Hariroc – “The Squidfather 2” review

Atlanta, Georgia producer & rapper Hariroc dropping his 3rd studio LP merely days after announcing it. Known for being an extensive collaborator of Lil Tony, he would go on to fully produce the Troc & Swaggbaggs extended plays for Tony in their entireties preceding a full-length debut of his own Indalment in 2024 even if the reception was generally lukewarm. The Squidfather last summer despite being overloaded had some incredible songs on it & the sequel retains that same length although I should note there being guests who weren’t on the predecessor appearing for The Squidfather 2.

“Red” by Hardrock was actually an impressive opener & amongst the latter’s better songs I’ve heard in a bit regardless of it only being less than a minute & a half until “Sold Not Told” by Lil Tony talks about the way the game goes over a plugg instrumental. “Donald Trump” by Double XL & Ealuhri finds the pair wasting another plugg beat likening their black truck to a pedophilic fascist just before “Greed” by B6 vents about everyone yapping their needs to him & turning to Jesus for help finding peace.

RRoxket gets a joint of his own with “Johnny Depp” & I like more than the last couple, talking about snorting as much coke as the iconic actor himself just before another favorite of mine “Long Live Virgil” by Pradabagshawty pays tribute to the late Off-White founder of the same name. “Røck Øut” by Tezzus fresh off the disappointing controversy between him, ilykimchi & Oogie Mane talks about standing on business leading into “Murder He Wrote” by Doowopgz & Rx Yp discussing seeing hate from a mile away.

“3 Man Drill” by Stikkhead takes over the mic to air out the kind of people who ain’t on shit like they claim to be despite the instrumental sticking out more while “Radioactive Rage” by Teflon Zay embraces a hypertrap sound talking about carrying guns whenever they’re riding through the ATL & laying their opps out. “Free Twin” by Babystaydown was another moment I enjoyed calling for his incarcerated homie to come home while “Chess Game” by BabyDrill airily speaks of living a double life with the blick.

Chuckyy makes a 98 second statement telling everyone to “Stop Pouring Lean” & I agree with because I’ve never done that shit nor am I a fan of it personally, preceding “Illegal Money” by Zone1eriic assuring that he can get in a scuffle at this very moment since he got sticks in his ride. “Switch My Move” by Yksteexy ends the 1st leg of The Squidfather 2 with a monotonous performance like he barely has a pulse while “Mufasa” by RW 5 kicks off the 2nd act talking about his mom wanting him to be better than his father.

“Suck Yuh Mada” by 1900Rugrat annoyingly rambles on regarding people who hate him now that he’s been making money while the standout “Dirty Bird” by ApolloRed1 talks about having a favorite trapper instead of having a favorite rapper growing up. “Split the Tab” by tana continues with another highlight addressing a see-through bitch who he hasn’t seen in some time while “Dreams I Can’t Reach Yet” by PCF ManMan talks about his brother being locked up for some dumb shit.

I’d say Pradabagshawty outrapped Ealuhri during “Typo” texting freak hoes wanting to fuck them high off percocets while “Geeked Up” by Bby Kellwoozily elaborates more about being under the influence of drugs. “Beaver” by Zukenee entertainingly references the Comcast Corporation subsidiary NBCUniversal owned sitcom Leave It to Beaver while “Free RRed” by IsoBkae & 4E_Redd averagely trades verses over some pianos & 808s

“Purple Heart” by Babytron was a delightful surprise to me talking about receiving the titular military decoration after the tragic death of his Dog $hit Militia brethren $camaurion back in October of 2022 & after “Free Roc (Rox)” by Luhtrentt flexes that he plays the game of truth instead of pleading the 5th amendment, “Puppet” by GetRichZay confronts someone flexing who claims to be about that life wanting him to take the test to see whether he’s telling the truth or cappin’.

Famous Dex unexpectedly makes “Don’t Touch My Cup” one of the most interesting tracks he’s done this decade along with “Lex Meet Dex”, cautioning not to test him because of the real possibility of him spazzing out while “Emo Ho” by B6 provides a lukewarm anthem dedicated to anyone who’s been stacking up bread. “Fake Thuggin’” by Lil Tony wraps up The Squidfather 2 in the form of this plugg outro becoming a soldier if his opposition’s brought around him.

