My Son” featuring Berner gets the 2nd half going talking about fatherhood.

John Solo’s appearance on “Cali Dreaming” was ok despite the soulful beat & the love they have for their hometown but after the “Welcome to America” interlude, “What’s Peace?” featuring Locksmith & R.A. the Rugged Man finds the quartet taking a more conscious approach to songwriting. “Kid Named Johnny” simultaneously gets in their storytelling bags & continue to demonstrate Statik’s ear for sampling while “I.D.K” talk about only having winners surrounding themselves.

“Cortez on My Feet” featuring Lil Mr. E nears towards the end of Machetes & Micheladas with a nostalgic boom bap flavored sneaker anthem of their own while “Fuck Everybody” featuring Daylyt aggressively embodies that “Fuck the World” mentality the late 2Pac was on. “Church” hooks up a crooning vocal flip making a bunch of witty religious references while “Huff & Puff” sends it all off with a jab at the people who get their egos hurt by their presence.

Being a fan of these guys for a couple years already, the teasers we’ve gotten ahead of Machetes & Micheladas gave me all the confidence of LadiesLoveGuapo & Ricky Blanco topping both L.Aliens & yoteLAndia. Lo & behold: They begin the 2nd quarter of 2026 with what’s undeniably the greatest thing they’ve ever made a couple weeks since Hechiero ended Claudio Castagnoli’s reign as CMLL Mundial Pesocompleto Campeon. Statik Selektah’s jazzy boom bap production is a huge improvement over Coyote’s last couple of full-lengths, the guest list is filled with heavy hitters & the Morales brothers themselves are in top form.

Score: 4.5/5

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MIKE – “Pompeii” review

Here we have the 9th studio LP from Livingston, New Jersey emcee & 10k Global founder MIKE. Breaking out a decade ago off his debut mixtape Winter New York, he would continue to make a name for himself by churning out 4 more tapes as well as his previous 6 albums & 8 EPs full of amongst the finest abstract hip hop that you’ll hear within the last decade. Standouts include May God Bless Your Hustle, War in My Pen & even the Wiki collab effort Faith is a Rock entirely produced by The Alchemist. Burning Desire, Pinball, its sequel & Showbiz! have all become acclaimed for their own different reasons too & he looks to raise the stakes by having the Surf Gang produce Pompeii.

“The Fall” comes out the gate jumping over an Evilgiane beat to talk about swerving the most overseas whereas “My Worst (Rebuke)” takes a more psychedelic approach instrumentally admitting that he’s gonna do everything he did at his lowest once more. “Da Bid” featuring Jadasea joins forces for a 2-parter produced by Harrison & Earl Sweatshirt talking about wearing their hearts on their sleeves just before “NOT 4TW” featuring Anysia Kym cloudily speaks of no longer paying attention to those copying because it ain’t for free.

An early favorite would have to be “The Pope” from the euphoric beat to the calmly delivered lyrics about staying remote leading into “Afro” him recollecting the craziness of how much love has passed. The lead single “Minty” blends plugg, trap, cloud rap, lowend & plugg taking jabs at supposed gangstas who take talents off LinkedIn just before Niontay provides my 2nd favorite guest appearance on “F.E.A.R.”, spitting hardcore verses back-to-back without the need of a hook.

“Tampering” only clocking at 73 seconds long is a shame considering that I really enjoy the plugg instrumental talking about having to interfere with a hoe while “Shutter Island” happens to be the exact same length talking about trusting lies & bloody swords over a beat that somewhat reminds me of Odd Future’s early output. “Back LA” featuring Na’Kel Smith links up so they can speak of living in danger while the 2nd & final single “Back Home” passionately talks about dismantling systems.

Earl joins MIKE for “Kirkland”, saving would I personally considered to be the best feature for last to wind down the last few minutes of the album discussing keeping it simple when doing it big while “#FREE #MIKE” talks about the surprising revelation that even his haters are happy his crew’s around & not changing up on family. “Man of the Month” spends the last 3 minutes explaining that he bled for his dreams to be lived out over a Niontay instrumental despite the other half of it being a simple outro.

