B-Movie Millionaires – “It Made Sense at the Time” review

United Kingdom hip hop duo the B-Movie Millionaires consisting of Manchester, England emcee Black Josh alongside Runcorn, Cheshire emcee/producer & Blah Records founder Lee Scott are back top drop a sophomore effort. Known for being members of the Cult of the Damned collective, these guys would make their eponymous debut in 2015 with an extended play & had Sam Zircon fully produce their 2018 full-length debut Attack of the 50,000ft Sweg Lawds from Outer Space. Damn near a decade later, It Made Sense at the Time has come months succeeding its original announcement.

“ICL” produced by King Kashmere has somewhat of a lo-fi boom bap vibe instrumentally opens up with them talking about answering to no one whereas “LAA” brings Spectacular Diagnostics behind the boards for a cavernous hardcore hip hop track waking up the block with the bass blarin’ their systems. “SOZ” combines a flute with kicks & snares so both Josh & Lee can keep spitting lyrical venom leading into “HEX” featuring Sly Moon talking about staying 10 steps ahead of the rest.

As for “MED”, we have the Millionaires over a mellow Lee Scott beat explaining their music to be medicinal rather than merely dope just before “316” featuring Nickelus F morbidly boasts about them being lyrical juggernauts. “REX” featuring Quelle Chris declares themselves kings of the apocalypse over a piano-driven instrumental to get the 2nd half going while the woodwind-infused “KEV” talks about their wishes of caring more than they do.

“SOL” featuring Granuja & Mir Nicolas gets bilingual over an unsettlingly fuzzy beat while “BAR” references 2-time WWE Hall of Famer, former 16-time WWE world champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, 6-time WWE United States Champion, 6-time WWE tag team champion & 9-time NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair. “SMH” continues the hardcore penmanship but once “HIM” featuring BeTheGun jazzily talks about being those dudes, “TTO” featuring Bill Shakes as well as King Grubb & Sly Moon wraps up It Made Sense at the Time with a Cult posse cut.

A lot has happened to Black Josh & Lee Scott since Attack of the 50,000ft Sweg Lawds from Outer Space came out 8 years ago, so It Made Sense at the Time certainly lives up to it’s name considering the fact Spectacular Diagnostics handled a great bulk of the production coming fresh off the Cult of the Damned’s 4th album Simony this past spring. The B-Movie Millionaires’ chemistry doesn’t lose any steam & I appreciate them increasing the number of guest appearances.

Score: 4/5

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Paul Wall & Termanology – “Repeat Repeat Repeat” review

Paul Wall & Termanology finishing the trilogy with their 3rd collaborative studio LP. One hails from Houston, Texas & the other coming straight out of Boston, Massachusetts. However, both of them have been holding it down for the culture for the past 2 decades with their insane work ethics & albums like The People’s Champ or Politics as Usual. They’ve worked with one another a few times within the last couple years & took their chemistry to new heights with Start 2 Finish, following up the sequel Start Finish Repeat with Repeat Repeat Repeat.

“3-Peat” produced by DJ Fresh begins with a soulful boom bap instrumental talking about shit being plug & play to them at this point whereas “Feeling” featuring TrillStatik finds the quartet jazzily discussing their own individual high-ons. “Blessings” has 1982 accompanying Paul Wall & Masspike Miles encouraging all to focus on themselves because stressing over the next man would cause self-destruction while “Catch Me If You Can” featuring Le$ talks about riding clean because they got it made.

Dame Grease jumps behind the boards for “Make Me Feel” pretty much boasting how fresh both of them are just before “You Believe in You” wraps up the 1st half compassionately speaking directly towards the people who feel like they can’t go on in life & letting hard times get them down. The title track returns to the boom bap thanks to Statik Selektah expressing annoyance towards the fraudulent while “Pray for the Weak” featuring NEMS gets everyone on some delightfully murderous battle rap shit.

