Lo Key – “Portraits of Horror” review

Philadelphia horrorcore emcee Lo Key unleashing his 15th EP. You may know him for his involvement in a handful of groups within the underground like Mission: Infect or more recently Cabal & Neon Sermon or even his own solo discography of LPs that he calls the 12 Oracles. So far the only 4 we’ve gotten from him are Shadowland, The Book of Time, The Blood of Izu, The Eyes of Parasuva. But to help him paint Portraits of Horror, we have Lo Key enlisting former Strange Music in-house producer MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 to produce the whole thing.

After the intro, the first song “The Box” opens the EP with some pianos & hi-hats with heavy guitars during the hook proclaiming that you could never kill him whereas “Burn the Witch” takes the eerie trap route looking to do exactly that as it is a necessity for him. “You’re My Everything” morbidly answers if he’s ever had to deal with stalkers just before “Parasitic” frighteningly admits he gave it his best & it wasn’t enough. “Remote Control” wraps everything up with a ghoulish trap beat looking to lead everyone to Shadowland.

25 years in the game & here we have Lo Key returning to form by taking it back to his horrorcore roots in comparison to his last few solo efforts going for different sounds. 7’s production is incredibly consistent & not only can the Mission: Infect leader still spit the wicked shit raw all these years later, but he shows his versatility as a vocal performer along the way too. Most notably during the hooks.

Score: 4.5/5

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Cabal – “The Pit” review

This is the sophomore full-length album from horrorcore supergroup Cabal. Consisting of Bukshotas well as Lo Key & Mr. Grey, the trio have all worked with one another individually up until a couple summers ago when MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 got behind the boards throughout the duration of their debut The Watchers. This would send shockwaves within the underground wicked shit scene & would really be the beginning of Mobstyle Music’s takeover, so for them to return 3 years later to take us into The Pitwas something I was looking toward to.

After the titular intro, the first song “Eidolon” is a dementedly uncanny trap opener about the trio waiting in the darkness whereas the piano-driven “1 Dark Night” recalls the events of a fatefully dark evening that occurred long ago. “Diamond” goes for a more uncanny atmosphere boasting that they went from horrorcore artists to being Gods within the subgenre prior to the sonically uneasy “Obey” advising to succumb to them.

“We Come in Peace” goes for a cavernous trap vibe explaining that they come with the message to be taken to the leader of this world they’ve stumbled upon & after the “Chamber” interlude, “All Rise” morbidly calls for everyone to demand their gratitude to the trio. “Philistine” delves deeper into the most misunderstood people in the ancient world over a ghostly trap beat just before the atmospherically ghoulish “Nightmar3” talks about declaring themselves as nightmares personified.

However, “Coming with Me” looks to take every last person with them showing no mercy & a beat that makes you feel like you’re listening to a horror movie on wax leading into “The Signal” pulling from trap once more talking about being world eaters. After the “Swallow” interlude, “Fire from Beyond” hooks up an apocalyptic loop & hi-hats promising that everyone will fall while “Forest Lights” draws inspiration from boom bap talks about the end creeping towards them.

“The Curse” bleakly details the curses that chase them explaining they don’t see a reason why to fight for their souls back anymore, but then the final song “Wizard of Saws” preludes the “Skulls” outro & finishes Cabal’s sophomore effort in the form of 1 last horror-inducing trap cut pointing out how their hearts be as cold as the winter season justifying that the trio’s reign of having the wicked shit in a headlock is only growing stronger.

The Watchers quickly became a modern day horrorcore classic when it was unleashed to the world a couple years ago so it was announced on the Berzerkers’ eponymous debut EP last summer, I was excited for all 3 of them to take it to the next level & that’s sure enough what they do here. 7’s masterfully dark production is being taken to a new level as is the chemistry between the members of Cabal themselves & the hardcore, gritty lyricism.

Score: 4.5/5

K.A.A.N. – “The Death of a Rapper” review

K.A.A.N. is a 32 year old MC/producer from Maryland who’s already made himself well established in less than a decade by delivering standouts in his ever-growing discography like the Dem Jointz-produced Black Blood, the Ski Beatz-produced Requiem for a Dream Deferred & the Big Ghost Ltd.-produced All Praise is Due & more recently Mission Hillz. But to celebrate hip hop’s 50th birthday, former Strange Music in-house producer MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 is being enlisted behind the boards throughout K.A.A.N.’s 23rd album.

