Onoe Caponoe – “Tears of the Dragon” review

London, England, United Kingdom emcee/producer Onoe Caponoe continuing summer with his 6th LP. 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 as did Concrete Fantasia succeeding Invisible War, returning a year & a half later shedding Tears of the Dragon.

“Jane Flower” featuring Lofty305 begins with this delicate trap instrumental talking about a woman who has both of their minds constantly spinning whereas “Going Sweet” featuring Ledbyher works in this cloudy backdrop & a guitar so both of can describe the strength of this love they have. “Summer of Love” gives off a chipmunk soul vibe creepin’ in parks during the evening on some slayer shit while the trap-flavored “Red Riding Hood” after the “Deadly Nightside” interlude talks about trying to get away from things lately.

We get some 808s & hypnotic sample during “The Wilderness” until a beat switch telling a woman he’s no longer seeing that he hope she never forgets him leading into the boisterous trap heater “Fright Night” ending the first half of Tears of the Dragon letting off flows like a submachine gun. “Peanut Butter” blends hi-hats & a vocal flip flexing that his words can make bones shatter while the Memphis influenced “Vampire Date” gets in his storytelling bag lyrically, vividly describing a dating experience with a female vampire.

“Angel” embraces a bluesier atmosphere talking about having his back against the wall because of a phone call he had received but after Eter & L-Zee Roselli appear for the hollowly produced “Psycho Planet” averagely describing a world fu of lunatics running around it, “Tamagotchi Girl” experiments with a bubbly plugg flare instrumentally for an ode to the women who still happen to enjoy the たまごっち brand of handheld digital pets.

Continuing to push further towards Tears of the Dragon’s final moments, the song “$1M Cat” recaptures the Memphis rap atmosphere asking if his ex still thinks of him regularly while “Fur Rug” incorporates some soulful sampling chops explaining that he’s trying to hold on to this person, but the problem with that being he legitimately can’t. “Funky Butterfly” however finishes the album jumping over a piano-heavy beat talking about being in a state of chrysalis.

The high praise I gave Surf or Die & Concrete Fantasia would already make it pretty clear that I consider Onoe Caponoe to be one of High Focus’ greatest signings in recent memory for his experimentally abstract style. That said: Tears of the Dragon feel like the weakest entry of his entire discography. It has nothing to do with the production taking secondary influences from trap, cloud rap, tread, Memphis rap & plugg aren’t bad either. My thing with it is that he doesn’t sound inspired as the predecessor did when 2023 began.

Score: 4/5

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Leaf Dog – “Year of the Leaf” review

This is the 9th full-length solo LP from Brighton, East Sussex, England, United Kingdom producer/emcee Leaf Dog. Notable for being amongst the best UK hip hop groups in recent memory The 4 Owls as well as the 3 Amigos & Brothers of the Stone, he branched out on his own in 2011 with From a Scarecrow’s Perspective, the sophomore effort 6 years later Dyslexic Disciple quickly became his most well-regarded body of work yet & I enjoyed Live from the Balrog Chamber at the beginning of 2020 under his own label Real Life Drama Records just as much. However in 2024 alone he’s released a total of 5 albums: Photosynthesis, Don’t Scare the Crows Now, Outstanding in My Field, Anything is Possible & When Sleeping Giants Wake. It’s been 3 months since the latter 2 & Leaf’s coming off producing BVA’s most acclaimed solo effort to date The Dam Builder to declare this as the Year of the Leaf.

To begin, “Life’s All I Have” hooks up a soulful boom bap instrumental to talk about being the thing you see come the final destination whereas “Pay to Play” works in another soul sample with kicks & snares reminding us that the game ain’t free at all. “Weed Mantra” is another soulful, boom bap crossover dedicated to everyone listening who loves good kush like myself while the crooning “I Don’t Miss” flexes his consistency.

