Jam Baxter – “Fetch the Poison” review

Here we have the 7th studio LP from London, England, United Kingdom emcee Jam Baxter of the Dead Players & Contact Play. Initially signed to High Focus Records, his 2010 solo debut Rinse Out Friday / Spack Out Monday was received positively & the sophomore effort The Gruesome Features would see a lot more critical acclaim. …So We Ate Them Whole in 2014 remains amongst High Focus’ most celebrated releases ever, fulfilling his obligations with the Hove, East Sussex imprint with Mansion 38 as well as Touching Scenes & Off Piste respectively. Obscure Liqueurs marked his official Blah Records debut & has been looking to Fetch the Poison since.

“Bright & Shiny Things” makes a meticulously spooky intro produced by Telemachus talking about craving another crown & waking up to find an earthquake shaking the ground whereas “Ulidjani Minajali Manze” asks for his candour to be excused since he won’t be able to flatter anyone’s problems with their grandeur. “Blink Twice for Yes” talks about every one of us being meant to eventually burst & after the spoken word “Mama Cuishe” interlude, “Cherry Red Paint Job” pleads for everyone to keep their hands off the precious materials.

As for “Go On”, we have Jam talking about thieves around us stealing souls from people & being told what to do by them just before “Every Pool of Stagnant Water” confesses to feeling like someone woke him up from this strange dream he’s been having leaving plastic body-doubles standing on every corner. “Stand Back Little Timmy” hops over a Wundrop beat talking about being here to watch the stars burn out without blinking & consume alcohol while “All Sprawled Out in the City” boasts of him stepping out of the offices grinning.

“Flickers on the 4th Floor” continues the 2nd half of Fetch the Poison going for a boom bap direction instrumentally hogging up all the high ground to himself & after “The Infamous Gatwick Meltdown of 2026” vividly tells the story of someone who’s been banned from the London Gatwick Airport out in West Sussex after leaving their minds at a drug dealer’s place out in South London, were treated to the 2nd & final spoken word interlude “I Belong Elsewhere” looking to take his business somewhere else.

The song “Sundown Sundown” featuring Black Alien, Black Josh, Jehst, Nog & Xamã brings the sextet together on top of this trap instrumental from Ghosttown for a bilingual crossover between English & Portuguese while the title track talks about needing the 3 CCs. The lead single “Blood Red Cheese Wire” ends the album with him making it clear that he doesn’t need anyone’s hollow thoughts or pocket change.

Conceived during a state-wide alcohol ban in Mexico, the inaugural full-length to be created after Jam Baxter became sober makes its comfortable behind Touching Scenes & …So We Ate Them Whole amongst the top 3 entries in his solo discography. He retains the abstractly hallucinatory style of storytelling we’ve all come to know him for & the production mostly handled by Telemachus ditches Obscure Liqueurs’ industrial elements in favor of balancing both the boom bap & trap subgenres of hip hop.

Score: 4.5/5

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Cordae – “From a Bird’s Eye View” review

Cordae is 23 year old MC from Suitland, Maryland that came up as a member of the YBN collective just a few years ago. He first came on my radar with “Old N****s”, an immensely well written response to “1985”, which was one of the better tracks that J. Cole’s 5th album K.O.D. had to offer. That single alone earned Cordae a HUGE co-sign from none other than Dr. Dre as well as a deal with Atlantic Records, where he put out a potential showing debut The Lost Boy the following summer right after his 2019 XXL Freshman Class placement. But after dropping a prelude EP Just Until….. over the spring, Cordae’s finally back with his 2nd full-length.

After the “Shiloh’s Intro”, the first song “Jean Michel” sets it off with a rich boom bap instrumental & Cordae providing listeners with introspection whereas ”Super” has a soulful trap vibe boasting his success. “Momma’s Hood” has a more woozier vibe to it talking about driving down his mother’s old stomping grounds in a Jeep just before “Want From Me” goes into a more psychedelic direction with the help of Dem Jointz & Jake One asking this girl what more does she want from him. Meanwhile on “Today”, we have a unique trap beat from Kid Culture as none other than Gunna tags along with Cordae to talk about grinding & dismissing bullshit leading into “Shiloh’s Interlude”.

Following that, “C Carter” instrumentally has a west coast feel to it reminding listeners that he’s arrived & then Lil Wayne comes in for the Hit-Boy produced “Sinister” going at anyone who chooses to go bar-to-bar against them. Boi-1da takes it into acoustic trap territory for the H.E.R./Lil Durk-assisted “Chronicles” talking about not being sure where their hearts are headed while “Champagne Glasses” with Freddie Gibbs finds them on top of a spacious beat detailing conversations being complicated these days.