After the “Foreword from Soul Brother #1” intro, “The Spark” is truly what gets the album going with it’s organ-laced boom bap instrumental asking how one in this industry gets it all whereas “The Glow Up” goes into more sample-based territory talking about how they done see him blow up. “The Fame” gives off an eerier atmosphere with some kicks & snares worked in explaining that some live & would kill for clout prior to “The Life Imitating The Art” hooks up a crooning loop advising not to be scared of your reflection.

“The Politics” dives into wavy boom bap turf explaining that politicians & magicians are basically the same thing just before “The Image” hops on top of these strings, kicks & snares explaining the way to truly make a name for yourself in hip hop. “The Drugs” psychedelically confesses that he did too much & now he’s fucked up as a result leading into “The Self Hate” somberly airs out everything he dislikes about himself.

Beginning the final leg of the album, “The Cavities” discusses all the stale things in like that he likes to refer to as a cavity in a metaphoric sense with a syrupy, delicate beat while “The Fall Off”’s bluesy guitar passages fit with the subject matter of one artist’s demise in success. Eventually, the title track closes out the album manically gives us a glimpse into how our protagonist’s life unfortunately ends.

I’ve publicly stated numerous times that we were in for one of K.A.A.N.’s best albums to date & that’s exactly what we got here. 7’s cooks up production that provokes the emotions each individual joint offers the cohesively-told concept is so well thought out, really a tragic tale of how the industry can genuinely be sometimes.

Score: 4.5/5

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7 – “Ciicada” review

MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 is a 43 year old producer, songwriter, composer & engineer from Kansas City, Missouri who rose to prominence after becoming an in-house producer for Strange Music from 2006 to 2021. He’s also known for his collaborations with XV, Mac Lethal, Psychopathic Records, Majik Ninja Entertainment & more recently Mobstyle Music garnering comparisons to Mike E. Clark for the simple fact that both of them are able to literally produce anything. But coming fresh off entirely lacing Trizz’ critically acclaimed 5th album Baseline Cavi last fall, 7’s following up The 7th Symphony & Revelations to deliver his 3rd solo album over 2 decades in the making.

“Ultraviolet” by XV starts off the album with a twangy boom bap ballad talking about completing the cycle putting the wheels back in motion whereas “ART_DEALER” by Aaron Alexander & XV works in some more kicks & snares with an organ loop airing out that people think they know his based off the shit they write. “Kubriick” by Ubiquitous & XV is a classy boom bal follow-up talking about being geniuses leading into “a bit dramatic” by Stik Figa has a more stripped-back, psychedelic groove to it a acknowledging that this is more than promotional material.

Meanwhile, “Inflammation” by Jon Connor has some multiple well calculated beat switches throughout as the people’s rapper delivers that counterculture music just before “Ledger” by Trizz ominously yet cleverly comparing himself to Heath Ledger in his historic Dark Knight role. “Aquariium” by Curci & XV has a more summery boom bap quality to it talking about waking up & choosing success, but then “Safety” by Wrekonize dives into more soulful territory clearing the air by saying that’s what he’s been on lately for those who’ve recently have had him in mind.

“Astral Projection” by G Watts gives off a more shimmery boom bap edge calling himself a “Smooth Criminal in his Mike Jack shit” while the song “Lemon Tree” returns to a more sample-based sound so Mac Lethal can talk about wanting a mansion with the titular type of trees. The penultimate track “Be.” by ¡MAYDAY! has a more acoustic feeling to it figuring it out whatever it is that’s running from them & “Shells” being a masterfully instrumental closer to end the album.

I‘ve always felt like 7 deserves to be mentioned more in hip hop producer discussions considering his decorated discography of production credits & I happen to think Ciicada is a solid way of introducing himself to a wider audience. A couple spotty guest performances, but most of them bring their unique styles upfront as the Kansas City extraordinaire dabbles with all sorts of sounds behind the boards.

Score: 3.5/5

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The Horde – “The End is Nigh” review

The Horde is a southern horrorcore superduo consisting of Boondox & Bukshot. One hailing from Covington, Georgia signing to the Insane Clown Posse’s notorious Psychopathic Records in the mid-late 2000s & the other puttin’ it down for Louisville, Kentucky since ‘97 by founding the independent hip hop label Mobstyle Music. The pair started worked with each other for over a decade now continuing to do so after the scarecrow left PSY to form his very own Crimson Krow Entertainment following his 4th album Abaddon eventually signing to Majik Ninja Entertainment couple years later whether it be their first 2 mixtapes Hell’s Kitchen & Paradigm Shift as well as their debut EP Overdrive or even their work with Claas as The Underground Avengers. So considering their long history together, it was only right for them to enlist MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 behind the boards to deliver a full-length debut.

