Tech N9ne – “Planet” review

After dropping 2 Collabos albums in 2017, the legendary & ever so hardworking Kansas City MC Tech N9ne is now dropping his 20th full-length album. The album opens with “Habanero”, where he talks about how hot he is over a futuristic trap beat from MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 (who produced all but 5 songs). The next track “Fresh Out!” with Swisher Sleep sees the 2 going back & forth about not giving any more fucks over a skittering electronic beat from mR. pOrTeR & while the song “Kick It With Myself” does touch down on loneliness, both the 7 instrumental & the hook are just alright to me. The track “Drink Up” is of course an alcohol-themed club banger & the song “Don’t Nobody Want None” is an ode to the all the b-boys with an instrumental kin to the classic Afrika Bambaataa track “Planet Rock”.

The track “Bad JuJu” with King-I.S.O. sees both MCs getting confrontational over an eerie instrumental & the song “Comfortable” is basically about feeling just that over a spacey trap beat. Also, the sample during the hook is alluring. The track “No Reason (The Mosh Pit Song)” is basically about fucking people up over an eerie trap beat from 206derek & Frizz that kinda fits the vibe. However, the auto-tuned Y2 hook sound annoying, but the MGK feature is really trite to me. Especially with the corny Dr. Dre reference at the very beginning of his verse. After the “Brightfall Confession” interlude, we then go into the next song “Brightfall”. Here, Tech delivers a cool throwback to K.o.D. (King of Darkness) from the spiritual content to the orchestral strong-tinged production.

The song “Red Byers (Say Som’n Do Som’n)” gets conscious over some live instrumentation with some hi-hats & the track “Never Stray” talks about how far he’s come with his label Strange Music over an ambitiously atmospheric beat. The song “Sho Nuff” continues where the last one left off as it talks about about celebrating where he’s at now over a bouncy beat from Dem Jointz while the track “How I’m Feeling” with Snow Tha Product sees both MCs saying what’s on their minds over a dinky piano with some rattling hi-hats. The song “Not a Damn Thing” vents about having a day off from his usual grind over some ambitious keys with some funky guitars while the track “My Fault” addresses his supposed beef with the Insane Clown Posse along with a story about a legal issue revolving around the classic 816 Boyz banger “Areola” over a smooth beat. The song “Tappin’ In” recalls the story of a 21 year old Tech fucking his homie’s 40 year old girl & I absolutely love the way he incorporates Joey Cool on here as he delivers from the point of view of Tech N9ne’s friend. The penultimate track “Levitation” talks about succeeding over a beat that’ll make you feel like you’re in space & then the album finishes off with “We Won’t Go Quietly”, where he insightfully gets conscious again over some beautifully played keys.

To be honest, this is Tech N9ne’s best album since Special Effects in 2015. Aside from 1 track I could do without, you can’t deny that his pen-game is still deadly for someone who’s this deep in his career. Most importantly too: it’s mostly focused & consistent, both of which are what I feel like his last couple albums lacked. Just goes to show Tecca Nina isn’t leaving his place as the biggest independent artist in hip hop any time soon

Score: 4.5/5

Jericho Jackson – Self-titled review

Jericho Jackson is a duo consisting of New Jersey producer Khrysis & renown Detroit MC eLZhi. Both members gave been in the game for a hot minute now, but they formed Jericho Jackson together very recently & this is their full-length debut. After the “World of Illusion” intro, we dive into the first song “Overthinking”. Here, eLZhi touches down on just that over a settle instrumental. The track “Self Made” talks about eL’s success over a jazzy boom bap beat & the song “Cuffin’ Season” gets conscious over a boom bap beat with a laidback guitar in the background. The song “17” vividly tells the story of an unnamed 17 year old going down the dark path & I was surprised to hear Khrysis sample “Deep Down Body Thurst” off of N*E*R*D’s new album NO_ONE EVER REALLY DIES.