The song “Westlake High” works in a soul sample apologizing for his mistakes as well as shouting out his loved ones while the penultimate track “Parables” finds him & Eminem talking about on top of a twangy boom bap instrumental from Cardiak. “Gifted” with Roddy Ricch then ends the album with the 2 going back & forth with each other telling the world how blessed both of them are over a moody Bongo instrumental.

Compared to The Lost Boy, I think From a Bird’s Eye View happens to be a slightly better yet very much enjoyable follow-up. His production choices have gotten better & lyrically, it seems to me that he’s detailing a lot more of his life than he did 2 & a half years back.

Score: 3.5/5

Earl Sweatshirt – “Sick!” review

Earl Sweatshirt is a 27 year old MC/producer from Los Angeles, California who began his career in 2008 under the name Sly Tendencies. He posted a handful of tracks for a mixtape called Kitchen Cutlery on MySpace, but the tape would never be released to this day. Then he formed a rap trio with 2 of his friends called The Backpackerz & planned to release a mixtape together by the name of 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, but 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 in 2013 to critical acclaim for his clever rhyme schemes & the gritty production from those such as The Neptunes & 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 it’s darker aesthetic. Some Rap Songs not only wound up being my favorite album of 2018, but also the best work of Earl’s career as I look at it as the bastard child of one of my all-time favorites album: Madvillainy. But after dropping a small handful of average SRS leftovers in the form of Feet of Clay the year after through an ongoing Warner Records distribution deal, he’s returning from the shadows with his 4th full-length.

“Old Friend” kicks off the album with a bare orchestral loop from The Alchemist cryptically addressing someone he’s still cool with whereas “2010” has a cloudy trap vibe with the help of Black Noi$e talking about the days when he was hungry. The title track has a more fuzzier tone produced by Navy Blue saying he won’t let the devil in just before ZeelooperZ tags along for the extravagant “Vision”. Meanwhile on “Tabula Rasa”, we have Armand Hammer joining Earl in discussing the blank slate theory on top of some plinky piano chords & a vocal chop just before “Lyre” talks about making it straight over some horns.

“Lobby” gets on some grim trap shit detailing being a superhuman while the song “God Laughs” has a atmospheric yet drumless feel to it talking about searching for his lost halo. The penultimate track “Titanic” is an abstract trap banger showcasing some clever bars such as “Get ghost like I need a killer”, but then “Fire in the Hole” ends the album by working in a guitar talking about how he needed another go.

Given how mid Feet of Clay was, it didn’t really worry me going into Sick! because I knew he was gonna expand on the experimental sounds of Some Rap Songs & that just so happens to be the case here. Another thing that makes the album highly enjoyable for me is him telling the world how he’s been dealing with the pandemic.

Score: 4.5/5

Rigz – “Gold” review

Rigz is a 30 year old MC from Rochester, New York who came up as a member of Da Cloth. He eventually broke out solo in 2017 off his debut EP Calculated & then the debut mixtape I Got Samples, which was followed up with a sequel tape & then his 2nd EP A Piece of the Action. However, Rigz’ popularity began to grow in 2019 off his Chup-produced 3rd mixtape Roach Gutta Slums & then the Big Ghost Ltd. produced collab effort with fellow Cloth member Mooch called The Only Way Out. Then he brought in Futurewave to produce his full-length debut Substance Abuse to universal acclaim & now after coming fresh off the sophomore effort Wake Ups that came out over the summer, DJ Muggs is coming in the picture to produce Rigz’ highly anticipated 3rd album.

After the “Gold Standard” intro, the title track with Mooch sets off the whole album by talking about how all they need is a brick over a morbid instrumental whereas “Every Season” with Rob Gates finds the pair on some spectral boom bap shit going at those who’re only tough in their heads. “Supreme” weaves in some keyboards & dusty drums talking about keeping 10 toes down just before Meyhem Lauren tags along for gritty drug dealer’s anthem “Cook Off”. Meanwhile on “What We Got”, we have Rigz on top of a beat kin to Wu-Tang Forever era RZA just giving the listeners who he is leading into the Rome Streetz-assisted “Heads on the Wall” talking about keeping their foots on cats’ necks on top of some luxurious piano chords & sputtering drums.