After the “From the Fog” intro, the first song “Black Lands” is an eerie trap opener about planning like mad men whereas the “Grimace” remix maintains the same beat & same lyrics from The Horde with a new verse from Jamie Madrox of the demented duo Twiztid that’s as hard as everything about the O.G. version of the track. “Night Falls” works in some pianos, kicks & snares to detail what wickedly deeds go down in the evening just before Lo Key tags along for the shrilling “Body Bags” to put motherfuckers in the grave & rockin’ like the juggalos they are.

Meanwhile on “Red Mirage”, we have Boondox & Bukshot aggressively speaking on hearing a voice that comes from within that’ll be blamed on the music calling out the pathetic people pointing fingers at art for the stupid shit others do leading into “The List” returns to the boom bap reminding those who want them to fade away that it ain’t happening anytime soon referencing WWE Hall of Famer, former 3-time WWE Champion, 11-time WWE tag team champion, the inaugural WWE Hardcore Champion, CWA World Tag Team Champion & TNA World Champion Mick Foley ahead of “Rancid” bringing back the trap influencs asking what you gonna do when the darkness comes.

Kung Fu Vampire & Xshy361x alongside Buk’s Cabal cohorts Lo Key & Mr. Grey all assist The Horde for the gruesomely wicked posse cut “Blood of the Heartless” from the trap instrumental to all 6 killer verses despite KFV’s being my personal favorite of the bunch if I had to pick 1 while the cold blooded “Wrecking Ball” touching on their appetite for destruction. “Testaments” is a confrontation boom bap ballad getting into battle mode with Monoxide reminding me why he’s been my favorite of the demented duo since he started elevating his pen-game on Heartbroken & Homicidal with all respect to Jamie of course while the song “Butchery” has a more explosive trap groove welcoming y’all to the shop where death comes free.

The original version of “Grimace” makes it’s way to the backend of the album by serving as the penultimate track as both Buk & the Killer Scarecrow talking about being on the verse of catching a case & act up for a while alongside the way they both smile until the title track closes out the album with the titular duo properly introducing themselves for those who don’t know with Jamie doing his thing on the hook.

I’ve always felt that Boondox was amongst the most underrated acts that Psychopathic Records has ever put out as further solidified by his latest EP So Much Blood throwing it back to the PunkinHed era & not only has Bukshot been putting in work for the underground wicked shit scene for 26 years, but he & Turncoat Dirty have always helped bring the best out of one another & that’s what they did on The End is Nigh. 7’s production is incredibly dark as both southern veterans fuck shit up lyrically.

Score: 4.5/5

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Trizz – “Baseline Cavi” review

Trizz is a 30 year old MC from Los Angeles, California who first picked up a microphone at the age of 9. But it wasn’t until his late teens where he properly introduced himself to a wider audience in the form of his debut mixtape Suicide with No Note, which was followed up with New West & The Right to Bear Arms before being taken under the wing of Sacramento horrorcore veteran Brotha Lynch Hung by signing to Madesicc Muzicc for a brief period of time. He would later go on to drop 5 more tapes, 4 full-lengths, 5 EPs, 5 collab projects with Chuuwee, 1 with Flashy B & another with Sahtyre all within the last decade. But for his 5th album over here, he’s decided to bring in former Strange Music in-house producer MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 behind the boards from start to finish.

After the titular intro, “the inLAnd” kicks off the album with an incredible g-funk ode to Los Angeles whereas “Keep It a Buck” works in a trap instrumental with a weeping loop talking about being legit. “90210” comes through with a warm romance anthem with it’s acoustic instrumental & Bino Rideaux’s hook leading into the synth-funk “Shit Don’t Stop” flexing with an insane amount of charisma.

Meanwhile on “Summer Break”, we have Trizz delivering a mellow summertime bop just before “Tha Front Yard” brings back the g-funk talking about how people wanna be like him & the John Givez hook is pretty catchy. “Hollywood, Oh Hollywood” is a rich yet jazzy depiction of the titular city, but then “Red Headed Stepchild” kicks off with an eerie sample confessing he doesn’t even know how many time’s he’s been counted out.