“Athentic” hooks up some strings keeping the kicks & snares in tact to talk about being the truth although real ones already knew, but then “Dr. Ooze” strips the drums completely explaining that he’ll make futures look uncertain all of the sudden. “Dem Times” returns to the boom bap showing off his wild style prior to “Even If It” sampling soul music again talking about needing the paper like the country gearing up for war.

The final leg begins with “I Need Little” blending elements of orchestral with kicks & snares needing y’all to surrender to the rhythm while the song “No Sound” goes for a dreary boom bap approach instrumentally talking about those he speaks for. “Greed” soulfully tries to fill a hole deep within & finally, the closing track “No Games” completes Leaf Dog’s 6th album of the year by working nights straight shootin’ for a better life.

Leaf himself has said that he plans on putting out 2 more solo LPs before 2024 is finished & regardless of when he’s ready to give them to the fans, the fact remains that this really has been the Year of the Leaf joining When Sleeping Giants Wake in being my favorites of the 6 he’s had to offer so far. There’s more drumless undertones than there was on the predecessor but nevertheless, you still get the boom bap production he’s known for topped with personal & hardcore lyrics.

Score: 4/5

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Tech N9ne – “C.O.S.M. (Class of Strange Music)” review

Kansas City, Missouri’s very own Tech N9ne returning for his 25th full-length studio album although the 9th in his Collabos series & the first since Strange Reign roughly 7 years ago. Starting out 3 decades back as a member of the groups Black Mafia as well as the 57th Street Rogue Dog Villians & the Nnutthowze, his profile began to increase in the late 90’s after landing a spot on the Gang Related soundtrack & becoming among the first to join Yukmouth’s then-newly formed collective The Regime. But after having issues with Interscope Records & Universal Music Group following the release of his iconic 3rd album Anghellic, that’s when Tech decided to form his own label with the help of a man at Paradise Originals named Travis O’Guin. Together, they would call it Strange Music & solidified itself as one of if not the biggest indie label in the world. Tech has made it a tradition to drop a project or 2 every year since Everready (The Religion) back in ‘06 except for 2022, returning last summer Bliss to mixed reception. C.O.S.M. (Class of Strange Music) on the other hand had me hoping it would be the best Collabos entry since my personal favorite Welcome to Strangeland.

After the “Greetings” introductory skit, the first song “No Popcorn” hops over a fun old school instrumental so he can get everyone rockin’ on whereas “Bigger” featuring King Iso & Zkeircrow works in strings & hi-hats to talk about their desire for growth ever since they were children. “ZOD (I Win I Always Win)” featuring Joey Cool, Kevin Gates & Snow Tha Product kinda has a trap metal vibe to the beat with plinky keys thanks to Mario Casalini forever catching Ws while the ghostly “Disgusted” featuring Hopsin & Killer Mike brings the trio together to catch bodies with Tech & Killer Mike both going harder than Hop.

“Roll Call” featuring JL, Joey Cool, King Iso, Lex Bratcher, Rittz & X-Raided was a wicked fresh Strange posse cut produced by Wyshmaster allowing the alumni to come out to play like The Warriors just before “Let It Bang” featuring Y8$ having a futuristic trap flare instrumentally to hop in the whip & the bass go. “Sour Dough” featuring Keak da Sneak & LaRussell comes through with a hyphy banger despite an awkwardly unintelligible hook from Stunnaman02 leading into “I’m Just Tryna Get” featuring KC Young Boss, Miss Kush, Roblo Dastar & Shay Lyriq being another posse cut this time revolving around Kansas City over a guitar & fingersnaps.

X-Raided returns accompanied by The Popper for “Walter Sobchak (Am I Wrong?)” hooking up a gospel sample asking if they wrong for letting the gat off of anyone who breaks into their homes, but then “P.O.W. (Prisoners of War)” featuring Marley Young is a decently cloudy trap cut with Freek van Workum formerly N4 behind the boards talking about being saluted when they come around their parts. After the “Bathroom” skit, “Drippy Drop” featuring Skatterman & Snug Brim feels like an aquatic club banger reuniting the first duo to sign with the Snake & Bat while “The Ghost of Rosetta Tharpe” featuring Ako Mack & Lajon Witherspoon goes trap metal again delivering politically conscious subject matter.