I would’ve enjoyed The Squidfather a lot more than I did when it came out last August if Hariroc shaved off the half of it that I could’ve done without & unfortunately, The Squidfather 2 suffers from the very same problems it’s predecessor except I might like it a little less than the original. There’s no issue with his production varying between trap & cloud rap to plugg & rage since I do respect his artistry, but the guest list leaves me more torn than the previous one.

Score: 2.5/5

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Goosebytheway – “Nature Boy” review

Buffalo, New York rapper & singer/songwriter Goosebytheway making his full-length studio debut. Signing to Drumwork Music Group back in 2022, he would make a handful of guest appearances across several Conway the Machine projects preceding his debut mixtape By the Way a year afterwards. But the time has come for him to drop his very own LP Nature Boy named after 2-time WWE Hall of Famer, former 16-time WWE world champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, 6-time WWE United States Champion, 6-time WWE tag team champion & 9-time NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair following The Demand ending The Conglomeration’s reign as AEW World Trios Champions.

“203” featuring Conway the Machine finds the pair talking about where they come from over an opulent beat whereas “Rivi” takes the boom bap route instrumentally asking whether anyone’s hearing him or if they’ve heard of him yet. “Pesto Margarita” maintains the more kicks & snares keeping a gun on him in case anyone acts out leading into “Walk Ups” featuring Conway the Machine & Fuego Base seeing the trio ripping up a drumless loop from Bozack Morris.

K’mani & Spark Houston’s contributions to “Pedigree” weren’t that great despite the reference to 2-time WWE Hall of Famer, 14-time WWE world champion, 5-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 3-time WWE tag team champion & the WME Group-owned TKO Group Holdings division’s CCO Triple H while “Nowhere to Be Found” featuring Jottibee after a skit continues the 2nd act of Nature Boy talking about being prepared for war since they’ve hit rock bottom.

“Selfish” featuring Jae Skeese makes up for the mediocre guest verses having both Drumwork labelmates getting stingy as fuck together while “Heisenberg” featuring Conway the Machine & SK da King includes a reference to the main character of my all-time favorite show: Breaking Bad. The closing track “I Ain’t Did Enough” spends the album’s final minutes with 1 last boom bap cut feeling like he should’ve done more since he has 2 kids to raise.

Regardless of former NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion as well as WWE Hall of Famer & the inaugural WWE Champion Buddy Rogers originally earning the Nature Boy nickname, I typically see people caring less for the features Goosebytheway has been doing for Conway in recent memory & I’ve been giving him the benefit of the doubt since he got his label deal because I felt there was room for him to grow. The production has improved since his last tape so have the performances from both Goose & the guests.

Score: 3.5/5

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T.F. – “Skanless Summers: The Legend of…Maniac Blue” review

Los Angeles, California emcee T.F. enlisting MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 to produce his Roc Nation Records debut & his 2nd LP of the year. Initially hearing him on “Tookie Knows, Pt. II” off ScHoolboy Q’s magnum opus Blank Face LP, he subsequently dropped his debut EP No Hooks only 7 months later, which was followed up by his full-length debut ErThangSkanless & then a 2nd EP called OktoberFest. After appearing on Flee Lord’s 8th EP Hand Me My Flowers produced entirely by Buckwild& put out 2 more EPs on his own, T.F. eventually signed to Lord Mobb Music & put out Blame Kansas produced by both Mephux & Roc Marciano. Coming off the Khrysis-produced The Green Bottle & the DJ Muggs-produced Don’t Call Me Lucky however, he’s staying hot with Skanless Summers: The Legend of…Maniac Blue.

“Maniac Blue” opens up with the funky trap beat introducing us to the main character who’s widely known for being a gangsta whereas “Janky Gold” gives me some heavy Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas vibes instrumentally flexing the rubber bands around his wrist. “South Coast Plaza” featuring Jay Worthy finds the pair over a g-funk beat talking about being big budget prior “Bounce Rocc” featuring Trizz & Zoe Osama bringing the trio together for my least favorite single since Zoe didn’t impress me like Trizz did.