T.F. & IceColdBishop both come into the picture for “Bless the Dead” with it’s soulful boom bap beat opening up about seeing their deceased colleagues looking at the sky tonight while the song “Crashed” fuses trap with rock spit reflecting on a car accident that he got into back when he had nothing. The penultimate track “Had to Do It Myself” is of course a spacey ode to self-hustle & to round it all off, XV tags along for the cloudy “On & On” talking about a walking a path that never ends.

“MF Menace” aptly starts the deluxe run talking about being as unbelievable as he is while “Red Hyundai” featuring 2-11 finds the both getting aggressive over a bluesy sample. “Why Lie?” luxuriously advises to tell the truth around him while “Street Clientele” featuring Traffic looks to crash the function backed by a g-funk instrumental. “Uknowutt!” featuring Sahtyre with co-production from Left Brain details the balance of rapping & hustling over kicks & snares while the final bonus cut “Based on a True Story” featuring EDIDON & T.F with 1 last west coast boom bap joint talking about the ones who live that g life.

As someone who’s been rocking with Trizz for about a decade now, this is his most well-rounded body of work to date & one of the best West Coast albums I’ve heard all year. He gets a lot of his chest detailing his life in the City of Angels as far as lyricism goes with 7’s production being incredibly versatile pulling from g-funk, boom bap, rock, trap, synth-funk & jazz rap.

Score: 4.5/5

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Boondox – “So Much Blood” review

This is the 6th EP from Covington, Georgia emcee Boondox. Coming up as 1/3 of the trio Southern Hustlas Inc. under the moniker Turncoat Dirty, he would go on to sign with Psychopathic Records in 2005 following the release of his debut EP Dama Blanca & remained under the Insane Clown Posse’s wing for about a decade putting out his first 4 albums along with his 2nd EP PunkinHed through the infamous Detroit label that runs beneath the streets. Former label-mates Twiztid then brought the Killer Scarecrow on board over at Majik Ninja Entertainment in the winter of 2016, whom he’s still signed to today. Last time we heard from Boondox was last summer with the 7-produced Cryptodirt EP that Mobstyle Music backed with the help of MNE & is now ringing in the fall 4 days early in the form of So Much Blood after his Astronomicon appearance this past spring.

After the titular intro, the first song “Prey for Me” is a demented opener produced by Fritz the Cat with some rock undertones talking about being unable to pray for those who be hoping on his downfall whereas “A Beautiful Death” dives into trap territory thanks to MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 pondering how he ends up in the situations he gets himself into. “Re-Animator” works in some more rock undertones expressing that he wants something real while the song “Devil’s Due” returns to the trap talking about possession. The penultimate track “Open Vein” has a bit of a boom bap flare to it admitting that he feels alive committing murders & “Gravely Ill” ends the EP with a heinous trap banger about falling asleep in the cemetery.

In comparison to the heavy gangsta rap themes of Cryptodirt about 13 months ago now, So Much Blood finds Boondox returning to the wicked shit just in time for the Autumn Equinox next Thursday. Lyrically, the killer scarecrow sounds more vicious than ever with 7 & Fritz’ production excellently honing in on a darker sound to help bring these gruesome tales to life.

Score: 4/5

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Neon Sermon – “001” review

Neon Sermon are a horrorcore trio consisting of BatiBatt, Krux 1 & Lo Key. The latter of whom is most notable for being the leader of the Mission: Infect collective with Bati being his wife & Krux as his latest protege, joining the crew last year. They only have a couple songs under their belt together prior to bringing Bati into the picture couple months back for the lead single coinciding with the news of the trio’s formation & are following it up by dropping their debut EP enlisting former Strange Music in-house producer MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 behind the boards for the entire thing.

After the “Signal Received” intro, the first song “Doomsday Device” references former NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion, 4-time WCW World Television Champion, 8-time WCW World Tag Team Champion, WWE Hall of Famer, 5-time WWE United States Champion & WWE Intercontinental Champion Ricky Steamboat. whereas “Beamed Up” dives deeper into electronic territory looking for smoke. “GODZILLA” works in a trap beat to admit they they feel like the King of the Monsters with some speedy flows as well as a freshly chopped & screwed Eminem sample for the hook, but then “Level Up” takes a more abrasive route to declare sermon now being in session.