The track “F.R.I.E.N.D.S” vents about needing true friends over a gloomy beat while the song “To Do List” talks about the things he feels he was set out to do & I love the strings on here. The track “Talkin’ ‘Bout” goes at the fakes & the Khrysis verse at the beginning was surprising yet super dope. The song “Listen” gets romantic over a smooth instrumental & the penultimate track “Breguets” gets braggadocious about eLZhi’s rapping prowess over a jazzy beat. The album then closes perfectly with “Thank You”, where eLZhi gets grateful for his success over a soulful boom bap beat.

Overall, this was just as fantastic as I thought it would be. Both eLZhi & Khrysis show quite a bit of chemistry from the beautiful production to the ever so top notch lyricism. Hopefully, we get a follow up at some point in the future

Score: 4/5

Black Milk – “FEVER” review

A little over 3 years after the release of If There’s a Hell Below renown Detroit producer Black Milk is finally returning with his 7th full-length album. The opener “unVEil” speaks on living for the moment over a luscious neo psychedelic beat & the next track “But I Can Be” gets insightful over a laidback beat. The track “Could It Be” reflects where he started & where he’s at now over a soulful funky boom bap beat while the song “2 Would Try” vents to an unnamed ex-girlfriend over a smooth jazzy instrumental. The track “Laugh Now Cry Later” talks about how Black Milk sees the world differently nowadays over funky boom bap beat with a luring soul sample & the song “True Lies” gets conscious over a mellow funk rock instrumental.

After the “eVE” interlude, we then get into the next song “Drown”. Here, Black Milk touches down on the ghetto life over a settle guitar & bassline. The track “DiVE” is just an instrumental track with a beautiful flute with some laid-back guitar, keyboards & synthesizers during the second half. The song “Foe Friend” vividly tells the story of 2 friends who eventually fall out with each other over mellow beat & the track “Will Remain” gets ambitious over a funky beat. The closer “You Like to Risk It All / Things Will Never Be the Same” may have a mediocre auto-tune hook, but Black Milk’s compelling story suits the beat perfectly.

Personally, this is up with Popular Demand & Tronic for Black Milk’s magnum opus. The production is probably his most organic & the lyrics are lot smarter than ever before

Score: 4/5

Ocean Wisdom – “Wizville” review

Ocean Wisdom is a 24 year old MC from Camden, London, England, United Kingdom introducing himself off the 3-track debut extended play Splittin’ the Racket in the summer of 2015 under the Hove, East Sussex underground imprint High Focus Records. Following it up 6 months later with the revered hardcore hip hop & boom bap debut album Chaos ‘93 quickly becoming a top 5 in the label’s history, he has spent the last 27 months preparing for this sophomore effort simultaneously fulfilling all of his contractual obligations for High Focus in the process a month after Jinny became the inaugural RPW British Women’s Champion.

“Eye Contact” sets it off with a boom bap intro talking about advice putting pressure on his iris whereas “Don” takes the drum & bass route instrumentally flexing that he’ll kill an MC prior to finishing his meal. “Brick or Bat” goes for a darker vibe referencing former UFC Featherweight Champion & UFC Lightweight Champion Conor McGregor prior to “Ting Dun” featuring Method Man homages “Airwaves” off RZA’s solo debut Bobby Digital in Stereo.

Illinformed jumps behind the boards for the piano-boom bap crossover “Life” talking about lonesomeness leading into the laidback “Tom & Jerry” produced by Leaf Dog make reference to the long running Warner Bros.-owned franchise of the same name whilst discussing the trials of the streets. “Righteous” featuring Rodney P & Roots Manuva chops up a soul sample to talk about the idea of righteousness itself while “Burning a Bridge” advises to get out of his way unless you want him to become militant.

“Revvin’” featuring Dizzee Rascal finds the 2 pairing up over a grime beat making a reference to Mike Russow & Todd Duffee’s fight at UFC 114 while “Deebo” likens himself to the villain of the classic hood film Friday. Starting the 2nd half, Telemachus pulls from industrial music a bit during “I Ain’t Eaten” boasting he’s more special than José Mourinho while “Swoosh” speaks of how everything’s effortless using a basketball metaphor.