“Chasing Gold” featuring Wais P demands to point them to the paper soon as possible while “Back in Paris” runs it back 1 last time with DJ Fresh out in France keeping the hustle on continuous repeat. “Stoned Island” pairs S.T.R.E.E.T. with Paul Wall bringing a jazzier edge to the table talking about grinding daily & the closing track “Trill on Top” talks about the trillest muhfuckas always ending up taking over the world 1 way or another.

Start 2 Finish & Start Finish Repeat were both highly impressive to me as someone who’s been a fan of both Paul Wall & Termanology for some time, but Repeat Repeat Repeat could likely become the weakest installment of this whole saga they had going for 4 years already. It’s quantity of guests are comparable to that of it’s predecessors & the chemistry between both artists are great except some of the production & features miss at times.

Score: 3/5

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Blaze Ya Dead Homie – “Dead Serious” review

Mt. Clemens, Michigan rapper Blaze Ya Dead Homie awakening from a 6 year slumber for his 8th studio LP. Originally 1/2 of the 2 Krazy Devils, the Insane Clown Posse eventually signed him to Psychopathic Records & his eponymous debut EP as well as his full-length debut 1 Less G n da Hood would become some of the hatchet’s most beloved material at the turn of the millennium. Colton Grundy: Tha Undying introduced us to his alter-ego & Clockwork Gray received the same praise as his earlier material, departing Psychopathic after the Mike E. Clark-produced Gang Rags to make the sequel Reborn the inaugural release for his childhood friends Twiztid’s label Majik Ninja Entertainment in tandem with his own imprint Grundy Entertainment. It’s already been a decade since The Casket Factory & coming off Cadaver on Devil’s Night 2020, he’s Dead Serious regarding a comeback.

After “That Dead Shit” intro, “Sunday Morning” produced by The R.O.C. opens up with Colton talking about having huge plans on top of this g-funk beat whereas “Grind” by Triple Threat embraces a trap vibe instrumentally discussing their hustle. “Lies” keeps the hi-hats rolling addressing an individual who he doesn’t want to associate himself with anymore leading into the final single “The Voice in My Head” awkwardly taking heavy inspiration from Jelly Roll thanks to Grady Finch.

“X’s on Eyes” continues from there descending deeper towards madness over a dark Fritz the Cat beat just before the title track returns to a trap sound sending a message towards people laughing & making jokes directed at him. “At Times” by Zodiac MPrint talks about a kinda love that can be occasionally cynical marking the only track Jamie Madrox doesn’t have a writing credit on & after “Bloody” gets murderous over a chaotic instrumental Native World Inc. in-house producer DJ Hazey made, we have Blaze demanding his respect on “All Hail” over a rap rock beat.

“Negative” has some cool gangsta rap themes regardless of the instrumental not blowing me away while “Farewell” talks about his desire of wanting to come back to life & attempts of contacting an individual from beyond the grave. “Spending Time” was another weak moment for me detailing a woman who’s constantly on his mind but once “Hell’s Coming” by Drive-By featuring Boondox cautions wrath upon everyone, “Armed & Dangerous” concludes with a gangsta rap/rap rock outro although I really enjoyed Stir Crazy’s remix of “No Tomorrow”.

Most ninjas I knew would say Cadaver ranks at the bottom of Blaze Ya Dead Homie’s catalog so to hear him call Dead Serious some of his favorite music he’s ever recorded had me hoping it be superior & I can thankfully confirm that to be the case although I’m still weary of the Eastside Ninjas’ upcoming sophomore effort Return of the Lotus. The production certainly hits harder than it did during the COVID-19 pandemic when the world was locked down & Blaze makes it clear that his musical focus hasn’t changed a bit since the early days of his career despite the poppier cuts not being everyone’s cup of tea.