As for “Hollywood Slang’n”, we have T.F. maintaining the funk vividly putting us inside the shoes of a dope dealer just before “Cend’n Corners” featuring LilBunko talks about both of them driving around the street carrying pistols in their laps. “A Different Cloth” featuring Dreebo & Fat Meech links up so all 3 of them can decently talk bout being built differently than the rest of these muhfuckas while “Luv Letters” takes a more soulful route getting romantic topically.

“I’m a Dog” featuring pushes closer towards the conclusion of Skanless Summers: The Legend of…Maniac Blue discussing the kind of person he is over a g-funk instrumental while “Bebe’s Kids” featuring ICECOLDBISHOP references the Paramount Skydance Corporation adult animated comedy of the same name based off the late Robin Harris’ standup routine. “The Ballads” masterfully sends off the album telling the stories of a dead loc.

Originally announced last month, Skanless Summers: The Legend of…Maniac Blue had me expecting it to maintain the level of quality Don’t Call Me Lucky achieved several months earlier & I’m somewhat disappointed with the final results. Which doesn’t have anything to do with MIKE SUMMERS’ production or T.F.’s gangsta-infused subject matter, it’s mostly because of the excessive number of guest appearances varying between enjoyable & lackluster.

Score: 3/5

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Tyga – “$tarface” review

This is the 8th studio LP from Compton, California rapper, singer/songwriter, actor & television personality Tyga. Dropping 4 mixtapes & a full-length debut prior to Young Money Entertainment alongside Cash Money Records & Republic Records signing him, he released 11 more tapes & a couple albums through the major labels except Careless World: Rise of the Last King was the only one of the bunch that stood out. The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty & Kyoto under his own imprint Last Kings Records would both become the worst in his discography regardless of the latter marking his EMPIRE Distribution debut excluding Bitch I’m the Shit 2, introducing us to his $tarface alter-ego.

“Spinnin’ in Circles” unceremoniously opens with an 80s synthpop throwback where Tyga’s lifelessly singing about everything moving fast & cold whereas “White Grains” comes through with an distractingly obvious Tory Lanez bite that makes me wanna listen to the latter, which says a lot because I’m not a big Tory fan. “Powdered Dreams” continues the 80s vibes singing about everything being his at the Miami Beach shoreline until the synthwave-inspired “Just Us Tonight” gets romantic when he dated an underage Kylie Jenner.

Reaching the halfway point, “Freezing” direly uses the change of temperature for a breakup metaphor despite the Grand Theft Auto: Vice City atmosphere until the lead single “Gave U Racks” lets the Tory Lanez influences bleed heavier annoyingly singing about a woman winding up stranded as a result of her buying the love Tyga gave her. “Time is Currency” fully embraces the synthwave aesthetics one more explaining to his partner that the reason they haven’t spent much time together is due to money.

“Affection” gets ready to conclude $tarface in the form of this sloppy 2nd & final single capitalizing on 80s nostalgia singing about a woman who desires love & cash while “Died 4U” sounds like an impromptu karaoke session he was having in the studio whining over an ex he’s missing. The outro “Last Forever” spends the disaster’s final minutes trying to evoke the sensation of being in a high school prom hoping for a feeling that won’t ever end.

Young Money now has been defined by Lil Wayne crying for not playing the Super Bowl half-time show along with Drake having his ego shattered in a rap beef & Nicki Minaj protecting predators, but Tyga could most likely be the most irrelevant artist to come out of the whole YMCMB camp & I don’t know what will make people realize that if $tarface’s creative bankruptcy doesn’t. The synthpop, contemporary R&B, synth-funk & synthwave production was confirmed to be AI-generated & Tyga’s singing hasn’t improved at all since Kyoto.

Score: 0/5

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Southpaw FLHC – “The Standard” reveke

Southpaw FLHC is a beatdown hardcore band from Jacksonville, Florida consisting of guitarist Alan King, bassist Marc Laroche, drummer Harrison Linder & frontman Daryn LaMontagne. Dropping off their eponymous debut extended play at the very beginning of 2021 in hopes of bridging the gap between hardcore’s past & present, they would go on to drop a couple singles afterwards only to spend a majority of the decade inactive musically until this full-length studio debut of theirs to conclude July.