“Sin Miedo” by the Nnutthowze featuring G-Mo Skeewas one of the most anticipated tracks here that lived up to my expectations since the 6688846993 & the filthiest Majik Ninja Entertainment artist talk about making mean fellas including a reference to TKO Group Holdings co-founder Vince McMahon being under federal probe for human trafficking & sexual battery over grisly boom bap production while “I Got Time Today” featuring ¡MAYDAY! serves as a colorful ballad simply about having the time today that NonMS cooked up. “Take That L9ve Back” featuring Marcus Yates formerly known as Oobergeek explaining what they should’ve said on top of his-hats & vibraphones while “Boomer Rang” featuring K.A.A.N., Stevie Stone & Ubiquitous formerly of the CES Cru atmospherically warns that they don’t fuck around.

After the “L.9.V.E. 4EVA” skit, “I Know the Real” featuring C-Mob somberly disses those who ain’t walkin’ it like they talkin’ it out here while “Sniper’s Remorse” featuring King Iso & Trae tha Truth has a heartbreaking tone aesthetically talking about not being unable to fight anymore & being caught up the guilt of a sniper. “Underdog” featuring Head da Don & X-Raided nears the conclusion of the first Collabos offering in 7 years with a trap metal cut tackling the theme of being misunderstood & “Ain’t Gon’ Be Another” featuring Jehry Robinson ends on an acoustic trap note discussing uniqueness.

Wasn’t sure if Tech was ever gonna give us another Collabos album again considering the gap between this & Strange Reign, I have to admit that I found myself enjoying C.o.S.M. (Class of Strange Music) more than the last couple albums of his own Asin9ne & Bliss. This new one has much more consistent production than the other 2 & as a Strange Music fan since my adolescence, it’s amazing that he got a bunch of artists from the label’s history past & present alongside some notable artists outside of Strangeland.

Score: 3.5/5

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Eminem – “THE DƎATH OF SLIM SHADY (COUP DE GRÂCE)” review

This is the 13th full-length LP from Detroit emcee, songwriter, producer, record executive, actor, Shady Records founder, the white guy from D12 also known as Slim Shady or mostly Eminem. What can be said now about him at this point in his career that hasn’t been said already? His debut Infinite produced by his now hype man mR. pOrTeR & backed by Web Entertainment showed his potential with a heavy AZ influence & The Slim Shady EP resulted in a deal with Aftermath Entertainment & Interscope Records. His first 3 major label albums The Slim Shady LP, The Marshall Mathers LP & The Eminem Show are considered by many to be the holy trinity in his discography, but I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with ƎNCORE since it had great production except you can tell he was heavy on the drugs. RELAPSƎ came to grow on me from 2018 onward because you have to get past the accents to enjoy the production & really the last we’ve heard the Slim Shady persona until now. I have a love/hate relationship with RECOVƎRY to for the opposite reasons as ƎNCORE & after the decent The Marshall Mathers LP 2, things have been quite rough for Em in the last 7 years. RƎVIVAL was unquestionably one of the worst albums of the 2010s, which he would vent his frustration with on his last 2 full-lengths KAMIKAZƎ & MUSIC TO BE MURDERƎD BY. 3 & a half years after MUSIC TO BE MURDERƎD BY 2: SIDE B however, Slim’s returning after 15 years to meet his ultimate demise 2 & a half years after the Super Bowl LVI halftime show.

“Renaissance” produced with Luis Resto starts Em’s first offering in 4 years apocalyptically explaining how his music has changed since his sophomore effort albeit commercial debut 25 years ago already in addition to criticizing everyone who was hating on Kendrick Lamar’s final TDE/Aftermath album Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers for not having any bangers when it certainly did whereas “Habits” works in some kicks & snares prior to a switch up throwing it back to like mid-2000s era. “Trouble” ruggedly tries to get himself cancelled thanks to Aftermath in-house producers Dem Jointz & Fredwreck just before “Brand New Dance” feels like a successor to “Same Song & Dance”.

