Violent J – “Bloody Sunday” review

Violent J is a 50 year old MC, producer, professional wrestler/manager, Juggalo Championship Wrestling (JCW) Commissioner & the longest reigning 2-time JCW World Juggalo Tag Team Champion from Detroit, Michigan notable for forming the Insane Clown Posse & co-founding the label that runs beneath the streets Psychopathic Records with Shaggy 2 Dope. He’s also released a few EPs & a full-length on his own within the last 3 decades, with my personal favorite of the handful being Wizard of the Hood. The last we heard from the Duke of the Wicked solo-wise was the Brother! EP on New Year’s Eve 2018, but J is making up for the 3-month delay of his sophomore solo album by giving it to the fans as a Juggalo Day treat.

The intro is an occult trap opener produced by Devereaux with J confessing he doesn’t want to be alive anymore whereas the title track gives me a more slower albeit still morbid approach to the beat thanks to Brian Kuma talking about a never ending cycle. “Clown Blood” returns to trap territory with J showing off some crazy flows as he describes the clown blood flowing through him leading into “In the Hole” blending some hi-hats & synths talking about where your soul will suffer.

Meanwhile on “Pitch Dark”, we have J over a more rugged instrumental describing total blackness just before “No Friends” is a decent guitar ballad about being friendless. “Scatterbrain 2” is a trap-flavored sequel to “Scatterbrain” which has always been one of the best songs off Eye of the Storm in my opinion & picks up where the predecessor left off wonderfully referencing both former 2-time SMW Heavyweight Champion & ECW World Tag Team Champion Tracy Smothers and WWE Hall of Famer, former WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion, 3-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion & WCW World Tag Team Champion Rick Rude until Mike E. Clark returns to lace “The Stiff” with his uniquely quirky sound asking if he made a friend until the end or fucked up again.

“Horrendous Ways” jacks for beats as the Duke of the Wicked asks why great lives end in the titular fashion while “Something’s in My Room” takes a turn into boom bap describing the titular being in his room staring at him. The song “The Hurter” has a more carnivalesque flare to the instrumental courtesy of Shaggytheairhead describing the titular character while the penultimate track “A Harrowing Time” is a bassy trap cut about Satan calling him. “Some Good Pussy” though ends the album with a shitty country rock ballad about a man being unhealthily obsessed with a bitch.

Wizard of the Hood is such a classic EP & I know The Shining gets a bit of mixed reception with a lot of juggalos that I know personally, but it’s most certainly no question that Bloody Sunday stands as Violent J’s finest solo album to date. It’s a lot more darker than the previous efforts that he’s put out on his own, he sounds focused & the production is a healthy mix of both the old & new sounds throughout the 3 decades that he’s been in the game.

Score: 3.5/5

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Premiere Maxx – “ItsMarsYaDig” review

This is the full-length debut from Detroit recording artist & producer Premiere Maxx. Turning heads over the last few years after producing hits like “Tweakin’ Together” by Bktherula or “Lost & Found” by Amaru Sun, he would also build a solo career for himself along way by dropping loosies like his debut single “Flyaway” or “AllDay”. But after taking some time off, Maxx is returning to properly reintroduce himself to a wider audience in the form of a self-titled album.

“Sillyho!+” opens things up with an electronic/trap hybrid to tell a thotty to get the fuck up off his phone whereas “Simp!” keeps things in dancier turf with some hi-hats telling his girl that he’s the opposite of a sucka. My lil bro Jacob! joins him on “Colder” for a revised version of a previously released single called “Since Kroger” that I find to be superior to the original, but then “Kendall Jackson Chardonnay” with Rowlaine to split the titular brand of liquor with their ladies over a moody beat.

Meanwhile on “Planet Talk”, we have Maxx over a synth-trap hybrid remembering the days when he was broke just before Rodney Wolf & the homie MEGiDDO tag along for “NASA” to drip out of their way if they say it’s cool accompanied by an instrumental that almost gives me a bit of hyphy vibes with the exception of the hi-hats. Rmani Blaak comes into the picture for the atmospheric trap joint “Do You Wrong” telling this bitch he’ll hoe her if she touches his brother just before “TakeU2theSea” tells his girl that she needs a vacation with the production giving me a summery mood.