Both entries of the Pinball series & Showbiz! all contain some of MIKE’s greatest tracks like “On God” for example, but my favorite song on the latter “Belly 1” exponentially raised my expectations for Pompeii & it sure enough isn’t too far behind May God Bless Your Hustle or Burning Desire for a spot in the top 3 of his entire catalog. The Surf Gang’s production emphasizes the plugg undertones of Pinball II, additionally sprinkling hints of cloud rap & ambient plugg to reflect on the destruction of civilization as we know it.

Score: 4.5/5

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Earl Sweatshirt – “Utility” review

Brand new studio LP & the 7th altogether from Santa Monica, California emcee, producer & singer/songwriter Earl Sweatshirt. Beginning his career almost 2 decades ago using the alias Sly Tendencies as the son of Cheryl Harris & late poet Keorapetse Kgositsile, he posted a handful of tracks for a mixtape called Kitchen Cutlery on MySpace, but the tape would never be released to this day. He formed a short-lived rap trio with 2 of his friends called The Backpackerz & planned to release a mixtape together titled World Playground, but they disbanded sometime in 2009. Shortly after, he joined Odd Future & appeared on their 2nd & final mixtape Radical that May. 10 months later, he put out his only mixtape to date Earl with OF’s de facto leader Tyler, The Creator producing a bulk of it. The tape received a lot of buzz until Earl’s mother would send him to a therapeutic retreat school for at-risk boys in Samoa sometime after until February of 2012. He was then granted his own Columbia Records imprint Tan Cressida Records & released his full-length debut Doris a decade ago to critical acclaim right before I started my junior year of high school for his clever rhyme schemes & the gritty production from The Neptunes to even the RZA. He then formed the duo Hog Slaughta Boyz with OF affiliate Na’kel at the beginning of 2015 & released his sophomore album I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside. a couple months after. Many of which consider to be better than Doris for its darker aesthetic. Some Rap Songs not only wound up being my 2018 Album of the Year, but the bastard child of one of my all-time favorite albums: Madvillainy. Feet of Clay the year after marked a new distribution deal Tan Cressida signed with Warner Records was a cool collection of SRS outtakes preluding his full-length debut on the label Sick!, which the flawless Voir Dire produced by one of my top 10 producers of all-time The Alchemist cleared. Last summer’s Live Laugh Love detailed his experiences of becoming a father & has brought the Surf Gang in to produce Utility.

“this2shallpass” clarifies over an ambient plugg beat from Evilgiane & Harrison that the only destination going forward is up whereas “:( again :)” goes for a more general plugg vibe talking about finding the strength to get up again. The 3rd & final single “Home on the Range” instrumentally combines plugg & trap confessing he’s not quite over the hill yet while “React” talks about going from basic to advanced training.

Meanwhile on “Hot Water (Cahuilla)”, we have Earl laughing off the idea of him folding & that the hate on the way down be the realest just before “Rectangle Lens” goes for a more experimental vibe talking about shit getting more serious by the day. “Leadbelly” featuring MIKE blends plugg, cloud rap, ambient & experimental hip hop putting a minimal emphasis on each of their distinctively abstract styles just before “quikk” feels like a 2 minute compositional intermission.

“Ew!” would rank amongst my top 5 tracks from the beat to the lyrics about anyone trying him only stumbling & stacking up all kinds of cheese in the cut while the lead single “Earth” fuses cloud rap, ambient plugg, lowend & experimental hip hop speaking of having to scratch the surface so he could breathe. “Chali 2na” compares himself to the Jurassic 5 member of the same name & references WWE Hall of Famer Mr. T while “Sisyphus” talks about freezing over Hell on a daily basis.

Lerado Khalil joins Earl on “Locusts” to discuss how they’re steaming now rather than smoking while “Tour de France” talks about a little mouthful whenever he’s feeling content. “Chicago” compares himself to a merchant the way he stays outside over a Tony Seltzer beat while “Book of Eli” assures he won’t ever go away despite quieting down here & there. “AOK” looks back at when all he wanted was a tub & his father while “Don’t Worry!” sends it all off talking about him deserving to be burnt the 1st time around.