Don Cannon & Cubeatz give “Evil” a boom bap flare centered around his Bad Meets Ǝvil persona & after the “All You Got” skit, “Lucifer” reunites with Dr. Dre behind the boards hypnotically talking about TikTok & Twitter trying to get him kicked off. “Antichrist” featuring Bizarre likens themselves to the sons of Satan wishing they’d go off the deep end like Ye formerly known as Kanye West over vibraphones asking if you really want to dance with the devil until a dusty beat switch from Foul Mouth, but then the mR. pOrTeR-laced “Fuel” featuring the future of Dreamville Records himself J.I.D with both Grip & Westside Boogie on the remix goes head-on trap saying all their homies gonna ride with it asking what’ll happen when their fuel runs out & Em dissing Puff Daddy a.k.a. P. Diddy or Diddy. “Road Rage” returns to the boom bap discussing coddled groups in society until a Dirty South switch-up at the end trying to get even & referencing the [adult swim] block of the Discovery Global-owned Cartoon Network while the lead single “Houdini” serves as a fun sequel to “Without Me” sampling “Abracadabra” by Steve Miller.

After the “Breaking News” skit, we get a devilish rap rock boom bap sequel to “Guilty Conscience” except that Dre isn’t on the mic this time around welcoming himself to his last hoorah bidding goodbye attempting murder suicide while “Head Honcho” featuring Shady/Aftermath’s newest artist Ez Mil ruggedly talks about money coming from their flows getting it on the pronto over some boom bap shit. “Temporary” featuring Skylar Grey serves as a tearjerking pop rap open letter to his daughter Hailie Jade Mathers who just got married to Evan McClintock a couple months ago for her to hear when he’s gone while “Bad One” takes a Middle Eastern trap approach trying to not sound arrogant in any way shape or form brushing off corny white rapper culture vultures like Tom MacDonald.

“Tobey” featuring Babytron of the ShittyBoyz & Big Sean with co-production from Lyrical Lemonade founder Cole Bennett was an experimental hardcore trap fusion talking about being bitten by goats rather than Tobey McGuire getting bit a spider & after the “Guess Who’s Back?” skit resurrecting Ken Kaniff, the final song “Somebody Save Me” featuring Jelly Roll bids farewell to the Slim Shady character once & for all asking to be saved from oneself over a flip of “Save Me” off the 2nd & final It Goes Up Entertainment/Strange Music album in Jelly Roll’s discography Self Medicated that benny blanco & Emile both cooked up apologizing to his daughters & being proud of the way they turned out. After a Steve Berman skit, “Kyrie & Luka” featuring 2 Chainz starts the bonus track run letting DJ Premier sample “Move the Crowd” by Eric B. & Rakim comparing themselves to Kyrie Irving & Luka Dončić additionally referencing WWE Hall of Famer, former NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion, 4-time WWE United States Champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion & 8-time WCW World Tag Team Champion Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat while the other “Like My Shit” ends the deluxe calling out those biting his style over a trap instrumental d.a. got that dope supplied him.

Say what y’all want about the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, but I grew up on his first 3 major label albums & both D12 albums. They made me who I am today: And if you including myself whose first concert was Eminem on The Monster Tour thought that RELAPSƎ would be the last time we’d ever hear from Slim Shady, we were wrong because he traced the character’s life story & eventual downfall to the point where I can say what I’ve listened to is a genuine top 5 album in his discography. He discusses where he came from & where he is as we stand today with an interesting musical hodgepodge of ideas & influences. Rest in peace, Shady! Thanks for everything.