“MILAN” is an acoustic trap ballad about putting his girl on a friend to the titular city in Italy with Yung Rani delivering my 2nd favorite feature performance of the album while “King” declares himself to be royalty even without chess & the instrumental here could very well be the quirkiest of the bunch we’ve heard thus far. “Rosegold” has a more atmospheric approach talking about how fly he is & his girl being on fire while “bACktH3n!” orchestrally reflects on the days he used to run bands with his brothers.

The song “brandnew!” with Redstarr had a more aquatic trap flare to it as the pair show off all the new shit they’ve copped while the penultimate track “Wish” brings back the acoustics & hi-hats 1 last time to talk about his dreams coming true when his significant other is there with him by his side. “Shop with M3” sends it all off with a delicate closer as Mars expressing the desire to get one so gone at all the stores to the point where you can hardly speak.

Premiere Maxx has always had artistic potential & this album expands on that for the Detroit up-&-comer quite a bit. I like how he brought in some outside producers to handle the beats so he can focus more on his lyrical abilities on top of the fun batch of production that’s brought to the table & the features all sound as hungry as he does. I truly am excited to hear him grow from here.

Score: 3.5/5

DaeMoney – “Slae Season 3” review

This is the full-length debut from Detroit up-&-comer DaeMoney. Coming up as the nephew of one of the 2 biggest artists in the city right now Babyface Ray as well as a member of the WRLD Tour Mafia collective, he broke out on his own by dropping his debut mixtape Young Sexual Misconduct & his debut EP Slae Season accompanied by his 2nd EP Rockstar Lifestyle & then his previous tape Slae Season 2. But after signing to EMPIRE Distribution this past summer & celebrating in the form of his last EP Slayer’s Coming fully produced by Trees shortly after, Dae’s back in action for the final installment of the Slae Season trilogy.

“Overtime & Overgrind” is a cavernous, west coast flavored trap opener talking about how hip hop has saved him & that he’s the freshest motherfucker that you know whereas “Make ‘Em Say Ugh!” takes a more futuristic route courtesy of Trees giving his flowers to the Colonel of the Motherfuckin’ Tank himself Master P. “No Suits” blends some strings & pianos with hi-hats touching on a groupie asking him what happened to WTM Scoob & if she can get a WRLD Tour tattoo on her breasts, but then “Charles Barkley” turns into cloudier territory talking about showing people time & time again that he’s the one.

Rafa comes into the picture for the highlight track “Letter to Self” with it’s luxurious trap production & them dropping some truly motivational gems on the lyrical end that I think would resonate with the average listener leading into the psychedelic “Keep Hustlin’” obviously talking about the never-ending grind. Babyface Ray joins his nephew for “Basket” to get on their Detroit trap gangsta shit thanks to LulRose just before “Again?” confesses that he’s relapsed on lean tossing a muhfucka off the top rope like 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 the Hardcore Legend with some hi-hats, claps, occasional bells & a woozy loop.

“So Toxic” is a symphonic trap cut produced by Carlo Anthony clapping back at a groupie hoe prior to LUCKI & Veeze joining Dae for the cloudy “Who is That?” with Face on the hook as the trio talk about murdering everything & the titular question being exactly the ones they want everyone asking. The song “Slaeski Montana” is another highlight for me from the slick trap beat to the lyrics comparing himself to Tony Montana from the iconic film Scarface while the penultimate track “I Love It Here” has a more ethereal approach describing his current position in life. “Pop Star” closes the album out with a rock-trap crossover that Carlo hooked up declaring himself to be a rockstar.

Although I had previously stated last summer that Slayer’s Coming had to be my favorite body of work of Dae’s thus far, he really took it to a whole new level on the concluding chapter of the Slae Season trilogy. The production is more versatile, he assembles his biggest feature-list to date with all of them gelling well & the songwriting is a heartfelt reflection of his past along with his spot today as one of the biggest artists in the city.