Score: 3.5/5

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Malakeye – “The Fallen Choir” review

Yes, the newest Long Live Evil recording artist Malakeye has properly introduced himself to the underground wicked shit scene for his full-length studio debut. Not much is known about him past this point other than the almighty Alla Xul Elu signing them to their independent label a few months ago & The Fallen Choir would be arriving the weekend prior of the 26th annual Gathering of the Juggalos organized by Psychopathic Records, which gives the world some time to get familiar with him until LLE performs a collective set at the festival.

After the “Sci Co City” intro, “Halo in the Fire” opens up with a boom bap beat produced by Billy Obey talking about being an angel in the streets whereas “Sorrow in a Smokey Room” passionate talks about a weight on your chest that makes one feel like they’re choking. “A Funeral Tune” has a cumbersome boom bap tone instrumentally singing for the dead & realizing he ain’t making it back to heaven just before “Lullabyes for the Lost” talks about his death fracturing time itself.

“A Liar’s Promise” was a wigsplitting lead single admitting that he feels insane because of him constantly walking with his screaming demons leading into “Afterlife of Ashes” returning to the boom bap with some organs talking about being one’s impending doom. “Faithful Lies of Mine” discusses the possibility of facing the very monster he’s become while “Fallen from Grace” continues the 2nd act of the LP talks about seeing people becoming fearful when looking at him.

Meanwhile on “Death’s My Shadow”, we have Malakeye passionately discussing the grim reaper following him everywhere he goes while “Too Late for Us” talks about the desire everyone has of erasing all of the mistakes they’ve made throughout their lives. “Don’t Let Go of the Light” brings a guitar into the fold singing of holding onto pieces of ourselves that we can’t seem to leave behind us & “Running in Place” concludes The Fallen Choir talking about feeling misplaced in life.

Choosing to exile from Heaven, the latest addition to the Long Live Evil roster Malakeye ascends again to the stage having the voices of angels in his head who he calls The Fallen Choir accompanying him for the beginning of what I believe will be an exciting career for him. He prepares to join Xul, the Super Famous Fun Time Guys & S.O.N next week by artistically establishing himself to be significantly melodic than his LLE counterparts & the production whipping up a new sound for the Evil empire.

Score: 4/5

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Pat McAfee – “The Diary of a Polarizing Figure” review

Pat McAfee is a 39 year old sports analyst, color commentator, former professional wrestler, former professional football punter & kickoff specialist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania by way of Indianapolis, Indiana who played in the NFL between 2009-2016 for the Indianapolis Colts. He would later spend the next decade establishing himself as a sports analyst & had a run in the WME Group-owned TKO Group Holdings division WWE until WrestleMania XLII this spring. Including a feud with former AEW TNT Champion, record 3-time ROH World Champion, ROH World Tag Team Champion, ROH World Television Champion, the longest reigning NXT Champion, the inaugural NXT North American Champion, NXT Tag Team Champion, PWG World Champion & CZW World Jr. Heavyweight Champion Adam Cole. However, he’s having country star ERNEST helping him out for a full-length studio debut.

“Pitbull & Mugshot” pretty much begins with what you can expect singing over a country trap fusion about his dog Valerie who passed away whereas “Blue Collar Symphony” treads the country rock waters for a tacky ode to the working man, calling for the rest to get out their way. “Good Times” radiates a heavy bro-country vibe singing about wanting to drink whiskey in a smokey room with a guitar & a fiddle just before “Young Me” incorporates some pianos for an audio letter to his younger self.

Meanwhile on “Polarizing Figure”, we have Pat asking himself whether he’s amongst the greats or the opposite mutating elements of trap & country once more leading into “Outlaws” turning the country rock influences back up to declare himself a renegade. “Oops” wraps up the 1st act hitting us with a gross country rap experimentation talking about stirring the pot like he usually is while “Smokin’” discusses his love for weed although he certainly ain’t no Willie Nelson.

“No One Ever Knows” sings about life being good since he woke up today while “Rich as Shit” annoyingly gloats about ESPN giving him a $65M raise. “Big Rain Coming” sings about no longer wasting mornings worrying over the evening while “You’re Alive” ponders if anyone’s actually living these days. “Click Clack” has a piano-driven trap flare to it talking about stealing the show & “Cheers to the South” discusses celebrating life at every opportunity.