Score: 4/5

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Jay Worthy – “Magic Hour” review

This is the 5th mixtape from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada born albeit Compton, California raised emcee Jay Worthy. Coming on my radar in 2017 after The Alchemist produced his debut EP Fantasy Island from top to bottom, he would go onto drop 5 more EPs & a fantastic collab album with Larry June called 2 P’z in a Pod even though initial plans of putting it out through Griselda Records fell through for whatever reason. Harry Fraud produced You Take the Credit, We’ll Take the Check & DJ Muggs did What They Hittin’ 4 to significant acclaim, but the Roc Marciano-produced Nothing Bigger Than the Program was still good despite having too many features. Once I heard DāM-FunK was producing Magic Hour top to bottom, I was hoping it would surpass the predecessor from 14 months ago.

“San Dimas” featuring G Perico starts off on some flawless g-funk shit asking if you’re turned the fuck in at this point whereas “Westside” delves further into the relax & organic sound featuring live instrumentation, use of P-Funk samples & high-pitched synth lines to represent California to the fullest. “Rich Today” embraces the g-funk sound heavier talking about how it ain’t nothing to a pimp like him just before “Boogie” featuring the late Nate Dogg’s son NHale builds upon Nate’s sound that he was the King of spitting that g shit continuing his dad’s tradition.

Meanwhile on “Can’t Do That”, we have Worthy mellowly slickly talking about being on his MJ shit & on a new bag at this point in his career ahead of the spacious g-funk banger “105 West” featuring Channel Tres, DJ Quik & Ty$ for all the party people to slide to. “It’s So Hard” featuring Obsce Chill keeping the gangsta funk alive staying in the ghetto like Too $hort explaining the hardships of being a g, but then “Untouchable” featuring P-Lo futuristically advises that this joint in particular is exclusively for the playas.

After the “Olde 8 Again” interlude, “Heartstop” featuring Channel Tres goes into synth-funk turf explaining that their hearts legitimately stop when they don’t get to see one another while the beat on “Connected” featuring Barney Bones gives me Rainbow Road Mario Kart vibes instrumentally flexing the ties they have. “Bounce” featuring Soopafly takes you a whole millennium head to the future for a joint to the west to bounce to while the g-funk track “Watch Your Tone” advises to do simply that around them.

“Caught Up” heavily builds itself around synthesizers as a way of nearing the conclusion of Magic Hour while “Let You Go” featuring $ha Hef brings the East/West emcees together over a g-funk beat breaking the news to their significant others that they’re cutting off romantic ties with one another going forward. Last but not least, “Can’t Fade the Funk” ends the album charmingly gets self-explanatory for 1 last song showing P dabbling in DāM’s production style.

It was a bit disappointing that Nothing Bigger Than the Program was overloaded with features considering that Marci proved his status as a underrated producer on Marciology earlier on in the year but anyway, I’m finding myself preferring Magic Hour more in comparison. DāM-FunK’s production as one would expect fully embraces the g-funk sound Dr. Dre popularized in the 90s & conceptually, Jay’s paying homage to the roots of west coast hip hop in a modern way.

Score: 4/5

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Dillon – “What We Have Done” review

Atlanta, Georgia based emcee, producer & engineer Dillon is back with his 7th full-length album. Coming up under the original moniker Intellekt, he would properly introduce himself in ‘07 with his debut mixtape Uncut & enlist Paten Locke for the debut Studies in Hunger a couple years later. Dillon would go on to follow this up with a sophomore effort Food Chain alongside On Their Way & The Tails of Lobsterdamus respectively. Coming off the J57-produced ‘83 Kids & unearthing some Uncut Gems with Diamond D of D.I.T.C. behind the boards, Batsauce is now returning to show What We Have Done.

After the titular intro, the first song “Mind Made” is an 100 second boom bap opener telling people to get off the internet whereas “Quiet as a Library” works in some vibraphones along with kicks & snares to talk about crews rolling up sleeves if a false move is made. “Eddie Farah” jazzily discusses having to find a way to bring the bag in prior to “Make History” grandly talking about continuing to do exactly that nearly 2 decades in the game.