Score: 4/5

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Shaggytheairhead – “Coffee” review

This is the sophomore full-length album from Las Vegas, Nevada producer, rapper & fashion designer Shaggytheairhead. Catching my attention after producing one of my all-time favorite Ouija Macc songs “Nardwuar Glocc” back in 2018, he would back that up with 4 EPs before becoming an in-house producer for Chapter 17 Records & Psychopathic Records alongside his Mythic Mindz cohort Devereaux. Shaggy would drop his last album Wakin’ Up during the 21st annual Gathering of the Juggalos, which was the only Gathering I’ve ever been to & a weekend that I’ll never forget. As far as the actual music on Wakin’ Up, it’s my favorite of his thus far because of how much he improved his lyricism & that he dabbled with a wide range of sounds to show his influences. Following the Gathering of Dreams last summer however, he dropped a producer album called Grin to the Grave featuring a wide range of artists rapping over his production from Ouija to King Iso, Project Pat, Sir Michael Rocks & even Matt Ox. But to honor the 49th birthday of J Dilla & ヌジャベス, Shaggy’s returning in the form of Coffee.

After the “Shaggythelegend 3” skit, “Abyss” comes through with a trap opener calling for all the savages in this bitch prior to Trade Voorhees tags along for “Ima Make It” to talk about getting off your ass & doing something productive today working in some synths & hi-hats alongside a chopped & screwed inspired hook. “Need a Friend” hooks together a syrupy sample à la Three 6 Mafia to seek true friendship just before “Force Fed” dives into boom bap turf speaking to those who be feeling like they’re being imposed upon.

Trade returns on “Grind Everyday” keeping it in the basement encouraging to hustle until “Gotta Ask” continues with some kicks & snares put together with these spacious synth chords curious to know why he got done dirty. Darby O’Trill comes into the picture for the shrilling “Raygun” to bust shots at the zombies & encouraging those who have a problem with him to say something to them about it, but then the YungFiend verse on “Furnace” is probably the weakest feature on the album with all respect even though the atmospheric approach is nice & the themes of proving others how hot they be artistically.

The song “When Will They Learn?” eerily claps back at shit-talkers while “Witch” serves as the official closer to the album as he describes paranormally seeing a woman in the corner of every room that he enters with a dusty boom bap beat yet the “bonus cut” title track is the true finale to the album with it’s minimal yet bluesy instrumental accompanied by the heartfelt lyrics that look back on being down in his luck to eventually hanging with his idols & pursuing his dream in a music career.

Wakin’ Up was a great debut for Shaggy & a year & a half later with Coffee as the official follow-up, it was well worth it in my opinion. His production is continuing to evolve & the feature-list is much smaller than it was on the last album although they manage to do a fine job at bringing their own unique styles to the table. Now that he’s woken up & had his coffee, where do we go from here a year & a half from now? I’m curious to know.

Score: 4/5

Isaac Castor – “The Rabbit Hole 2” review

This is the long-awaited sophomore album from Detroit emcee Isaac Castor. Coming up in 2010 under the original moniker Gameboi, he would go on drop 4 mixtapes & 3 EPs prior to signing to the local underground hip hop powerhouse Middle Finger Music following its formation 8 years later. He then enlisted the label’s co-founder Foul Mouth behind the boards for his full-length debut The Rabbit Hole a month after the world stopped due to the COVID-19 pandemic & both parties are reuniting to deliver a sequel in light of the predecessor’s 3-year anniversary in just a couple months.

“The Sequel” is a psychedelic boom bap opener with Isaac responding to those asking where he’s been all this time prior to Marv Won assisting him on “75 South” talking about how nobody puts it down the way they do accompanied by some keys, kicks & snares. “Eye See” has a more sample-based sound basically touching on life being as wonderful as it is & destined for greatness leading into the dusty “Admit It” comparing his raps to that of pure, uncut coke.

Moving onto “Tourniquet”, we have the Gameboi over a darker instrumental talking about pulling up to murder shit just before Jypsy tags along for the bluesy “Vamanos Pest” dropping some lethal bars for anyone who dares to step up to either one of them in a rap battle. “Nosebleeds” dives into more jazzier territory encouraging the goofy asses to walk back, but then “Cliffhanger” returns to the boom bap once again getting loose at the venues they shut down.