Mooch returns for the bare soul sample-laced “Where Ya Soul At?” speaking on turning the streets to their home, but then “Fool’s Gold” works in an enticing vocal loop going into battle rap territory. “24 Karats” goes back into drumless turf expressing his desire for a fortune while Big Twins comes into the picture for the forlorn “We Want In” talking about riding for their respective cliques.

The guitars on “Eastside Blues” are a nice change of pace sonically reminding that you can’t change where you came from & they carry their way over to “Crack the Code”, where Times Change jumps in to talk about how masterful they are. After the “Balance” interlude, the final “Never Met a Real Gangsta” with M.A.V. sees the 2 on top of some strings telling listeners all the G’s they know wound up not wanting be involved with crime anymore & then “The Culture” ends it with a spoken word piece.

It’s been a long time coming & I’m glad it finally came because this would be an excellent entry point for those who’re aren’t already familiar with Rigz or Da Cloth as a whole really. He continues to reveal himself as the sharpest lyricist of the crew even though I got love for all the members & Muggs’ production is as equally superb as Futurewave’s was on Substance Abuse a little over a year back.

Score: 4.5/5

Maez301 – “Hello, Goodbye.” review

Maez301 is a 28 year old rapper from Gaithersburg, Maryland that first got his start in 2017 with his debut mixtape Nowhere. The project eventually caught the attention of Ervin Pope & Jerome Taylor, both of whom helped Maez get a record contract with Strange Music the following year & dropped his eponymous full-length debut showing Strange fans who he is artistically a little bit after his 26th born day. The sophomore effort HASAAN took a more personal tone to it & now that he’s home from the Strange New World Tour, Maez is keeping EP behind the boards for his 3rd album.

The title track has some gospel qualities to it telling listeners to be ready when he goes whereas “Let Up” with Tech N9ne is a west coast-tinged banger talking about never slowing down. “First Place” goes into cloudy, trap territory striving for victory & “Black” has to be one of the best songs of his career thus far detailing issues that’re very much relevant today on top of a bluesy instrumental.

Meanwhile on “Frenemies”, we have King Iso joining Maez on top of an acoustic guitar as well as a flute & some snares addressing trust issues leading into “Olsen Twins” serving as a romantically lush trap banger. After the “Different” interlude, “Fallen” is a downtrodden cut cussing out those who wanna see him fail just before “Inspire Me” tells his lover how much she means to him & the beat kinda reminds me of DJ Mustard for whatever reason.

Jehry Robinson tags along for the ethereal “Strange Flows” talking about hoes, but then “Slow Down” keeps the cloud rap vibes going by trying to steal a girl fed up with fuckboys. “Girlfriend” is a smooth dedication to his new sweetheart whereas “Lot on My Plate” has a bit of a cavernous feel to it venting about people hating him because he did it his way.

“Nun 2 Me” is a more spacious cut saying it ain’t shit to him while the song “What a Life” follows it up with a high-spirited bop about how blessed he is. The penultimate track “Ecstasy” psychedelically encourages listeners to live in the moment & “No Limit” rounds it all off has this sparkling quality to the beat talking about taking things as high as possible.

If you liked how Maez introduced the world to who he is artistically & personally on the last 2 albums as much as I did, then I HIGHLY encourage you to check this new one out as soon as you can because he really outdoes himself this time. I always appreciate when one tries to expand themselves artistically & that’s EXACTLY what he does with EP on here successfully.

Score: 4/5

The Musalini – “The Don & Eye” review

The Musalini is a 34 year old MC from New York City who’s been making noise in the underground since 2018 after dropping his debut mixtape Musalini Season. He would go on to release 3 full-lengths & 1 more tape before signing to TCF Music Group, where he’s made himself home since then by dropping a couple EPs & Return of the Oro in the early part of this decade. But to follow up his 38 Spesh-produced 3rd EP In God We Trust that came out over the fall, he’s enlisting 9th Wonder behind the boards throughout his 5th album right here.

Planet Asia tags along for the charming opener “Summer League” spitting that fly shit on top of a guitar whereas “Skyview” has a more rich, boom bap quality to it talking about how he still gets around. “Been a Minute” goes into a more calmer route telling his lover that he ain’t like other guys, but then “Paid in Full” works in an incredible jazz sample talking about how even the blind can see the whole different sequence.

Meanwhile on “Don Music”, we have 38 Spesh joining Mus on top of some horns of course getting in their mafioso bag leading into the soulful “Cat Daddy” talking about the girl he sees in his dreams being all on him now. “Deja Vu” is a cool little anthem detailing that nobody can stop his crew just before “Sun Child” has a more drumless feel to it talking about how he’s that dude.