“Cannonball” featuring Grand Puba brings the pair together for a fun ballad that the party people can get themselves loose with just before “Banana Peels” ruggedly declares that any problem with him is a vendetta of it’s own. “Accolades” featuring Jay Myztroh & Reef the Lost Cauze soulfully talks about making sacrifices to have Heaven now, but then “Wakin’ Up Hungry” featuring Headkrack ends the first half on some rugged hardcore shit.

To start the other leg, “Goin’ Viral” dreamily talks about coming from an era where the internet was all dial-up while “Ready on the Left” featuring Kool Keith sees the 2 over boom bap production boasting their wordplay. After the titular interlude, the trippy “Watercolors” featuring Quelle Chris shows y’all what both of their minds be sounding like while “Speak Easy” strips the drums to promise he’ll keep doing this until he can’t no more.

“Isiah Thomas” tells the story of Dillon meeting the titular Detroit Pistons player known during the Bad Boys era which I find really cool as someone from Detroit himself while “Rock Bottom” psychedelically talks about those wanting to watch him to slip up & fall. “Yoga Flame” concludes the LP groovily explaining that he was looking for a sign as opposed to seeking for love.

Over 6 years since Batsauce produced On Their Way, its successor What We Have Done lives up to the standards set by both ’83 Kids & Uncut Gems. In contrast to the latter serving as a willingness to run around the world together, they return for an open invitation to experience the trials & tribulations alongside the small wins & the big losses of being aging independent artists in an increasingly cut-throat world for music makers.

Score: 4/5

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Stoney Point – “Stoney Point 4” review

Stoney Point is an MC/producer duo from Los Angeles, California consisting of Demrick & DJ Hoppa. One of whom came to my attention after linking up with Ca$his who was on Shady Records at the time for a collab mixtape called Homeland Security & the other for being a former in-house producer for Funk Volume up until the label tragically imploded on itself. They first teamed up as Stoney Point for a self-titled debut in 2015 followed by the 2018 sequel & the 2021 trilogy chapter. Another 3 years later, they’re continuing the tradition releasing their 4th album together almost a decade after the eponymous debut.

Starting us off, “Keep Moving” hops over a piano/boom bap instrumental to admit that a lot’s changed in Demrick’s life over the course of the last year & striving to push forward whereas the psychedelic “Golden” works in more kicks & snares to talk about doing just fine these days. “Look for the Smoke” has a jazzier flare to the beat knowing it’s time to re-up when the bag’s starting to feel light just before “Taking Chances” lavishly talks about being careful for what he wishes for reflecting on simpler days.

“Nothing Stays the Same” picks up further from there with it’s symphonic boom bap production discussing that change is always constant leading into “That’s How It Goes” featuring Kail Problems with co-production from Moo Latte fuses acoustics with kicks & snares so they can set the trends instead of following them. “What’s Left of Me” soulfully talks about being giving a duck less what they think of him after going through a lot, but then “Safety Pins & Soda Cans” jazzily admits to doing drugs as much as the common man.

“Hotbox the Room” marks an eerier approach to the beat asking who got the weed & shrooms while the piano-driven “Keep Building” talks about taking it day by day & brick by brick so you can build up to what you want in life stacking higher than the ceiling. “Forever Faded” brings the keys, kicks & snares back to stay lifted all day every day while “The Recipe” has the LP’s best feature from K.A.A.N. over a soul sample never letting the game get the best of them.

Beginning the 4th quarter, “About a Bag” instrumentally feels reminiscent to Zapp explaining that’s exactly what it’s gotta be this day in age while “MVP” refers to himself as the Most Valuable Poet” over an orchestral boom bap beat. The penultimate track “Purple Peak in the Air” has a classy trap vibe generally getting higher than a bitch up in the slot & lastly, “The Plan” ends the album doing everything he can while he’s still here.

