Lil Peep – “Come Over When You’re Sober 2” review

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Lil Peep was a 21 year old rapper & singer from Long Island, New York who blew up in late 2016 with the release of his 4th mixtape Hellboy & then following it with his debut album Come Over When You’re Sober last summer. Both projects were too melodramatic for my tastes, but I could see why it connected with a couple of my friends. But unfortunately, Lil Peep passed away last year just 2 weeks after his 21st birthday of an accidental fentanyl–xanax overdose right before a show in Tucson, Arizona. The rights of his unreleased music were then given to Columbia Records, who are now delivering the long-awaited follow-up to Come Over When You’re Sober a week after what would’ve been Peep’s 22nd birthday & a week before the 1 year anniversary of his untimely death.

The album kicks off with “Broken Smile (My All)”, where Peep vents about his hopes of getting back with this girl over a dark trap beat from his in-house producer smokeasac. The next track “Runaway” talks about getting away from fake people over a cloudy trap beat instrumental while the song “Sex with My Ex” truly lives up to it’s title with the instrumental containing a prominent guitar along with a heavy bass-line & rattling hi-hats. It’s ok. The track “Cry Alone” is a surprisingly solid alt rock ballad about loneliness & while the song “Leanin'” has a pretty acoustic instrumental with a cloudy backing, it’s legitimately upsetting to hear Lil Peep recalling a time where he survived what eventually killed him.

The track “16 Lines” is a drab explanation about how cocaine made him feel better over a murky instrumental with some down-tune guitar strumming while the song “Life is Beautiful” is probably his best song yet. It’s a completely unexpected positivity anthem & the hypnotic instrumental enhances the feeling of it. The track “Hate Me” has a nice bass guitar with some faint skittering hi-hats in background, but the take on his girl going off on him while he’s on the road is too melodramatic. The song “I.D.G.A.F. (I Don’t Give A Fuck)” continues the theme of the previous joint by talking about how he’s not gonna answer her calls, but it’s just boring & the instrumental doesn’t help either. The penultimate track “White Girl” is a chilling ballad about this girl who wants him back now that he’s famous over a trap beat with some sinister guitar licking & then the closer “Fingers” foresees his own death over a trap/alt rock fusion. As for the 2 bonus tracks: “Falling Down” with XXXTENTACION seems like a cash grab for the label since both Peep & X are no longer with us while the original version of that same song with iLoveMakonnen is just plain awkward.

This was honestly better than I had anticipated, but it’s still decent. I do hear an improvement on Lil Peep’s vocals, but only half of the melodrama of his last 2 projects are still present through his lyrics. The production’s just as decent as the last album too with the few incorporations of rock elements on here being the most creative move, but there are some points where the beats tend to be too overproduced. The fans will definitely love this more than me but if this is the last we’ll ever hear from the kid, then it’s a real shame we never got to hear him fully evolve as an artist because the potential of that is clearly shown on here a lot more. May he Rest In Peace.

Score: 3/5

Masta Ace – “A Breukelen Story” review

Masta Ace is a 51 year old MC who started out as a member of the Juice Crew. He released his criminally underrated debut Take a Look Around in the summer of 1990 & then after the Juice Crew’s disbandment the following year, he went on to sign to Delicious Vinyl & release 2 albums under the name Masta Ace Incorporated] He then disappeared from the music industry, returning in 2001 with one of the greatest concept albums in all of hip hop Disposable Arts. The closer on that album “No Regrets” sparked rumors that it would be Ace’s final album until he returned with A Long Hot Summer in 2004, which was a near perfect prequel to Disposable Arts. He then started focusing on his eMC crew up until 2012, when he released MA_Doom: Son of Yvonne. An album where Ace took a bunch of instrumentals from MF DOOM’s Special Herbs series of instrumental albums & made a tribute to his departed mother out of it. His last album The Falling Season in 2016 told a story of Masta Ace’s high school years, but was weighed down by an overabundance of skits. He has since been teasing his 8th full-length album over here with Marco Polo producing it in it’s entirety, a concept album about his hometown of Brooklyn.