Dango Forlaine & Ronnie Alpha both tag along for the cutthroat “Napalm 8Ball” so all 3 MCs can flex their lyrical prowesses while “Smoke All Night” switches things up with a mystic trap beat & the subject matter of Isaac professing his love for weed is relatable to any stoner including myself. “Power of the Mind” instrumentally has a bit of a J Dilla influence to it advising that one is unable to front on titular topic while “Riddim” with Bang Belushi has a woozily dope sample flip as the pair go on to belittle their opposition.

Meanwhile with “Fall from Grace”, the production & DJ Skyrah’s hypnotic chorus give me quite a bit of Portishead vibes setting the course for Speak of the Devil’s upcoming debut as Xtra Overdoze joins Isaac talk about being stitched together kin to pain & pleasure while “Grand Prix” with Fatt Father & Guilty Simpson is a rock/boom bap crossover with a Pink Floyd sample toasting champagne off the Grand Haven Pier as long as his people are by his side. The song “Studio Vibe” with Bizarre is a mellower cut bringing exactly that while the crooning penultimate track “Still in the Hole” admits he’s finding the steps to climb out to the hole he’s still in. “Yes (Intro in Reverse)” comes through with a horn-inflicted closer attacking wack rappers 1 last time.

Considering the 3 year gap between this & the Gameboi’s full-length debut, it had me anticipating to hear how much dude has grown as artist since then & I happen to enjoy this sequel as much if not more than predecessor. Isaac sounds even hungrier than he did last time with the features all being as well-picked & the production that Foul Mouth cooks up is more eclectic in sound from boom bap to jazz rap & trap. Middle Finger Music always has something exciting going on & The Rabbit Hole 2 is just the beginning of their 2023.

Score: 4/5

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Jehst – “Mork Calling Orson” review

Jehst is a 43 year old graffiti writer, MC & producer from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom introducing himself by dropping an EP called Premonitions through his own label YNR Productions based out of London. He would go on to drop High Plains Drifter along with his debut album The Return of the Drifter & the sophomore effort Falling Down under the Leeds imprint Low Life Records, following the latter up with the Mengi Bus mixtape & the Nuke Proof Suitextended play. The Dragon of an Ordinary Familyas well as Billy Green’s Dead & Heathens would all come out independently as a result of Low Life’s collapse, returning for his 5th studio LP.

“Cornerstone” starts with this symphonic boom bap beat produced by Sonnyjim talking about being a foundation of the UK hip hop movement when there are no lies being spoken whereas “You” works in some pianos admitting he doesn’t give a fuck regarding this person who isn’t anything like him whatsoever. The self-produced “Footsteps” takes a jazzier boom bap approach instrumentally becoming unsure in the midst of finding his way back home while “Lonely World” featuring SINDYSMAN finds the 2 talking about finding hope over a Sam Zircon beat.

Meanwhile on “Wild Herb”, we have Jehst exploring a bit of a g-funk sound for a look inside of his kaleidoscope leading into “Doctor” talking about life getting lonely without having anyone to hold down & him getting older. “Daily Planet” featuring Confucius MC finds the 2 linking up so they can observe the insanity occurring every single day just before “Flight to L.A.” embraces a more soulful sound thanks to Beat Butcha talking about wanting to hit up the west coast.

“Autumn Nights” featuring Confucius MC drumlessly reunites the pair to discuss making something out of nothing being a part of their daily lives while “1 Horse Town” featuring both Confucius MC & Eva Lazarus brings the trio together hoping a spot is saved in the areas they each call home. “Front Door” takes a slower approach in generally talking about looking out to find the antidote blowing ganja smoke & “Skylines” stripping the drums 1 last time asking who’s to blame for the thoughts polluting his brain.

Heavily sampling the Paramount Skydance Corporation owned sitcom Mork & Mindy, the YNR Productions founder continues to unlock Jehst’s superpower of making the melancholic incisively slice through all before him revisiting topics he’s explored in the past broken down from a brand new perspective. The production’s more jazzier & boom bap instead of continuing the experimentations of Billy Green’s Dead, employing a slower flow & reaching a typically supreme standard of syllables & similes over 2 decades later.