The song “Tunnel Vision” with Izzy Hott incorporates some strings taking aim at those who tried to break them down while the penultimate track “Miami Vice” with Ice Lord mixes a vocal loop with some keyboards to spit that braggadocio. And to round it out, King Draft & Swank come into the picture for “Sincerely” once again going into jazz territory to remind listeners they spit the shit they do because they live it.

For all the readers out there who’re fans of both parties, then you’re gonna absolutely be enamored by this album. The features at the back end of it can be hit or miss & a few of the songs could’ve been more fully fleshed out in my opinion but nonetheless, 9th cooks the best production of any Mus project & the latter scorches everything in his path lyrically.

Score: 4/5

The Weeknd – “Dawn FM” review

This is the highly anticipated 5th album from Toronto, Ontario, Canada singer/songwriter The Weeknd. Rising to stardom in the early 2010s with a trilogy of highly acclaimed mixtapes, he then made his full-length debut in 2013 with Kiss Land which was a decent attempt at symbolizing tour life. The sophomore effort Beauty Behind the Madness proved to be even better as it started to incorporate elements of pop, although Starboy ended up being another mixed bag much like Kiss Land except he embraced a more electropop sound. Abel’s debut EP My Dear Melancholy, though was a solid return to his alternative R&B roots & let’s not forget After Hours going on to becoming the best album of his career thus far in my opinion. Reasons being because of how much he artistically reinvented himself on there combined with the incredible portrayal of promiscuity as well as overindulgence & self-loathing. So given that, to say I was fiending for Dawn FM would be an understatement.

After the titular intro with fucking Jim Carrey playing a radio DJ, the official WWE WrestleMania XL theme song “Gasoline” kicks off the whole thing in a quasi-techno territory talking about wanting to believer there’s more to life whereas the nu-disco tinged “How Do I Make You Love Me?” ponders on what it takes to achieve eternal love. The official WWE Crown Jewel III theme song “Take My Breath” has a bit of a French house influence to it talking about a woman who loves to be on the edge leading into “Sacrifice” samples Denroy Morgan to tell his lover not to be catching feelings out here.

Following the “A Tale by Quincy” interlude, we have Abel in his funk bag for “Out of Time” admitting that he’s been working on himself just before “Here We Go…Again” brings in some bare synths talking about how life’s a dream & Tyler, The Creator’s verse on here actually comes off as half baked. “Best Friends” almost bares a synth-funk quality to it saying he & this woman can’t be close despite loving her, but then “Is There Someone Else?” is a slow jam confronting his lover asking if she’s cheating on him.

“Starry Eyes” sounds a bit similar to “Here We Go…Again” instrumentally excepting he’s singing about wanting to be there for the girl of his dreams & after the “Every Angel is Terrifying” interlude, “Don’t Break My Heart” showing a more vulnerable side saying he can’t take anymore heartbreak with some synthwave vibes.

The track “I Heard You’re Married” with Lil Wayne finds the 2 patronizingly telling married women to leave their men for them over yet another synth-funk beat while the WWE WrestleMania XXXIX theme song “Less Than 0” sounds very peppy sonically despite it’s depressing lyrics. “Phantom Regret” lastly ends the album with a spoken word interlude from Jim Carrey.

After Hours has quickly become The Weeknd’s best full-length album in a lot of people’s eyes including myself & Dawn FM is a great sequel to start the new year. Oneohtrix Point Never helps him dive further into a more synthpop based sound with additional elements of dance-pop, synthwave, contemporary R&B, nu-disco, synth-funk & progressive electronic on top of a neat radio station concept.

Score: 4/5

Nas – “Magic” review

This is the 15th full-length album from Queens icon Nas. For those who’re living under a rock, his first 2 albums illmatic & It Was Written are widely acknowledged as some of the greatest in hip hop history. I also wanna include stillmatic, The Lost Tapes, God’s Son & Life is Good. Then there was the Kanye West-produced NASIR & The Lost Tapes II, which I felt like they were fine additions to his catalogue even though the overall consensuses were polarizing. But for almost 2 years now, Nas has been working exclusively with Hit-Boy & both of them are a good fit for each other. King’s Disease earned Esco his first Grammy & the sequel that dropped over the summer was more superior in terms of quality, but are finishing off 2021 by dropping Magic.