As someone who used to watch The Pat McAfee Show on YouTube until ESPN picked up the syndication rights, it wouldn’t be a surprise to me whatsoever if The Diary of a Polarizing Figure winds up becoming 2026’s worst country album. From the bro-country production to the songwriting & grating vocal performances, I sincerely didn’t get a single second of enjoyment outta this & would prefer if Pat McAfee stuck to sports analytics than making music ever again.

Score: 0/5

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October London – “Love Me for Me” review

South Bend, Indiana singer/songwriter & producer October London returning for his 4th studio LP. Coming up in 2013 off his debut EP The Introduction & both installments of the Color Blind series, he eventually caught the attention of WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg & signed to Doggystyle Records for his 4th EP Please Leave a Message before moving over to Death Row Records not too long after Snoop bought the label he started out at & teamed with gamma. for a new distribution deal. October Nights has since become his most celebrated material & he’s asking his partner to Love Me for Me coming off the holiday-themed For You, My Love nearly 8 months ago.

“Your Girl” passionately sings about temptation knocking at his door over a buttery beat from both Uncle Snoop & Soopafly whereas “My Favorite Song” works in some finger snaps showing off his crooning chops. “Silent Treatment” works in a funky groove & some pianos to sing about a woman who ain’t saying shit to him but once the title track wants his girl to love him for who he is, “Family Ties” reaches the halfway point explaining he makes music for this loved ones.

Meanwhile on “Hooked (A Cougar’s Anthem)”, we have October coming through with a mediocre ode to cougars just before “Dance & Mingle” takes a peppier approach instrumentally making something the audience can move to. “Body Talk” & after “Like a Canvas” incorporates some pianos to compare the love his partner has to woven fabric surface stretched over a wooden frame, the closer “Pencil Me In” concludes Love Me for Me singing about trying to get with a woman with children upstarting her business.

There weren’t any real concerns I had going into Love Me for Me since For You, My Love was created specifically for the most wonderful time of the year & October Nights remains October London’s most celebrated collection of material although I ended up enjoying this album as much as it’s predecessor nearly a couple years earlier. Snoop Dogg & Soopafly’s production is heavily rooted in the neo-soul sound exploring topics including love, commitment, vulnerability & self-discovery in only a half hour.

Score: 4/5

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Sweeping Promises – “You Say I Romanticize” review

Sweeping Promises are a post-punk/art punk duo from Lawrence, Kansas consisting of guitarist & drummer Caufield Schnug as well as bassist & vocalist Lira Mondal. Making their debut in the summer of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic with Hunger for a Way Out, they would go on to follow it up in 2023 with the sophomore effort Good Living is Coming For You & the positive reception both of those receive landed the pairing a deal with Sub Pop Records. The teasers building up towards their 3rd studio LP gave me hope of them getting the exposure they deserve & I had to find out if that’s the case or not.

The lead single “Shooting Shadows” wasn’t too bad of an artsy post-punk intro describing one’s personal space being invaded whereas “My Friend’s an Entomologist” sings about having a colleague who’s an expert regarding invasive species. “Last Man” thematically bases itself around Mary Shelley’s novel of the same name discussing a cholera outbreak & after the “Rapture, Or…” takes inspiration from Siouxsie Sioux to tackle apocalyptic themes, “Abduction on Camera” keeps the post-punk vibes for a powerful anti-ICE anthem.

“My Anchoress” kicks off the 2nd half conceptually centering itself around Julian of Norwich leading into the final single “Cocoon” develops a concert staple of theirs written after the Hunger for a Way Out sessions in a disarmingly dead-simple way. “Accent” maintains a post-punk sound singing about words not landing when falling out of their mouths & once “Does He Want to Be the Weatherman?” cheerfully uses meteorology as an unusual metaphor, “Write Lightly” concludes the album responding to those saying their perspective’s compromised.