P Money joins Ocean Wisdom on “Tiptronic” expressing their love for cars over a Pitch 92 instrumental while ”Flavours” talks about getting whatever he desires because of his status in the UK scene. “Less is More” featuring Jehst teams up for a dedication to keeping things simple rather than over-the-top while “Western Road” talks about the main shopping portion of Brighton where the side streets are mainly residential.

“Officer” gives it’s flowers to the iconic KRS-One single “Sound of da Police” while “Incidents” featuring Chester P talks about life with their friends growing up & the lyrics becoming increasingly darker. “Perspectives” challenges everyone to put themselves in his shoes for 24 hours & once “Menacing” salutes the late Muhammad Ali, the closer “Goostfraba FM” finishes off with a freestyle radiating that old school radio feeling.

Widely recognized for his debut single “Walkin’”spitting 4.45 words per second surpassing “Rap God” off Eminem’s 8th album The Marshall Mathers LP 2, the follow-up to Chaos ‘93 still delivers even with Wizville having slightly more flaws than Ocean Wisdom’s debut. A great deal of the grime & jazz rap production is exceptional as are the performances from Ocean & the guests, it’s simply a bit longer than I felt like it needed to be.

Score: 3.5/5

Nipsey Hu$$le – “Victory Lap” review

Nipsey Hu$$le is a rapper from Slauson, California & this is his long-awaited full-length debut. The album starts off with the title track, where Nipsey talks about where he is now & the Stacy Barthe feature is beautiful. The next song “Rap Niggas” telling us that he’s nothing like these dudes out right now over a gritty instrumental while the track “Last Time I Checc’d” with YG sees the 2 talking about how they’re self made over a g-funk/trap infused beat. The song “Young Nigga” gets braggadocious over a trap beat with some rattling bass & the track “Dedication” with Kendrick Lamar sees the 2 talking about their come ups from the ghettos to the rap game over a bass heavy atmospheric instrumental.

The song “Blue Laces 2” is a welcoming sequel to “Blue Laces” off of Nipsey’s 2010 mixtape The Marathon while the track “Hu$$le & Motivate” pretty speaks for itself over some decent keys. The song “Status Symbol 3” with Buddy is a fun close to the titular trilogy & the track “Succa Proof” is a menacing, unapologetic shot at all the lames out there. The song “Keyz 2 the City 2” isn’t a bad sequel to the original “Keyz 2 the City”, but the TeeFlii feature is probably the weakest one on the entire album.

The track “Grinding All My Life” talks about his work ethic & I like the eerie vibes of the instrumental. The song “Million While You Young” gets luxurious over kick-back beat from Mike & Keys and Jake One while the track “Loaded Bases” is basically about living for the moment over a soulful instrumental. The song “Real Big” talks about his success over an ambitious beat & then the penultimate track “Double Up” with Belly & Dom Kennedy talks about drug dealing over a spacey beat. The album then finishes off with “Right Hand 2 God” reflects on from where he was to where is now & I absolutely love the horns that come around during the hook.

As a whole, this may be Nipsey’s best work yet. The beats bang & it displays where he is right now very well while delivering a few sequels to some of his older songs from his mixtape days. I really hope this gives him the shine he deserves, because it was well worth the long wait

Score: 4/5

Tyga – “Kyoto” review

After dropping a sequel to his #BitchImTheShit mixtape last summer, Compton, California rapper Tyga is now going contemporary R&B on his 6th full-length album right here. The opener “Temperature” sings presumably about his ex-girlfriend Kylie Jenner over a tropical beat & the auto-tune on Tyga’s voice makes it even worse. The next song “Leather in the Rain” with Kyndall is a shitty sex duet with a generic club beat & the track “Come & Ball Wit Me” is basically Tyga whining about Kylie over a spacey trap beat. The song “Boss Up” sings about how he loves that his current chick is calling the shots over a moody beat & the track “U Cry” is another Kylie breakup pity party over a somber beat.