Right when “Making the Band (Danity Kane)” came out on SoundCloud a couple years ago, I knew the possibility of the Surf Gang producing an entire body of work for Earl Sweatshirt was a guaranteed & it’s as brilliant as I would’ve imagined. I already prefer the production more than Live Laugh Love mostly because it’s a lot different than what those who’ve become familiar with Earl’s discography would expect, expanding on the previously mentioned loosie’s cloudy plugg ideas & demonstrating his capability of rapping over anything.

Score: 4.5/5

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Daniel Son – “Shattered Glass” review

Pretty sure this has to be the 7th EP from Toronto, Ontario, Canada emcee Daniel Son. A member of the Brown Bag Money collective, his profile began to rapidly increase in the underground off projects like the Giallo Point-produced debut mixtape The Gunners or the Futurewave-produced sophomore album Yenaldooshi. He also teamed up with Raz Fresco for the spectacular collab album Northside paying homage to the roots of the Toronto hip hop scene & a few months after reuniting with Futurewave for the first time since Son Tzu & the Wav.God on Bushman Bodega & the Finn-produced Hare Brained Schemes a few months later. Almost a whole year since Baggage Claims though, he & Futurewave are running it back for Shattered Glass a week after Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling (MLP) founder Scott D’Amore crowned The Good Brothers as the inaugural & shortest reigning MLP Canadian Tag Team Champions.

“Old Starter Kit” hops over a drumless jazz loop to talk about doing this shit for his own legacy’s sake whereas “Lil Earl” instrumentally goes for a boom bap vibe so he can discuss cookin’ ‘em all in the same pot. “Shipping Container” has this lo-fi quality to the beat talking about ordering more if you want to pay less prior to “Ticket Sales” featuring Asun Eastwood teaming up so bottom of them can discuss making any money rather than not bringing any in at all.

Moving on from there, “Bear Steaks” strips the drums to talk about making it out of the storm & finding his own directions while “Kolors on Queen” continues to embrace a lo-fi boom bap sound speaking of keeping his head on a swivel during his late night strolls. “Ocean Smock” featuring Sayzee finds the 2 joining forces to talk about the recoil from their firearms making shoulders pop while “Shotgun Draw” clarifies to those who were sending shots at him that they wound up completely missing.

“Broke Routine” winds down Shattered Glass’ final moments observing that some not being built to take any fall while “Late for Dinner” talks about seeing a ghost rockin’ in the hallway making noises every day of the week. “Hogwash” goes drumless again so he can express his belief of the musical oversaturation getting out of control & after “Bow Flesh” prays for chaos to balance his good days, the outro “All My Dice” finishes by talking about his future looking brighter than his past.

Taking the foundation of Soundwave & approaching it in his own way, Daniel Son builds on the energy of the beats & pushes it into something new with Shattered Glass after what had initially started as a simple idea quickly turned into something else with it’s completely separate identity. The transitions & pacing are chaotic in the best way possible, but it never loses direction by maintaining the intentionally raw & unpredictable feeling.

Score: 3.5/5

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9 Vicious – “Emotions” review

Atlanta, Georgia rapper & producer 9 Vicious dropping his 4th studio LP a week after doing adlibs for Ye formerly known as Kanye West’s 12th album Bully. Breaking out in 2024 off his debut single “U Fancy”, he would go on to further introduce himself on B4SA & the full-length debut Studio Addict helped him gain more exposure to the point where Young Thug signed him to YSL Records after B4TM dropped & Tumblr Music wasn’t that bad of a debut for the label other than “Clout Demons”. B4FN & For Nothing have both become the best things he’s made since the YSL deal, departing when the Uy Scuti Bøyz consisting of diamond* & Tezzus signed. B4EM in January was mostly carried by the production & was curious to hear how Emotions would be following the biggest co-sign of 9’s career yet.

“Talk About It” produced by 406ahmad samples “The Meaning of Love” by Steve Kuhn speaking of people wanting to know how he made it prior to “Amazing” flipping “Sex with Me” by Rihanna thanks to Patrick Garza telling a MILF he ain’t tryna cheat on her. “Posing Tonight” splits itself into 2 halves to depict the gangsta lifestyle until “Rolling Loud” celebrates his upcoming performance at the festival whilst dissing OsamaSon & che.