The album kicks off with “Kings”, where Ace talks about unity & how the older generation’s parents were telling them the same thing they’ve been saying to the new generation these days over a punchy piano instrumental. After the “Dad’s Talk” skit, we go into the next song “Breukelen “Brooklyn””. Here, Ace links up with Smif-n-Wessun of the Boot Camp Clik to pay tribute to their hometown & all of the greats to come from there over a boom bap beat with some somber piano chords. The track “Get Shot” of course gets confrontational over a boom bap beat with a funky bass-line, keyboards, & some harmonious female background vocals while the song “Still Love Her” is a vivid yet mellow dedication to this woman from Ace’s teenage years.

The track “Man Law” with Styles P sees the 2 talking about counting your blessings over an orchestral boom bap beat while the song “You & I” is a dedication to Ace’s wife with some smooth guitar passages. After the “Gotta Go” skit, we go into the song “Sunken Place”. Here, Ace talks about being raised in the ghetto over some drums & a fair vocal sample. The track “Corporal Punishment” with eLZhi takes a jab at the industry over an eerie beat & after the “Landlord of the Flies” skit, we go into the song “Count ‘Em Up”. Here, Ace link’s up with Lil’ Fame tell the story of a raid that occurred in their neighborhood & the one sample on here where a bunch of kids are saying “1, 2, 3, 4, 5” is just flawless.

The track “American Me” talks about the current state of the United States over a soulful boom bap beat & after “The Cutting Room” skit, the song “God Bodies” is a continuation of the conscious themes of the previous joint over a druggy beat. The track “Wanna Be” with Marlon Craft talks about copycats over a chilled out boom bap beat while the song “3” is a perfect eMC reunion over a flute-heavy instrumental. Then before things finish off with the “Mom’s Talk” skit, the final song “The Fight Song” with Pharoahe Monch pretty much speaks for itself over a grimy instrumental with some angelic choir vocals.

I’ve been waiting on this for a little over a year now & the end result is one of the best albums Masta Ace has ever made. He‘s always been one of the most underrated lyricists in the history of the culture & he continues to prove that as Marco Polo’s production suits his storytelling near perfectly.

Score: 4.5/5

Metro Boomin’ – “NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES” review

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Metro Boomin’ is a 25 year old producer from St. Louis, Missouri who gained notoriety in the middle of this decade as the top producer in the trap subgenre of hip hop. He’s gone on to produce some of the best trap projects of the decade in their entireties including Future’s D.S. 2 (Dirty Sprite 2), Gucci Mane’s Droptopwop and the Offset/21 Savage’s Without Warning. But this past spring, he announced his retirement from making music & he has only produced on a couple albums since then. However, he is returning with his full-length debut.

The opener “10AM (Save the World)” by Gucci Mane talks about the famous life over an amazingly moody beat, but Wizzop‘s delivery could’ve been much better. The next song “Overdue” by Travis Scott talks about out-doing yourself over a clever ambient sample & while the track “Don’t Come Out the House” by 21 Savage gets murderous over some prominent bass & piano chords. There are even a couple points where he’s literally whispering on beat & even though it turned me off at first, I’ve come to appreciate it the more I listened to the album. The song “Dreamcatcher” by Swae Lee & Travis Scott sees the 2 getting playful over a settle instrumental while the track “Space Cadet” by Gunna gets boastful over a dreamy trap beat. The song “10 Freaky Girls” by 21 Savage is self-explanatory over an instrumental with a murky atmosphere to it while the track “Up to Something” is a sinister sounding yet melodic Metro Thuggin’ reunion.

The “Only 1” interlude by Travis Scott is an 80 second cut that sounds heavily influenced by Kanye West’s 808s & Heartbreak while then the song “Lesbian” sees Gunna teaming up with his mentor Young Thug to tell the listener how they both fell in love with a woman who actually happens to be a lesbian referencing WWE Hall of Famer Mr. T over a somber beat. The track “Borrowed Love” by Swae Lee & Wizkid is of course a boring love ballad & if that wasn’t enough, the song right after “Only You” by Offset & J Balvin is a vomit-inducing attempt at going dancehall. The penultimate track on here “No More” by Kodak Black & 21 Savage talks about being faded over a fittingly intoxicating instrumental & then the closer “No Complaints” by Offset & Drake is still a haunting yet fun wealth anthem despite being released as a stand alone single a year prior.