The song “King of the Jungle” sees T-Raw admitting that he was unfaithful to Kylie over an atmospheric instrumental while “Hard2Look” is an honest to God diss track towards her new boyfriend Travis Scott that comes off REALLY corny. The song “I Need a Girl 3” is an unnecessary follow-up to the 2 songs from Puff Daddy a.k.a. P. Diddy or Diddy that came out in 2002 while the track “Train 4 This” has some corny boxing & Mike Tyson references over a trap beat with a decent “Dilemma” sample buried in the mix. The song “Hot Soup” sings about how his chick will make him feel better over a bland beat while the track “Sip a Lil” is of course about drinking & rambling about missing Kylie over a mediocre trap beat. Unfortunately, the Gucci Mane verse on here couldn’t save it either. The song “Faithful” with Tory Lanez sees the 2 telling their ladies to have faith in them over another tropical beat & the penultimate track “Ja Rule & Ashanti” is filled with corny references to both artists over a nondescript beat. The torture finally ends with Holdin’ On’, where he gets sexual with his current woman over a generic beat.

Now I know a lot of people including myself went at the artwork when Tyga originally posted it on Instagram last month but musically, this is truly the worst thing he’s ever done. I can commended him for trying to step out of his comfort zone, but there is not a single song worth sitting through from beginning to end. His singing is absolutely God awful, the auto-tune he throws on top of it doesn’t mask it either, the lyrics are trite & the production is dime a dozen

Score: 0/5

L.A.R.S. – L.A.R.S. (Last American Rock Stars) review

After signing to Majik Ninja Entertainment in August of 2016 & dropping a free prelude mixtape called Foul World on Devils Night of that same year, Detroit horrorcore duo L.A.R.S is now dropping their full-length debut. After a 1 minute intro, we then get into the first song “Stomp”. Here, King Gordy & Bizarre both talk about fucking people up over an eerie beat. The track “Just Got Out the County” with Fury talks about them getting arrested for doing wild shit over a menacing beat, but the hook is kinda annoying. The song “Cocaine in Miami” talks about partying in Miami over a smooth beat with some synths & the “LARS Spangled Banner” interlude sees Gordy doing his own rendition of the United States National Anthem, but it’s just so mediocre.

The track “Lit” is a club banger with a trippy trap beat & the song “California” talks about going to Cali to ease their minds over a rap rock beat. The track “Rock n Roll” with Majik Ninja founders Twiztid talks about how wild they are over a grimy beat from L.A.R.S.’ DJ & honorary 3rd member Foul Mouth. The song “Suicide” has an eerie soul sample all over it & Gordy has some funny ass lines during his verse near the end, but the first verse from Bizarre didn’t really do much.The “Moshitup” interpolation during the hook wasn’t too surprising, but I liked it generally. The track “Ganja Man” is a reggae inflicted weed song, but it’s just ok. The song “No Lights” talks about their early life in the ghetto over some smooth bass & some keys. While endearing, the reference to The Pharcyde’s “Passin’ Me By” during the hook is just ok. The penultimate track “Start a War” with G-Mo Skee, Trizz & Twista gets confrontational over an explosive trap beat & the closer “I Believe I Can Fly” gets motivational over a beautiful piano instrumental from mR. pOrTeR.

As a whole, this is one of the best releases in both King Gordy & Bizarre’s catalogues. Sure there are some weak moments, but it’s more refined than the prelude tape from the production to the duo’s performances & their ever so natural chemistry. I’ll say it here like I did in my Foul World review, but here’s to hopefully some solo albums from both members because they fit with Majik Ninja very very well