A couple of A$AP Rocky’s greatest tracks “Fashion Killa” & “Purple Swag” get heavily sampled on the next few songs using the exact same names although I’d rather put on the original versions of them just before “Clock It” talks about having a stripper bitch. “Trevon O’Ryan Echols” will easily go down amongst 9 Vicious’ more profound songs admitting that it’s not easy being him while “Vivienne Westwood (R.I.P.) / O.G. Got the Drop” continues from there with another 2-parter talking about being a real punk.

“Want U” finds himself coming out as bisexual & I’m not trying to say that’s a bad thing in any way shape or form because there are plenty of LGBTQ+ artists I’ve covered in the past, but it doesn’t necessarily surprise me. “PROJECT4PLAY / SVJ” divides itself in a couple different portions dissing both Tezzus & Young Thug while “Molly Ecstasy” hops over an cloudy R8 beat with heavy 808s, although bars like “she give that head like a MAGA hat” don’t really do it a whole lot of justice.

Kacy Hill producing “Sunset Hill” seems appropriate considering she was signed to G.O.O.D. Music at 1 point, working in a guitar so 9 can represent YSL when he was literally firing shots at Thug earlier. “U Dig Det” continues the 2nd half talking about giving a fuck less regarding all the cap he sees when he wakes up while “My Whole Heart” promises his lover that he’ll give her his all, although the “Listen Up Jews” nod at the end of the 1st verse made me cringe.

“Julia” talks about being in Los Angeles & a woman by that name calling him spewing a whole lot of nothing the way he sees it while “Need” takes a shot at Afrobeats to ask his bae what she needs from him. The instrumental on “Love Album” isn’t any issue although the overly sexual lyrics get quickly tiring while “Italy” responds to Tezzus pulling up to his mother’s house by claiming that it didn’t bother him & how he wouldn’t ever cheat on the person who has his heart when he probably is unfaithful.

Rounding out 3rd, we have 9 trying to make the classic MGMT single “Electric Feel” into his own down to 406ahmad sampling it & “Life’s Funny” samples “Ironic” by “Alanis Morissette” to talk about God having an interesting way of telling him this chick’s the one. “Forgot” confesses to being so locked in to the point where it slipped his mind that he was in a relationship & “Blowing Emotions” sends off the album with 1 more 2-parter that Nosaint of Vanguard Music Group cooked up talking about having so many feelings.

It was confirmed earlier this week by ApolloRed1 that the collaborative project he & 9 Vicious have been planning for a year has now been scrapped because of 9 taking issue with Apollo doing an upcoming tape with OsamaSon & although I did wind up enjoying Emotions a little more than the prelude at the end of January, it’s not by a whole lot. I’ll reiterate the praise I’ve always had regarding his ear for production, although I still adamantly believe his whole shtick of beefing with everyone & “homaging” as many musical icons imaginable to be running dry.

Score: 3/5

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Decksterror – “Love & Honour 2” review

London, England, United Kingdom producer Decksterror returning with his 2nd extended play Originally known under the moniker G-Man, he would form Hollow Sun Records alongside Cosm in the spring of 2020 a couple weeks after the COVID-19 pandemic began & eventually made his full-length solo debut with Black/Gold Stash a couple years later. Signed to the Croydon underground imprint Hidden Hobby Records as an in-house producer, he made his debut for the label with Love & Honour and has dropped the highly anticipated follow-up only 24 hours away from Callum Newman becoming the youngest IWGPヘビー級チャンピオン.

“Democracy Manifest” by Ill Sykes, Kakarot & Lomax opens with the trio spitting hardcore bars over a boom bap instrumental whereas “The Source Code” by Lomax lets everyone know what this shit’s really all about. “Terminal Horizon” by Ill Sykes works in some horns to talk about his words being more effective than sticks & stones while “Tony Stark / Speed of a Train” by Murkerz gets the 2nd half of the EP going with a dusty 2-parter.