I knew something was up when those missing person billboards about Young Metro appeared about a week ago & this album is makes me really happy about his official return. Probably slightly more so than the new Swizz Beatz album POISON that came out the same day as this, because at least Metro produces every single track. He really sounds like he took his time with crafting these beats & almost every performer just nails it. If you wanna hear the hottest producer in hip hop’s most popular subgenre at the current moment making a triumphant return, then PLEASE give this a listen.

Score: 3.5/5

Swizz Beatz – “POISON” review

Swizz Beatz is a legendary 40 year old producer, DJ & “rapper” (that is if you wanna call him one) who blew up in 1998 as the in-house producer for Ruff Ryders Entertainment. He later started his now defunct Full Surface Records in 2001 & dropped a decent compilation called G.H.E.T.T.O. Stories the following year. It wouldn’t until 2007 that he would try to officially go solo with 1 Man Band Man, a solidly produced album that was unfortunately weighed down by the lack of features & of course Swizz’ horrendous rapping on every song. He has since spent the last decade teasing a sophomore album that never came to fruition up until now with J. Cole as a co-executive producer, interestingly enough.

After a spoken word intro, the first song “P.O.M.S. (Pistol On My Side)” by Lil Wayne kicks things off fantastically as Weezy gets in your face over some militant drums along with a set of eerie piano chords provided by Swizz’ ever so stunning wife Alicia Keys. The track “Come Again” by Giggs awkwardly talks about how crazy he is over a chaotic beat while the song “Something Dirty (Pic Got Us) sees Jadakiss & Styles P trading bars back & forth with each other like old tomes over an araabMUZIK instrumental with some triumphant horns. The track “Preach” by Jim Jones vividly goes into the mind of a drug dealer over a minimalist instrumental while the song “Echo” by Nas is recalls growing up in Queens over a soul sample from DJ Scratch.

The track “Cold Blooded” by Pusha T is an eerie tale about growing up in the hood that plays out fantastically & while the song “25 Soldiers” by Young Thug is honestly very gritty & adrenaline inducing from the araabMUZIK production down to Thugger’s flow. The penultimate track “Stunt” by 2 Chainz is of course a braggadocious anthem over a trap beat from Bink! with an alluring vocal sample & the closer “SWIZZMONTANA” is French Montana bragging about his wealth better than I thought he would over an instrumental that screams classic Swizz.

For a 10 year wait, this was totally worth it. I wish Swizz Beatz & J. Cole added a few more tracks & I really don’t get why the ones Swizz didn’t produce at all were included but other than that, I love how he took a huge step back from “rapping” & focused more on production. The guest MCs mostly do their thing as well with the instrumentals suiting them fantastically.

Score: 3.5/5

Takeoff – “The Last Rocket” review

Takeoff is a 24 year old rapper from Atlanta, Georgia who rose to prominence in 2013 as 1/3 of the Migos with his nephew quavo & his cousin Offset. The first of whom Quavo is arguably the most notable member & he actually happened to drop his solo debut QUAVO HUNCHO just 3 weeks prior. Now if that wasn’t enough for you, Takeoff here is now next at bat.

The album kicks off with “Martian”, where Takeoff talks about his success throughout the years over some prominent hi-hats from DJ Durel. The next track “She Gon’ Wink” by Unc & Phew sees the 2 getting boastful over a spacey trap instrumental while the song “None to Me” introspectively talks about the famous life over a gloomy beat from 808 Mafia members DY, Gezin & TM88. The track “Vacation” pretty much speaks for itself over a trap beat from Murda Beatz & Cubeatz with some faint keyboards while the song “Last Memory” is a painfully bland braggadocious tune. The track “I Remember” vividly recalls drug dealing days over an eerie Murda Beatz instrumental while the song “Lead the Wave” talks about being a leader over a vibrant trap beat from DJ Durel.