Score: 3.5/5

Various Artists – “Black Panther: The Album” review

With the Black Panther coming out a week from today, Top Dawg Entertainment is giving us the soundtrack alongside Aftermath Entertainment & Interscope Records. The opener “Black Panther” by Kendrick Lamar (who curated the whole soundtrack) talks about being a king over a gloomy piano instrumental. However, there’s one point where it gets abrasive. The song “All the Stars” is a spacey love duet with Kendrick & SZA that’s just ok. The track “X” by ScHoolboy Q, 2 Chainz & Saudi gets celebratory over a decent trap beat while the song “The Ways” by Khalid & Swae Lee is a duet about this attractive woman over a moody trap beat. The track “Opps” by Kendrick, Vince Staples & Yugen Blakrok gets into the mind of criminals over a hip house beat while the song “I Am” by Jorja Smith gets insightful about change & how we aren’t meant to be free over a funk rock beat.

The track “Parademic!” by SOB x RBE is an eerie gangsta rap tune while the song “Bloody Waters” by Ab-Soul vividly talks from the point of view from an organized criminal over a kick-back beat. The track “King’s Dead” starts off with a eerie beat & while Jay Rock’s flow is absolutely deadly, but the Future bridge is so hilariously bad. However, they make up for it during the 2nd half when the beat switches into something more hard hitting & Kendrick comes in with an angry verse filled with references to the film’s antagonist Erik Killmonger.

After the “Redemption Interlude”, we then go into the actual song “Redemption” by Zacari & Babes Wudomo. Here, they get sexual albeit in an underwritten & generic fashion. The following song “Seasons Change” by Mozzy, Sjava & Reason talks about escape the ghetto over a somber yet reggae-infused instrumental. The penultimate track “Big Shot” by Kendrick & Travi$ Scott talks about the celebrity lifestyle & the flute sample that Cardo uses on here is absolutely beautiful. Also, I love how Kendrick reuses the first couple lines from his “New Freezer” verse for the hook. The soundtrack then finishes off with “Pray for Me, where The Weeknd & Kendrick talk about heroes burden over an electropop beat.

While I wouldn’t call this a future classic by any means, this is still a solid soundtrack album. It’s not too overproduced like many soundtrack albums nowadays, it’s well written & most of the performers do their thing

Score: 3.5/5

Justin Timberlake – “Man of the Woods” review

With his 37th birthday passing this Wednesday, former *NSYNC member Justin Timberlake is celebrating with his 5th full-length album. The opener “Filthy” is a sex tune over a messy, techno-pop instrumental from Timbaland & Danja. The next song “Midnight Summer Jam” gets celebratory over a funky instrumental from The Neptunes (who produced a bulk of the album surprisingly) with an acoustic guitar & some fiddles.

The track “Sauce” gets playful over a funk rock instrumental from Timbo & Danja while the title track is a dedication to his wife Jessica Biel over a Neptunes best with some rubbery bass along with a twangy guitar at the beginning that later progresses into something more funky. The song “Higher, Higher” talks about Jessica yet again over a guitar & the keyboards on here are vintage Neptunes. The track “Wave” sees JT basically telling Jessica to come away to an island with him over some acoustic guitars while the song “Supplies” talks about how they’ll be living like The Walking Dead over a sitar.

The track “Morning Light” is a duet with Alicia Keys about how they wanna spend 1 more night with each other over a smooth yet funky instrumental while the song “Say Something” is a decent country-rock duet with Chris Stapleton about being caught up in the music. After the “Hers” interlude, we then go into the next song “Flannel. However, it’s pretty much JT impersonating what sounds like if R. Kelly made a country ballad. The track “Montana” gets romantical over a vintage Neptunes beat with an acoustic guitar & the song “Breeze Off the Pond” uses nature similes over an instrumental that kinda reminds me of Pharrell’s last solo album G I R L.

The track “Livin’ Off the Land” talks about being a man doing his best over some predominant bass & twangy guitars. The strings near the end are nice touch as well. The penultimate track “The Hard Stuff” pretty much tells Jessica how much he loves her over a laidback country instrumental while the closer “Young Man” pays tribute to JT’s son Silas over a Timbo instrumental with mostly guitars & organs.