Body Bag Ben & DreMilla appear together on “P.A.K. (What Does It Mean?)” talking about their respective pens slicing anyone who dares to step up to them in a rap battle while “The Golden Eye” by Juga-Naut, Micall Parknsun, Montener the Menace & Teach ‘Em ends on a more luxuriously rawer note talking about how they made a pledge when it comes to the artform & those who ain’t do shit having the inability of complaining because ain’t a game to them unless anyone else has actually played it.

A little over a month since DJ Sam Seed introduced himself artistically bridging The Unaligned, we’re now being treated to a Love & Honour sequel that reached the bar it’s predecessor had set & continues what could be Hidden Hobby Records’ biggest year yet. There are some slight improvements within the list of guests most notably towards the backend of it, but it’s really Deckterror’s production that really shines the most.

Score: 3.5/5

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Thundercat – “Distracted” review

Los Angeles, California musician, singer/songwriter & producer Thundercat returning for his 5th studio LP. Emerging in the 2000s as the bassist for Suicidal Tendencies, he would subsequently sign to Brainfeeder Records & make his full-length debut The Golden Age of Apocalypse nearly a week before I started high school. He would follow it up with the sophomore effort Apocalypse a couple summers later & his debut extended play The Beyond / Where the Giants Grow a month succeeding my graduation became popular due to the inclusion of his most lauded single “Them Changes”. It would eventually be included on Drunk, which is his most cohesive musical statement & an essential within the Brainfeeder discography. It Is What It Is mourned the loss of his friend Mac Miller & he’s having Greg Kurstin produce most of Distracted.

“Candlelight” gets things going with this smooth R&B intro singing about a lighting burning at both ends whereas “No More Lies” co-produced by Tame Impala fuses psychedelic soul, neo-psychedelia, boogie, synth-funk & synthpop suggesting he’s better off staying on his own. “She Knows Too Much” by Mac Miller blends funk, neo-soul, pop rap, jazz rap, jazz-funk & disco rap to talk about a woman out of his league leading into “I Did This to Myself” featuring Lil Yachty hops over a Flying Lotus instrumental combining neo-soul, funk, nu disco & disco rap to discuss relationships.

A$AP Rocky appears on “Funny Friends” rapping & singing about being homies until the very end just before the yacht rock-tinged “What’s Left to Say?” courtesy of Kenny Beats assures this person that the can spend their whole lives trying to figure out how they feel inside even if it’s a lie. “I Wish I Didn’t Waste Your Time” goes for a psychedelic neo-soul vibe with hints of jazz fusion & synth-funk addressing an ex-girlfriend of his while “Anakin Learns His Fate” compares himself to Darth Vader from the original Star Wars trilogy.

“Walking on the Moon” calmingly kicks off the 2nd half singing about a woman who takes him higher while “This Thing We Call Love” featuring Channel Tres tells their partners to take their time since it’s only them. “ThunderWave” featuring Willow Smith experiments with neo-soul, neo-psychedelia, tribal ambient, nature recordings, chillout & new age yearning for their lovers to hold them until reaching shore while “Pozole” suggests maybe he’s out of touch & only showing this person exactly who he is.

The song “A.D.D. Through the Roof” embraces a neo-soul sound talking about his attention deficit disorder going insane while “Great Americans sings over 1 last FlyLo beat about everything he does being a learned behavior of it’s own & landing on his feet every time he continues to fuck up. The self-produced closer “You Left Without Saying Goodbye” concludes the album clarifying that he hasn’t lost his sense of humor, hinting at posting his feet on OnlyFans being his new side hustle.

Exactly 6 years to the day since his previous full-length, Distracted could be my least favorite installment in Thundercat’s discography although there are some tracks I see myself revisiting & enjoyed it top to bottom slightly less than Big Mama last month. Greg Kurstin’s production culminates in psychedelic soul, neo-soul, alternative R&B, progressive soul, pop soul, jazz rap, nu jazz, synth-funk, jazz-funk, smooth soul, neo-psychedelia, boogie, synthpop, funk, pop rap, jazz fusion, disco rap, funk music, nu disco, tribal ambient, nature recordings, chillout, new age & yacht rock capturing the tensions between overstimulation & introspection.

Score: 3.5/5

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