The track “Casper” talks about him & his girl cruising down in a wraith over a somber Nonstop da Hitman instrumental while the song “Insomnia” is a boring freestyle over the beat from the latest Juicy J & Travis Scott song “Neighbor”. The track “Infatuation” is an awkwardly buttery love story while the song “Soul Plane” marks a returns to the braggadocious lyrics over a bass-heavy trap beat. The album then ends with “Bruce Wayne”, where Takeoff tells the audience to picture him rolling over an atmospheric beat from Cassius Jay & Wheezy.

This was better than I had anticipated, but it’s still decent. I can appreciate Takeoff for handling a good chunk of it on his own, but it really weighs it down because it tends to get monotonous after a while.

Score: 2.5/5

Action Bronson – “White Bronco” review

Action Bronson is a 34 year old MC who blew up with release of his debut album Dr. Lecter in 2011. He then landed a joint venture with VICE Music & Atlantic Records while following up his debut with a couple EPs & mixtapes. The most notable being Blue Chips duology, Saab Stories & my personal favorite: Rare Chandeliers. He then put out his major label debut Mr. Wonderful in 2015 & it has some of his best songs on there, but the end result would be a more glitzy mixed bag. He returned last summer with Blue Chips 7000 & now that he’s completely independent, he has decided to celebrate with his 5th full-length album.

The album kicks off with “Dr. Kimble”, where he gets boastful over a rap rock instrumental from Harry Fraud. The “Irishman Freestyle” is an average theme for the upcoming Martin Scorsese film The Irishman that’s due next year & the song “Mt. Etna” talks about depression over a relaxing Daringer instrumental. The track “Live from the Moon” is filled with interstellar references over a jazzy Knxwledge beat while the titular song feels like a return to Bronson’s old school style from the braggadocious bars to the smooth boom bap beat from Daringer.

The track “Brutal” with Meyhem Lauren sees the 2 spitting battle bars over a guitar & an organ while the song “Prince Charming” is a soulful love tune. The track “Telemundo” sees Bronson getting confrontational over a wailing guitar while the song “Picasso’s Ear” talks about drug use over a soothing Knxwledge instrumental. The penultimate track “Ring Ring” gets back on the boastful tip over a Harry Fraud instrumental with some funky bass & then the album finishes off with “Swerve on ‘Em”, where Bronson links up with A$AP Rocky to talk shit to their competition over a dreamy instrumental with some punchy drums.

Overall, this was pretty solid. The production could’ve been a little bit better at some points & a couple of the features were pretty much pointless, but I gotta commend Bronson for sounding a lot more focused & comfortable than he ever did on his last 2 albums with Atlantic.

Score: 3.5/5

Mick Jenkins – “Pieces of a Man”

Mick Jenkins is a 27 year old rapper from Chicago, Illinois who blew up in 2014 with the release of his 3rd mixtape The Waters. He then released his debut album The Healing Component & after the release of a couple EPs since then, he’s ready to deliver his long-awaited sophomore album.

The intro “Heron Flow” starts off as a spoken word piece, but then a funky ass instrumental kicks in halfway through. The first actual song “Stress Fracture” tackles his inner demons over a mellow Black Milk instrumental while the track “Gwendolynn’s Apprehension” is about this person who isn’t on the same page as Mick another Black Milk instrumental albeit with a heavy J Dilla influence to it. The song “Soft Porn” is a decently slow sex jam while the track “Grace & Mary” is about how he wakes up praising the higher power over a bass-heavy beat with some keyboards & synths. However, it’s way too short.

The song “Barcelona” is a shot at lyrical cliches over a gritty beat & after the Percy interlude, the next song “Reginald” is essentially about not letting your partner count up your drug money over a relaxing instrumental. The track “Padded Locks” with Ghostface Killah sees the 2 wildin’ out over a KAYTRANADA instrumental with a prominent BADBADNOTGOOD sample while the song “Ghost” talks about his rise to success is over an instrumental with some jazzy keyboards.