Conceived during an 18 month period, the Sweeping Promises take the ethos they’ve developed & turn it upside-down for debatably the most frenzied half hour of their 6 year career marking their debut for Sub Pop Records. You Say I Romanticize’s post-punk influences are significantly minimized within the production compared to their earlier material, emphasizing the art punk & indie rock elements for a tribute to the chaos of creation & collaboration under shifting circumstances.

Score: 4/5

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Marilyn Manson – “1 Assassination Under God 2” review

This is the 13th studio LP from Ohio singer/songwriter, actor, painter & writer Marilyn Manson. Signing to Nothing Records & Interscope Records, his debut Portrait of an American Family proved to be a passable industrial rock/alt-metal debut although The Triptych launched him into international stardom. Said triptych including Antichrist Superstar, Mechanical Animals & my favorite Holywood: In the Shadow of the Valley. The Golden Age of Grotesque & Eat Me, Drink Me were both received to mixed responses as was his final Interscope offering The High End of the Low & the Loma Vista Recordings debut Born Villain. However during my senior year of high school, The Pale Emperor made his true return to form followed by Heaven Upside Down & the Shooter Jennings-produced We Are Chaos wrapped up his Loma Vista contract. Marilyn hasn’t been around musically in a while because of psychological & sexual abuse allegations, which I can’t speak for myself on whether they’re true or false. Coming off his Nuclear Blast Records debut 1 Assassination Under God however, he’s back for a sequel.

“Unalive” begins with a goth rock intro singing about his eyes never weeping & being the only enemy we need whereas “Don’t Answer the Door” shifts towards an industrial rock vibe speaking of the tongues coveting us & consuming every last thing they see. “Front Toward Enemy” was a rebellious industrial metal/rock single with secondary influences of alternative metal demanding those on the ground to get up & right while “All the Vilest Things” dismisses revenge because those who tried to destroy him made him stronger.

Kicking off the 2nd half, “None of the Suns” takes it back to the goth rock sound singing about being in the black now at the end of everything while “Lucifer’s Teardrop” goes industrial rock again likening his heart to a loaded gun. “The Arsonist” sings about being the poison one can’t ever take over an industrially alternative rock crossover & once “Exit Wound” tolerably culminates all the general sounds explored to get resilient, the outro “Enantiomorph” concludes 1 Assassination Under God 2 singing about refusing to let people kill him or break his love.

Regardless of where Marilyn Manson goes beyond the 1 Assassination Under God duology, I can confidently say I enjoyed this final chapter more than its companion which felt like a cross between Mechanical Animals & Holywood. The darker production primarily leans towards the industrial rock side of things than 1 Assassination Under God 2‘s predecessor did retaining elements of alt-rock, alternative metal, goth rock & industrial metal using each stone he had thrown at him to sharpen his edges & outgrow purgatory.

Score: 4/5

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Phoebe Bridgers – “Lost Weekend” review

Phoebe Bridgers is a 31 year old singer/songwriter & producer from Pasadena, California known for being 1/3 of the supergroup Boygenius & formerly 1/2 of the Better Oblivion Community Center. Her 2017 full-length studio debut Stranger in the Alps as well as the 2020 sophomore effort Punisher would individual become some of the most crucial indie folk recorded this decade for their own separate reasons, returning after a 30 month hiatus to put out her 3rd studio LP following her own label Saddest Factory Records’ demise.

“The Outside” made for a sparsely slow intro produced by Jack Antonoff using a vocoder to discuss cycling or overlapping identities whereas “Lost Boys” fuses folk rock, indie rock, heartland rock, Americana & indie folk putting a more tragic spin on the group of children Peter Pan leads. “Kill Me” has a janglier quality to it mentioning her boyfriend Bo Burnham while “The Governor’s Waltz” recalls her previous relationship with Paul Mescal embracing a singer/songwriter vibe.