The song “B.I.A.T.D.A.T.L.M.O.M.F.K. (Bitch I Am The Devil And They Let Me Out My Fuckin’ Kettle)” returns to an EDM-influenced sound comparing themselves to Satan & that they’ve been let loose while the penultimate track “The Sickness” detours into boom bap territory talking about how no one’s ready for this. “You Now Belong to Us” on the other hand sends 001 off with an electronic/trap hybrid asking to step into their spaceship with a melodic hook that I consider to be the best throughout the whole thing.

Lo Key has been known for dabbling with completely different sounds with the most recent example being his nu metal-influenced 13th EP Metanoia last spring or even the last solo album The Eyes of Parasuva taking on a more alt-rock vibe & that’s exactly what he did here with his fellow Neon Sermon brethren. 7 embraces a heavy EDM influence over the course of a good bulk of his instrumentals with KruX turning the chemistry between him & his mentor up to 11.

Score: 4/5

The Berzerkers – Self-Titled review

The Berzerkers are a newly formed underground duo consisting Louisville, Kentucky veteran Bukshot & Gilroy, California’s very own Mr. Grey. First time they worked with each other was a decade ago when Buk hopped on “Ruthless” off of Grey’s solo debut Remain Raw alongside the latter’s former Gorilla Voltage cohort ClockworC as well as Insane Loc. They’re also 2/3 of the trio Cabal with Lo Key, whose well received full-length debut The Watchers just celebrated it’s 1-year anniversary recently & The Berzerkers are properly introducing themselves in the form of a debut EP.

After the “Solomon Says” intro, “Death Circus” is a cavernous opener daring listeners to step inside whereas “Oxygen Thieves” morbidly talks about those not deserving to breathe the same air as them. “Dark Path” has a more futuristic sound to it confessing that the road they’re traveling is deep underground while the track “Bottomless” by Cabal is a deranged prelude to the trio’s sophomore effort The Bottomless Pit coming next summer. The penultimate song “Red Team” returns to a more daunting route talking about how no one can fuck with them & prior to the “Upon Activation” outro, “Bullet Catcher” ends the EP with a petrifying trap banger getting murderous lyrically.

My expectations for this were very high considering how much I enjoyed Operation: Delirium & even though you can’t go wrong with either one, I’d have to say The Berzerkers a tad bit more. Buk & Grey ping off each other very well lyrically with MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 going for a more rawer sound in comparison to the range of sounds he displayed on Grey’s latest EP.

Score: 4.5/5

Mr. Grey – “Operation: Delirium” review

Mr. Grey is a 42 year old MC from Gilroy, California who came up as 1/2 of the duo Gorilla Voltage alongside ClockworC. However, he would drop his first 2 solo efforts Lost Soul in the fall of 2012 & then Remain Raw a couple summers later prior followed by The Damn Dirty Apes the year after Remain Raw. Gorilla Voltage then signed to Majik Ninja Entertainment on Christmas Day 2016 & manage to dropped 2 more full-lengths together, but quietly disbanded following their final album Gods & Claws which is a bit of a shame considering that I consider it to be their best work musically. That being said, Grey dropped his 3rd album Vicious Vendetta a little bit after the pandemic started & celebrated last year’s Valentine’s Day to go fully acoustic rock on the Righteous Devil mixtape. Few months later, he formed the trio Cabal with Philly horrorcore pioneer Lo Key alongside Louisville veteran Bukshot released their debut The Watchers to widespread acclaim within the underground. Considering that, it was only right for Buk to sign Grey to Mobstyle Music for his debut EP fully produced by MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7.

After the titular intro, the opener “Into the Wasteland” sets off the album with an occult instrumental talking about being born for this just before Gorilla Voltage reunite for the somewhat industrial “Outrage da Jour” asking why people are mad at them. “Justice?” works in a creepy ass beat to call out the system leading into “American Meat Grinder” embracing a trap metal sound talking about fiending for blood.

“The Day the Angels Day” frantically confesses all he sees now is the darkness that came from the fog while the penultimate song “Zerk!” finds Boondox joining The Berzerkers for an uncanny prelude to their upcoming debut EP. And prior to the “Codicil” outro, “Winter Soldier” truly ends the EP with some strings & hi-hats declaring himself as such.

Compared to his earlier work, Operation: Delirium is easily the best solo effort that Grey has put out yet in my opinion. The apocalyptic concept is well conceived & 7’s production is dark, yet comes through with a range of interesting ideas from trap metal to industrial hip hop. He’s a great addition to Mobstyle in my opinion & have high expectations for the Berzerkers EP.

Score: 4.5/5