The track “Heron Flow 2” is pretty much a reprise of the opener & the song “Plain Clothes” is an awkward attempt at going materialistic over a blissful trap beat. The track “Pull Up” vividly talks about a friend of his over gloomy boom bap beat while the song “Consensual Seduction” is another romantic slow jam. The track “U Turn” is about wanting to smack people who think they know him over another slow instrumental albeit with a prominent organ while the funkily KAYTRANADA produced “Understood” follows it up perfectly. The “Smoking Song” that finishes the album of course is about marijuana over some live bass playing.

For all the hype, this was totally worth it. I’d shave off a couple tracks, but it’s a lot more focused & the concept is more consistent than that of The Healing Component as is the jazz-influenced production that one can catch on Mick’s work in the past.

Score: 4/5

Joell Ortiz – “Mona Lisa” review

Joell Ortiz is a 38 year old rapper from Brooklyn, New York who rose to prominence after being featured in the Unsigned Hype column of The Source in 2004. He then signed to Aftermath Entertainment in 2006 & they allowed him to release his debut album The Brick: Bodega Chronicles with E1 Music in the next year. Then in 2008, he left Aftermath & formed Slaughterhouse with Royce da 5’9”, KXNG CROOKED & Joe Budden. They saw a lot of success together with their self-titled debut the next year, landing a contract with Eminem’s Interscope Records imprint Shady Records in 2011 (the same year Joell put out his sophomore album Free Agent. However, the supergroup’s only album on the label welcome to: OUR HOUSE in the following year would unfortunately end up being their last. He’s been focusing on his solo career ever since then & now for his 6th full-length album, he has enlisted Detroit’s very own Apollo Brown to produce it in it’s entirety.

After the “Brushstrokes” intro, we go into the first song “Reflection”. Here, Yaowa putting his 2 cents in on the demise of Slaughterhouse over a mellow beat with some strings. The track “‘My Block” is a vivid tribute to the Cooper Park Houses over a soulful beat while the song “Cocaine Fingertips” is filled with hilarious battle bars over a settle bass-line. The track “Grace of God” is about making it out of the projects with an orchestral boom bap beat while the song “That Place” recalls a friend of his being shot over a somber beat.

The track “Word…” talks about his main squeeze over some bass guitar while the song ““Decisions” contemplates whether to keep rapping or selling cocaine over a gloomy instrumental. The track “Timberlan’d Up” sees Joell linking up with Royce to talk about fighting people over a gritty boom bap beat but if you were a huge Slaughterhouse fan like I was, then you’ll definitely like the remix with KXNG CROOKED a lot more. The penultimate track “Come Back Home” reflects on the good times in his block over a soulful boom bap beat & then the titular song is a 3 minute epic that finishes the album.

As expected, this is Joell’s best work yet. His lyricism is sharper over time & the organic Apollo Brown production suits his stories near perfectly. If you wanna hear an underrated vet at his most mature moments, then give this a listen.

Score: 4.5/5

Georgia Anne Muldrow – “Overload” review

This is the 9th studio LP from Los Angeles, California singer/songwriter, rapper & producer Georgia Anne Muldrow. Self-producing her 2006 debut album Olesi: Fragments of an Earth under Stones Throw Records, the sophomore effort Umsindo was as positively received although Early alongside King’s Ballad & Owed to Mama Rickie’s reception were generally lukewarm. Seeds produced by Madlib however would become the most revered entry in her whole discography, coming off Oligarchy Sucks! & A Thoughtiverse Unmarred to make her Brainfeeder Records debut with Overload.

After the “I.O.T.A. (Instrument Of The Ancestors)” intro, the first song “Play It Up” advises the star that guides & leads her through not to worry about the haters whereas the title track blends contemporary R&B with hip hop & trap thanks to Mike & Keys and DJ Khalil confessing that she’s been overwhelmed by work lately. “Blam” goes for a neo-soul vibe singing about picking up a gun & pulling the trigger out of self defense leading into the “Williehook” skit.