DJ Hoppa’s just produced Kail Problems & Marley B.’s latest collab EP Shot Clock from a few weeks ago, but the 4th installment of the Stoney Point saga sure enough joins Delusions of Grandeur back from May in being another consistently great project in the Broken Complex canon this year. The production varies from boom bap to trap, jazz rap, soul music, classical, pianos & acoustics providing the soundscape for De to put a current twist to the duo’s titular lifestyle.

Score: 4/5

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Mi$tuh G – “Keep It G” review

This is the sophomore effort from Sacramento, California emcee/producer Mi$tuh G. Emerging within the underground at the beginning of this current ongoing decade off the strength of his full-length debut G Files, I myself subsequently found myself being introduced to his music in the summer of 2020 back when the whole world shut down as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic through his debut EP G.W.O. (G-World Order) conceptually revolving around all the events that had transpired at that point. He & Mak7teen brought Your Worst Nightmare to life a year later & is returning over 4 years later to Keep It G.

After the “Brandon Voicemail” intro, the first song “Flow” is this off-the-trap opener having y’all begging for another dose whereas “G’s Back” featuring Mak7teen works in more hi-hats continuing to take an eerier route atmospherically talking about coming back after 3 years. “Slide Out” brings a symphonic trap flare to the instrumental encouraging to send him the addy just before “The Best” featuring Lil Sicx & T Nutty brings the trio together sampling “The Message” by Grandmaster Flash & the Furious 5 except it has a g-funk twist entering a whole nother dimension.

“Not At All” moves on from there by taking it to the Bay cussing a bitch our on her cap leading into “Hangin’ Out the Window” keeps the pianos & hi-hats in tact getting in his braggadocio bag. Oakland veteran & the Crown Prince of Hyphy Mistah F.A.B. provides Keep It G’s best feature on the misty trap cut “Payin’ Dues” gettin’ their hustle on & after the “KM Radio” skit, “Remember the Name” gives off a vibrant yet soulful approach to the beat looking to separate himself from evil ties.

The ominous trap approach throughout “Revenue” is pretty cool making it clear he’s all about the income & after the “E-Moe Voicemail” skit, “That’s Mi$tuh G” charismatically retains his championship by the end of the song forever staying on the grind the penultimate track “Better Dayz” featuring Lace Leno nears the conclusion of the album looking for brighter days ahead of them. YFN Lucci surprisingly alongside YFN Traepound join G for the trap closer “Mafia” to live high so they ain’t gotta deal with lowlives.

Even I myself was curious as to what’s been going on with Mi$tuh G as of late & to hear that he’s back after so long with an entire LP of new material was just what I needed. Quite possibly better than the EP that put me onto his music few years ago. He’s most certainly grown from both an artistic & a personal perspective since then G makes that apparent, staying true to himself & having a tighter guest-list in comparison to G.W.O. (G-World Order).

Score: 3.5/5

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Daniel Son – “Bushman Bodega” review

Toronto, Ontario, Canada emcee Daniel Son has returned for his 7th LP. A member of the Brown Bag Money collective, his profile began to rapidly increase in the underground off projects like the Giallo Point-produced debut mixtape The Gunners or the Futurewave-produced sophomore album Yenaldooshi. He just teamed up with Raz Fresco a few months ago for the spectacular collab album Northside paying homage to the roots of the Toronto hip hop scene & is reuniting with Futurewave for the first time since Son Tzu & the Wav.God on Bushman Bodega.

“Symbiote Suit” couldn’t start off any better from the organ-laced boom bap instrumental to the hardcore lyricism keeping Toronto on lock whereas “Stone Cold works in some eerie pianos, kicks & snares looking to get them all out. “Line Busy” featuring Estee Nack menacingly advises to call them back later since they already busy on the phone as it is just before “No Man’s Land” dustily talks about everything being ugly.