Meanwhile on the indie rock-inspired “Bobby”, we have Phoebe telling Bo she believes he’s truly the one for himl prior to the title track continuing to delve more into her calling off her engagement to Paul & referencing the way John Lennon described his 18-month separation from his widow Yoko Ono. “Haunted” turns up the Americana influences reusing the same ghost motif Phoebe has become known for musically until “Panorama” recalls a high-rise hotel stay interrupted by a cryptic visitor.

“Still Standing” acoustically kicks off the 2nd half of Lost Weekend looking back at the complex relationship she had with her abusive father following his death while “Liberty Tree” details on how things are currently going with Bo Burnham & I felt him doing background vocals was a sweet little nod. “Never Going Back!” combines a capellas with acoustics & a voicemail from her father expanding on the relationship they had while the intense “Other Plans” further embrace the John Lennon influences.

After the compositional “Lost Parade” intermission, “I Can’t Wait” winds down Lost Weekend’s final act embracing an ambient pop direction singing about accepting the 2 contradicting parts of her identity while “As Above” breaks down her perception of grief & love over layered instrumentation. A sequel to the title track concludes the album with a full circle moment revisiting the ideas of that song & breaking a cycle via a hard-earned catharsis.

Being introduced to Phoebe Bridgers after she was featured on the final installment of KiD CuDi’s historic Man on the Moon trilogy at the end of 2020 & later SZA’s sophomore effort S.O.S., Lost Weekend expands the artistic growth of Punisher far enough where I can say she had made her finest collection of material. The indie folk, singer/songwriter, Americana, indie rock, folktronica & ambient production Jack Antonoff handles compliments the themes exploring past her past relationships, the formation of a stable new relationship, grief & dissociation with her fame.

Score: 4.5/5

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benny blanco – “Hermoso” review

benny blanco is a 38 year old producer, songwriter, record executive & author from Reston, Virginia who made his debut in 2018 with Friends Keep Secrets under Interscope Records. He recently produced my favorite album Selena Gomez has ever made I Said I Love You First…& You Said It Back in the spring of last year preceding their marriage several months later, departing from A&M Records following a 10 month tenure on the label to drop his sophomore effort that I’m sure will have a 2nd disc much like the predecessor a week after Adam Page & Brodido ended The Demand’s week-long reign as AEW World Trios Champions at Grand Slam VIII in partnership with Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) at Arena México.

“Un poco perdido” by Neton Vega opens up drunkenly admitting he’s lost whereas “Te Olvido (La La)” by Becky G & Selena Gomez blends Latin pop, reggaetón & cumbatión asking what their partners have that no one else does. “Joven y salvaje” by Bb trickz co-produced by Cashmere Cat wasn’t bad of a contemporary R&B, pop rap, bedroom pop, alt-pop, post-punk revival single talking about not wanting to pick up the phone while the dream pop-inspired “Memoria De Paz” by The Marías depicts 2 lovers holding the sound of their voices on the phone tightly.

After the “Te Amo” interlude, “Ay Bendito” by Mora featuring co-production from Ovy on the Drums takes a breezier approach instrumentally getting sexual with the songwriting & “Degenere” by Myke Towers succeeding the “Cinco” skit properly concludes Hermoso with a reggaetón closer fans of his already heard a couple years ago when his 5th album La Pantera Negra came out so it’s a bit unnecessary although I suppose it wouldn’t be a bad introduction for those who’ve never heard of him.

Part of me respects benny blanco for what he’s musically done with artists like Eminem & of course the late Juice WRLD in the past, but I do find it strange for him to go full Latin for a Friends Keep Secrets follow-up that I’d consider weaker than his debut. Hermoso’s production is more Latin-heavy experimenting with Latin pop, reggaetón, cumbatión, contemporary R&B, pop rap, bedroom pop, alt-pop, post-punk revival & dream pop except I feel like it doesn’t come from a sincere place like Cypress Hill’s latest full-length Dios Bendiga.

Score: 1.5/5

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