“Aerosol” embraces a psychedelic soul sound describing finding beauty within your average urban neighborhood while “Vital Transformation” sings about all of us being meant to evolve. “You Can Always Count on Me” kicks off the 2nd half uniquely covering a song off The Gap Band’s eponymous 3rd album just before “These Are the Things I Really Like About You” featuring Declaime finds the 2 joining forces so they can tell each other what they enjoy the most regarding one another.

The track “Canadian Hillbilly” pushes towards Overload’s conclusion singing about her husband always being by her side no matter what life throws at her while the jazz-infused “Conmigo” pleads for those listening to cherish everyone that we keep close to our hearts. And prior to the “Ciao” outro, “Bobbie’s Dittie” spends the last 4 & a half minutes experimenting with jazz fusion singing about how fake the bruise we take from love is once we’ve awoken.

Seeds remains my favorite album of Georgia Anne Muldrow’s with Olesi: Fragments of an Earth, but Overload comfortably places itself behind the latter amongst her most celebrated material & vindicates every reason why Flying Lotus signed her to Brainfeeder. The production’s more on the neo-soul, alternative R&B, synth-funk & psychedelic soul side of things rather than continuing to emphasize the predecessor’s heavy boom bap/conscious hip hop influences & she’s thematically healing from the pain society has caused.

Score: 4/5

Hock Tu Down – “Hock Tu 3” review

Hock Tu Down are a duo from Liverpool, Merseyside, England, United Kingdom consisting of producer Reklews alongside Runcorn, Cheshire, emcee/producer & Blah Records founder Lee Scott. Forming in the late 2000s, both members of the Children of the Damned & it’s successor the Cult of the Damned would drop their full-length Prozium Peddlin’ at the end of 2009 & followed it up 9 months later with their debut EP Something Strange. It’s been over 8 years since the latter & these guys are reuniting for a sophomore effort.

“Breakfast” talks about having so much fun in the sun to the point where he might cry over a raw boom bap instrumental whereas “Fanks” takes a more personal approach to Lee’s songwriting speaking of both his parents. “Glenn’s Eye” has a slower vibe to the beat talking about being the ones to explain how shit’s gonna go down leading into “Kit Bag” featuring Milkavelli reunites the Mcabre Brothers referencing former UFC Featherweight Champion & UFC Lightweight Champion Conor McGregor.

As for “Deus Ex Machina”, we have Hock Tu Down giving a fuck less if they impress or disrespect anyone surrounding them working in more kicks & snares with some jazzier undertones just before “1 Tu” talks about reality being what you make of it whether someone’s there cooperating or not. “Game On” featuring Jehst finds the Group talking about life being unfair on top of this slow boom bap instrumental & “Black Hoodie Season” after the “Bengal Tiger” skit moves forward with an autumn ode.

“Yarbles Mahoney” continues the 2nd half of Hock Tu 3 ruggedly talking about being a rare 1-of-1 edition sitting on a lonely shelf while “Honest Daze” featuring Nickelus F & Quelle Chris sees the trio confessing every mistake they made caused them to run & gun more. “Sun D” dustily talks about having nothing to do like it’s a Sunday while “Zip” takes a couple minutes so he can discuss today being a great day to rebel in Hell.

The track “Breathe 101” winds down the album’s final minutes jumping over a gully beat reminding us to take deep breathes regularly & the final song “I Made Some Shit” preceding the compositional 60 second outro sends it all off treading intergalactic boom bap waters instrumentally talking about making more music with the money that Lee’s made off his previous material & tripping on the 12th stair when he was on his way to the pearly gates of heaven.

Prozium Peddlin’ was an outstanding debut for Hock Tu Down & I felt like Something Strange in comparison was ok, but Hock Tu 3 wedges itself in middle behind their inaugural LP almost a decade ago & above the extended play they gave us prior to their hiatus. Waiting for the right time to make a return, Lee Scott takes a batch of boom bap production he’s had from Reklews for some time in middle of him hanging around family & using them as inspiration to write the final product.

Score: 4/5