Score: 4/5

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Summrs – “Stuck in My Ways” review

This is the 7th full-length album from Louisiana rapper Summrs. Coming up as a member of the Goonie-founded Slayworld collective, he presence has been known predominantly in the plugg scene by constantly dropping projects whether it be his previous EP What We Have or even the last album Fallen Raven that we got 6 months ago. Both of which I highly recommend listening to if you wanna get into his music & is also enough to have me looking forward to Stuck in My Ways when he announced it merely days ago.

“Relying on Roxy” is an acoustic trap opener produced by BenjiCold with dude feeling like he’s dying when he’s strung out whereas “Start Striking” takes a cloudier route picking up where it’s predecessor left off thematically talking about fighting withdrawals. “No Days Off” brings back the acoustics yet again referring to himself as a rockstar & being in the studio constantly leading into the ethereal “Life’s a Beautiful Curse” talking about the ups & downs that come with living in the world today.

However on “Pure Motion”, we have Summrs handling the hook so his younger brother Desire can spit a verse accompanied by a booming GeoGotBands instrumental just before the synth-laced “No Morals” calling out some bitches for being as licentious as they are. “Russian Roulette” has a wavier groove to it admitting that he ain’t in this rap shit for the fame but rather the cheese, but then “Die Rich” blends some synthesizers & bass to talk about going out lit.

“Van Cleef Poppin’” dives into plugg territory droppin’ some vibrant braggadocio along the way while “Addy Geek” brings a more futuristic flare to the mix talking about being fucked up off the Adderall. “The Detox” comes together with some keys & hi-hats courtesy of Chief Keef to my surprise dedicating it to a bitch who be with him because he stays winning while “Drug Traffickin’” is another piano trap ballad about living lavish in the penthouse.

Meanwhile on “Like a River”, things take a more moodier approach encouraging to keep the money flowing while “My Voicemail” is a settle 2 & a half minute R&B joint which is fine except my biggest complaint about it definitely has to be the mixing. “Closing the Book” is a syrupy slow jam singing how he ain’t like the other boys that his girl has been with in the past with the stripped back “Blood Tears” talking about no one being on the same tier as him & that things would’ve been done differently had said person was with him.

“Miles on U” comes through with a hazy, auto-tune heavy pop rap cut with some romantic lyricism while “Album Just for You” goes pluggnb thanks to Autumn! singing about how he has a whole unreleased body of work on his phone dedicated to the love of his life. “I.K.Y.M.M.G. (I Know You Miss Me Girl)” has a more standard plugg sound courtesy of Goyxrd telling this woman to call him because he knows she misses him dearly while “Pilates” keeps the synths & hi-hats going talking about everything being exotic.

Following that, “Like My Diamonds” keeps things in plugg turf comparing his girl’s beauty to his ice while the woozy “Baby Blue Gwag” is a catchy little ode about copping this dude’s girl a G Wagon. The track “Switch Sound” is a shimmering trap banger with some boastful lyrics while the penultimate song “Praise da Most High” is a peppy anthem giving his thanks to the man upstairs. The title track then ends the album on an acoustic trap note admitting that he wars his heart on his sleeve & is trying to cover up his sins with the drank.

Fallen Raven still stands as my favorite Summrs album to date since it shows his artistic range best, but I still came away from Stuck in My Ways enjoying it almost as much. Primarily because of the fact that still brings the pop rap, pluggnb & rage aesthetics that made the previous full-length enjoyable & swapping the drill undertones out by pulling from alternative/contemporary R&B a little bit more than usual.

Score: 3.5/5

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Lil Yachty – “Let’s Start Here.” review

This is the 3rd full-length album from Mableton, Georgia rapper, singer/songwriter, producer & actor Lil Yachty. Skyrocketing to fame in 2016 by bringing a unique sound & personality to the trap subgenre on his debut mixtape Lil Boat, his subsequent material since then has ranged from being mid at best like Summer Songs 2 or even his previous mixtape Michigan Boy Boat to absolute trash like Teenage Emotions & Nuthin’ 2 Prove. But when I heard that Let’s Start Herewas gonna be a complete stylistic departure for Yachty in contrast to one of my favorite singles of last year “Poland”, I was sold in checking it out.