While it’s not even close to a Justified sequel or anything like that, I think this is big improvement over the 2nd disc of Justin’s last album The 20/20 Experience. The lyrics are mostly endearing & the production is funky as ever, but I should point out the fact that Justin incorporates more country elements on here & it actually works out pretty well given that he’s from Memphis. Sure it isn’t reinventing the wheel, but I really love hearing JT’s maturity on here

Score: 3.5/5

Migos – “C U L T U R E II” review

26187085_1352473704856493_8975040446594023424_n

Atlanta, Georgia trap trio Migos celebrates the 1 year anniversary of their sophomore album C U L T U R E a day early by putting out the long-awaited sequel. The album starts off pretty well with “Higher We Go”, which sees the trio talking about their staying power over a wavy trap beat from Metro Boomin’. The next song The next song “Supastars” talks about their lives now over a futuristic trap beat from Honorable C.N.O.T.E. & while the track “Narcos” does reflect on their drug dealing days, the production is so mediocre. The song “B.B.O. (Bad Bitches Only)” pretty much speaks for itself & the jazzy horns on here were a pretty nice touch.

The track “Auto Pilot (Huncho on the Beat)” brags about the lavish life over a video gamey trap beat from the trio’s standout member Quavo & while the song “Walk It Talk It” with Drake sends a message to all of their haters, the hook is super lazy. The track “Emoji a Chain” talks about being all decked out over a decent Metro Boomin’ beat & while the song “CC” with Gucci Mane is a futuristic sex tune, it deadass sounds like an unreleased Travi$ Scott song down to Quavo’s auto-tuned delivery. The song “Stir Fry” touch down on about their success over an infectious funk/trap fused instrumental from Pharrell & despite “Too Much Jewelry” having a nice verse from Takeoff & the Zaytoven production is pretty atmospheric, it’s not structured all that well. We should’ve gotten verses from Offset & Quavo right after because when Takeoff’s sole verse ends, we’re then lead into the hook alongside a robotic bridge from Quavo that’s hilariously bad & then a short interlude before going back to the hook to end the track.

The song “Gang Gang” is an ode to themselves with a settle trap beat from Murda Beatz while the track “White Sand” with Big Sean & Ty$ talks about the celebrity life over a mediocre video gamey beat from Wheezy. The song “Crown the Kings” talks about how they’re living the dream, but the only distinct characteristics about the instrumental is the faint “ Get Up, Stand Up” sample that’s buried in the mix along with piano that comes in around the second half. The track “Flooded” sounds like a murkier, better structured version of “Too Much Jewelry” & the song “Beast” is pretty much a better version of “CC”.

The Cardo produced “Open It Up” is a sinister-sounding banger about their drug dealing past & despite “Motor Sport” being a pretty decent tune to cruise around to from all 3 members’ flows to the laidback beat from Murda Beatz & Cubeatz, the guest verses from Cardi B & Nicki Minaj ruin it for me. The track “Movin’ Too Fast” talks about their drug dealing lives over a gloomy Quavo instrumental isn’t too bad & the song “Work Hard” talks about their work ethics over a moody beat.

The track “Notice Me” talks about their new lives yet again over a laidback beat & the song “Too Playa” with 2 Chainz is a boastful look into the celebrity lifestyle over a somewhat jazzy trap beat. The song “Made Men” talks about their success over a mellow instrumental & the penultimate track “Top Down on da NAWF” reflects on their younger days in Northside Atlanta over an atmospheric beat. The album then closes with “Culture National Anthem”, which surprisingly gets conscious over a piano-trap beat.

To be quite honest, I’m pretty disappointed in this. There are definitely highlights on here but the final product here is so bloated, that the album becomes an inconsistent listen from start to finish. It’s definitely more listenable than the new Chris Brown album Heartbreak on a Full Moon or even the Control the Streets compilation that Quality Control Music (to which Migos are signed to) dropped last month but if they kept 12 tracks for the album & saved the other 12 in the vault, then I’d enjoy it a lot more than what we really got

Score: 2/5