“Speechless” is an unsettling opener to the whole album talking about getting his weight & safe up whereas “Meet Joe Black” takes things into boom bap territory advising not to fuck with him. “Ugly” incorporates some wavy synth melodies to detail some hardships & to confirm King’s Disease III is indeed in the works, but then “40-16 Building” is pretty much a glorious sequel to “Rare Form” off his last album.

Meanwhile on “Hollywood Gangsta”, we have Nas detailing being on top & surprising listeners with a bit of a quirky groove to the beat leading into the drumless “Wu is for the Children” talking about the special kind of things in life. The song “Wave Gods” with A$AP Rocky finds the 2 on top of an organ & some dusty drums to get charmingly boastful while the penultimate track “The Truth” makes me so happy calling out people on their bluff. “Dedicated” then finishes off the album with an incredible 2-parter about devoting his life to this shit referencing WWE Hall of Famer Mike Tyson.

Magic in my eyes is on the same caliber as King’s Disease II & only increases my anticipation for the 3rd installment of the series even more. Hit-Boy continues to expand on the production versatility that the predecessor displayed & Esco keeps showing how a late career MC should be spitting.

Score: 4.5/5

Curren$y – “Pilot Talk IV” review

Curren$y is a 40 year old rapper from New Orleans, Lousiana that first got his start with No Limit Records in 2002. He would then hop over to Young Money Entertainment & Cash Money Records in 2006, but eventually branched out in 2008 with his own label Jet Life Recordings. Since then, the man made a name for himself by dropping a handful of projects every single year with the latest being the Cash Fargo-produced Land, Air, Sea EP last month. However, Spitta’s celebrating Christmas Eve by dropping the 4th installment of his renown Pilot Talk series as his 17th full-length album & it’s only right for him to bring Ski Beatz back along for the ride.

“Big Game Fishing” is a pleasantly jazz boom bap opener paying tribute to his city & his homies who came up out of there whereas “Audio Dope 6” mixes these triumphant horns with some saxes talking about pledging to get the whole world high keeping the titular series going strong. “Non Fungible” takes a more spacious route to smoothly spit that braggadocio, but then “There It Is” has a tenser almost funkier sound challenging anyone to step to him bar for bar.

Meanwhile on “Workers & Bosses”, we have Spitta going back into cloud rap territory talking about wins turning into losses just as things start taking off leading into “The Scene” brings the saxes back in to chase away the bad vibes. “Memory Lane” is a soulful ballad with reflective lyricism while the string-laced “So Easy” factually talks about how it’s not hard to say you’re a g. The penultimate track “Under the Wings” slickly details stealing your girl with his Rolls Royce & finally, “Finger Roll” ends the album on a rap rock note telling all the clowns out there to wrap it up.

I hold the original Pilot Talk trilogy amongst the best material of Curren$y’s prolific career & this 4th installment definitely lived up to my expectations. Ski Beatz sticks to the jazz-influenced sounds of it’s predecessors & it’s still an incredibly great match for Spitta’s notoriously calm flow.

Score: 4/5

Shady Ray – “Blood Work” review

This is the sophomore album from Inglewood emcee Shady Ray, who’s been around for a little over a decade with a handful of mixtapes under his belt including The Sinister & 1 Man Gang. But now that he signed to Lord Mobb Music a little bit after dropping his full-length debut Blood Pool, Ray celebrated Christmas Eve by having Sushi Punk produce Blood Work from front to back.

After the titular intro, the first song “Dark Path” starts off the whole EP by enlisting Jameel Na’im X for a drumless look at them fighting demons whereas “Fine China” has a more alluring sound to it saying he doesn’t make threats. “Appetite” goes back into drumless territory spitting some vicious battle raps leading into the calming “Medicated” talking about being blessed to be where is now.

Meanwhile on “Water on the Spoon”, we have Ray & Aaqil Ali coming together on top of a soul/horn sample to spit that heroin shit leading into Bale as well as T.F. & Young Act tagging along for “Where We At” to call out those who act like they came from the slums over yet another melodic vocal loop.

The song “Cannes” with BVNGS, Eto, Gifted Gab & Phonk P finds the quintet on top of some guitar licks going at those who have beef with them while the penultimate track “Act n’ Shady” with Flee Lord & Young Act weaves in some dreary pianos telling punks to leave all 3 of them alone. “Soul Food” finishes it all off by getting inspirational lyrically with these heavy horns backing him.

In the end, I think this is the crown jewel of Ray’s discography so far & have a feeling this is only the beginning. Lyrically, I feel like listeners will get a good idea as to who he is personality-wise & Sushi Punk comes correct behind the boards as well.

Score: 3.5/5