“the BLACK seminole.” pretty much sets the tone for what’s to come as Yachty sings about his inner self & compares himself to the titular Native American-Africans part of the Seminole people over a Jimi Hendrix/Pink Floyd inspired psychedelic rock instrumental whereas “the ride-“ with Teezo Touchdown takes a more neo-soul route with the 2 singing about needing the special women in their lives by their sides. “running out of time” has a more summery twang to it addressing a relationship that pretty much ran it’s course at this point prior to Foushée tagging along for the atmospheric “pRETTy” singing about dying the pussy.

After the “:(failure(:” interlude, “THE zone~” to go into space rock territory admitting that Yachty feel at home up until he’s by his lonely with Justine Syke counter-parting him telling him she never meant to make him feel alone & asking if he’d put anyone else above her leading into “WE SAW THE SUN!” having a bit of a Tame Impala influence sonically singing about how shit don’t get better & to take picture for proof. The “drive ME crazy!” duet with Diane Gordon has a more synthpop flare to it as they profess their love for one another with Yachty dropping a cool reference to both Kanye’s “Jesus Lord” and later WWE Hall of Famer & unrecognized WWE Champion Ted DiBiase, but then “IVE OFFICIALLY LOST ViSiON!!!!” is an otherworldly experience detailing a bad drug trip over an EPIC guitar riff.

“sAy sOMETHINg” brings back a more mellow vibe instrumentally living the dream & feeling like a teenager again while “paint THE sky” gives me a bit of an art pop feel to it singing about stalling for & overdosing on one’s love. The song “sHouLd i B?” treads the psychedelic pop waters admitting that he needs to do right by his lover & that he ain’t mad at what she did even though he’s unsure if he should be while the penultimate track “The Alchemist.” sings about living a good life over some warm rock production. “REACH THE SUNSHINE.” featuring Daniel Caesar is a 6 minute neo-psychedelic grand finale with them talking about filling a void.

If you told me 7 years ago that the same guy who made “1Night” & “Never Switch Up” would go on to drop a full-blown psychedelic rock album & actually manage to pull it off, I would’ve laughed at you. And if anyone can’t appreciate the artistic growth that Yachty shows throughout Let’s Start Here., then that’s your funeral because the most consistent body of work that I’ve heard from him in a grip. All the artists that he draws inspiration from mentioned throughout the review (i.e. Hendrix, Pink Floyd) have literally made some of my favorite music EVER & the fact that we got a body of work from him in those specific styles of music into his own after being called a “mumble rapper” early on in his career proves ANYTHING’s possible.

Score: 4.5/5

Onoe Caponoe – “Concrete Fantasia” review

This is the 5th full-length studio LP from London, England, United Kingdom emcee/producer Onoe Caponoe. Introducing himself in the early 2010s off his debut mixtape Central Control as well as Willows Midnight Gallery & Holy Mountain, it wasn’t until The Staircase to Nowhere caught the attention of High Focus Records & made his full-length debut for the label with Voices from Planet Cattele during my senior year of high school. Spells from the Cyclops would continue Onoe’s evolution & Surf or Die has become the most celebrated work of his yet, coming off fighting the Invisible War for some Concrete Fantasia days after Alex Winsdor became the longest reigning RPW British Women’s Champion & a month since Leon Slater was crowned the youngest RPW British Cruiserweight Champion.

Zdechły Osa appears during the intro “Purple Haze” stylistically taking inspiration from the Memphis scene dropping bilingually hardcore lyricism in both English & Polish just before “Slayaz / Elf Island” lets off a rapid-fire flow until “Não Podes Fugir Do Teu Destino” by Hareton Salvanini gets sampled during the 2nd half. “Fifi (Mermaid Lagoon)” featuring Lil B goes for a boom bap vibe instrumentally thanks to Telemachus so they can spin out their minds together while “House on the Hill” works in this addicting flip for a 3 minute horror film of multiple different genres.