Moving on from there, “Musashi” keeps the keys as well as the kicks & snares in tact providing a theme for those who need more leading into the jazzy boom bap crossover “30 Odd 6” featuring 36 Cypher telling y’all to get a plate since they in the hunting fields. “Trail Blazers” featuring Rome Streetz finds the 2 wordsmiths over a magically raw beat dropping lyrical pressure for 2 & a half minutes, but then “Seymour Stems” drumlessly advises to watch your mouth.

“Underground Parking” feat. Raz Fresco recaptures everything that made Northside the incredible collab effort it was & Futurewave elevating it while “Cleaning Staff” hops over vibraphones to fish for sharks through a storm. “Booger Sugar” featuring al.divino nears the conclusion of Bushman Bodega getting in their hardcore bag together over a haunting instrumental while “Owe Loot” ruggedly stands on his own. “Good on My Ones” closes shop on a psychedelic boom bap note having to get lost to find his way.

It’s been quite a while since we’ve gotten a solo project from Daniel Son that & his latest album here lands a cut above the same pedestal that Northsideset couple months ago. He & Futurewave have always had the type of chemistry where they’ve constantly brought the best out of each other over time, which is further exemplified by a near-perfect list of guests that match Daniel’s skill of lyricism along with killer beats & superb engineering.

Score: 4.5/5

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Blu – “Los Angeles” review

I believe this is the 12th proper full-length solo LP from Los Angeles veteran Blu. Becoming notorious in the underground in 2007 when he & Exile dropped their debut album Below the Heavens: In Hell Happy with Your New Imaginary Friend, he’s managed to put out a handful of collab projects & solo efforts of his own. The most notable being: Her Favorite Colo(u)r, the M.E.D.-assisted Bad Neighbor produced by Madlib, the Gods in the Spirit/Titans in the Flesh duology, the Oh No-produced A Long Red Hot Los Angeles Summer Night, the Damu the Fudgemunk-produced Ground & Water, The Color Blu(e), the Fatlip-assisted Live from the End of the World & the Real Bad Man-produced Bad News. Afrika & Out of the Blue produced by Nottz & Shafiq Husayn respectively were both disappointing due to the overabundance of guests, so I went into Los Angeles hoping it would be better. Especially since Evidence would be behind the boards for it.

“54th” strips the drums to properly begin shouting out everyone in the section whereas “The Land” works in a boom bap instrumental so he can describe what it’s like where he & Ev are both from. The title track keeps the kicks & snares in tact further explaining what goes down in the City of Angels leading into “3 Wheel Motion” featuring Kokane on the hook coastin’ over a syrupy beat & one I can find myself calming down to after smoking of the finest weed the state has.

“L.A. Tourists” featuring M.E.D. is this piano/boom bap crossover with a psychedelic switchup during the 2nd half talking about taking tourists on a ride through Los Angeles just before “L.A. Traffic” feat. Cashus King & Self Jupiter finds the trio acknowledging the crazy traffic that the city is known for over horns. “The Cold” hooks up woodwinds as Blu sums up where it blows rather than ever raining or snowing, but then grittily “Hell” talks about residents not letting you live.

The gospel sample throughout the boom bap-laced “Heaven” makes perfect sense recalling a letter he got from someone he knew who’s up in the pearly gates now explaining what it’s like while the crooning “Wish You Were Here” featuring Evidence himself passionately talks about standing tall for every hour you’re supposed to. “Lights at Night” featuring Domo Genesis & Navy Blue lavishly unites the trio to describe the city view during the evening while “Wild Wild West” soulfully speaks of his upbringings. “The LA” ends Los Angeles by mixing soul & jazz continuing the introspective lyricism.

In contrast to some of Blu’s latest stuff in the last few years, Los Angeles surpasses The Color Blu(e) as his strongest body of work in this current decade & even one of the best solo albums he’s ever done. Evidence’s production teeters between drumless, boom bap, jazz rap & chipmunk soul serving as the excellent backdrop for the man who Vince Staplesgave props to on the highlight track “Radio” off his latest album Dark Times to conceptually open up more around the part of the west coast they’re all from.

Score: 4.5/5

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