“Pet Cemetery” gives off an experimental trap atmosphere swinging his sword under the moonlight glow just before “The Cheshire Cat” shifts gears back in boom bap territory except there’s a groovy twist to it referencing Alice in Wonderland, asking why stay chase rabbits when they always fall down the darkest hole doing so. “Wipeout” treads the experimental trap waters once more dismantling anybody on the mic who has no game compared to him while the tread/hip house 2-parter “Afro Samurai / Quest”contemplates one another similarly to night & day.

After the “Cat Kingdom” interlude, “Magic Carpet” officially kicks off the 2nd half of Concrete Fantasia promising to make this woman his while the 2nd single “Pinnochio” featuring Jehst documents the many highs &inevitable lows of running the roads on an ill-fated quest to become a real boy. “The Horsemen” likens his pen-game to the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse while the 5th & final single “Ice King” combines cloud rap & plugg to talk about being colder than crystal storm on the twilight tundra.

“Cat in Oz” makes for a jazzy lead single finding himself unable to get sleep because of the witches outside his house while the 4th single “Heaven’s Gates” explores the spaces between reality & the spirit realm. “Outsiders” fuses cloud rap & boom bap for a shimmering lurker’s anthem but once “Psychosis City” suggests those who don’t know him to keep it lowkey, “Age of Aquarius” officially sends things off with a compositional outro clocking at almost 5 minutes in length.

Offering an alternate space for his fans to escape whilst still commenting on the highs & lows of city life, the newest entry of Onoe Caponoe’s discography sticks out to me as the greatest thing he’s done since Surf or Die & makes another example of why he’s amongst the UK’s finest hip hop artists today. The production creatively fuses the sounds of cloud rap, boom bap, jazz rap, experimental hip hop, trap & plugg for an hour long ride inside the mind of High Focus’ lyrically abstract enigma.

Score: 4/5

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Eto – “Dead Poets” review

Eto is an MC from Rochester, New York who I first caught wind of him in 2018 with his feature at the end of the 6th installment of Westside Gunn’s infamous HWH mixtape series & eventually his DJ Muggs-produced full-length debut Hell’s Roof a few months later. This was followed up with Long Story Short as well as & Front Row & The Beauty of It, but is enlisting Toronto’s very own Futurewave behind the boards to make Dead Poets his first solo effort in 2 & a half years.

The titular intro sets things off with a bare piano instrumental talking about people trying to leave them in the dark & still shining regardless whereas “Vintage” works some raw kicks & snares declaring that he’s still living like the king he truly is to this day. “Bullets & Pills” was a good choice for a lead single keeping things in boom bap turf talking about having to clean up shop if one got the bills prior to Daniel Son tagging along for the gritty follow-up “Make It Out” as they both vividly describe being fortunate enough to get out of tough situations alive & well.

Moving on from there with “Poetry is Dead”, we have Eto over lavish piano chords pointing out the fact that those cut from the same cloth as him won’t live if the grind stops leading into “Cut the Robbin” returning to the boom bap declaring shop to be open for business nor to forget the unforgiven. The solemn titular interlude prioritizes self discipline & addressing that he hasn’t taken any losses or even wins yet just before G4 Jag comes into the picture for the jazzy “Did You Hear?” answering the question if either of them heard what others have said.

“My Poetry Deep” talks about how rare it is to see a costless person fall after learning that scared money gets it all over a boom bap instrumental with some harmonious background vocals while the song “City Broken” with Warlord Ironsheik has a more morbid approach sonically as both MCs advise not to slip & that slowly is the fastest way to get to where you wanna be in life. The penultimate track “Black Star” is a symphonic boom bap hybrid speaking on what those who die good men will receive & “Don’t Listen” ends things with Tearz handling the verses calling himself Van Gogh with a hoodie & Timbs on top of a tranquil beat.

From the moment Dead Poets was announced over the summer, I knew it was bound to be a great comeback from Eto after nearly 3 years of dropping a solo effort & I’m more than satisfied with the outcome of it. Although I respectfully wasn’t too crazy about the features during the back end of the album, Futurewave’s production is incredibly consistent & Swayze himself sounds rejuvenated on the mic.

Score: 4/5

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