“Rolling Stone” begins with a beatdown hardcore intro remembering Daryn’s late grandfather who served in Vietnam whereas “Run Game” angrily lashes out at those they taught to smooth talk & not everyone keep it real in the music industry. “T.T.G. (Trained to Go)” makes it clear they don’t give a fuck what it takes or bout the laws & the rules created but once “Nail in the Coffin” pleads for the chains bounding them from their destiny to be broken, “The Gavel” puts us inside shoes of a judge to conclude the 1st half.

Meanwhile on “Torches”, we have Daryn & company hitting us with more mediocre beatdown hardcore dedicated to those in the streets who lit the way for them while “The Path” featuring an Eric Ellis guitar solo near the final 30 seconds delivers an ode to the bold & the brave. “Play the Fool” comes through with an ironic jab at “pussy motherfuckers ain’t who they claiming to be” & once the title track talking about true power standing in our truths, “D.T.W.D. (Duvall ‘Till We Die)” concluded with a love letter to the county that made them.

For these guys to call their debut album The Standard for beatdown hardcore is pretty arrogant considering a great deal of this album to me lacks innovation or Knocked Loose & Hatebreed doing that style of hardcore punk more justice. Harrison Linder sporting apparel from the neo-Nazi associated clothing brand Curb Stomp & reposting a couple far-righters on their Instagram after their “apology” video only adds insult to injury, to which I think the punk rock scene shouldn’t let fly considering they’ve always stood on rebelling against authoritarianism & bigotry.

Score: 0.5/5

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Ariana Grande – “petal” review

Boca Raton, Florida singer/songwriter & actress Ariana Grande launching her own imprint Babydoll Music distributed by Republic Records for her 8th studio LP. The very same label who signed her in 2013 after breaking out through the Nickelodeon series Victorious alongside Leon Thomas III & has gradually become one of the biggest pop stars in the entire world since, dropping my personal favorite in her discography sweetener following the moderate reception of Yours Truly as well as My Everything & Dangerous Woman. I also enjoyed thank u, next for what it was following her engagement to Pete Davidson being broke off & Mac Miller’s tragic death even if Positions took it back to the mild feedback of her earlier output, coming off Eternal Sunshine to give us petal in time for July ending.

“kiss me” opens up yearning to be kissed like it could potentially be her final goodbye until “hate that i made you love me” averagely blends alt-pop, contemporary R&B, alternative R&B, synthpop & chillwave for a lead single venting about her divorce from her now ex-husband Dalton Gomez. The title track serves as a metaphor for how flowers can still bloom in the most rigid places just before “stay” detailing yet another corrective experience she had.

As for “oh well”, we have Ariana telling Dalton that more breakup songs about him are on the way & wishing all of the toxic people in her life the best luck traveling to Hell leading into “big feelings” reaching the midway point wanting this person to promise they’ll handle her properly & providing the kind of sex that can make grown men cry. “freak” sings about distancing herself from someone who doesn’t want to get to know her from a personal standpoint but after the “warning signs” interlude, “like i do” gets tongue-in-cheek for a sassy self-confidence ode.

“never get over me” embraces some R&B influenced to finish up petal’s concluding act singing about a unique kind of intimacy with a bridge calling back to “Thinking ‘Bout You” off Dangerous Woman while “bad thing (bunny hop)” finds herself rediscovering her feelings towards photographer & dancer Ricky Alvarez. The closing track “nowhere, nobody” sends off the album choosing to stay present in love regardless of the uncertainty of whether or not it’ll last in the end.

Despite coming away from petal with mixed feelings towards it, I can certainly see myself coming back to it more than I do Positions & Eternal Sunshine since it does have more high points than lows. I think Ariana Grande breaking up with all different kinds of negative attachments throughout her life comes from a sincere place although the alt-pop, contemporary R&B, alternative R&B, synthpop & chillwave production was merely ok. Would love for her to work with someone like Jermaine Dupri.

Score: 3/5

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Arca – “XXXXX” review

Arca is a 36 year old musician, singer, composer, producer, DJ, model & audio engineer from Caracas, Venezuela who dropped her full-length studio debut Xen during my senior year of high school followed by the sophomore effort Mutant exactly 12 months later. Her eponymous 3rd album under XL Recordings elevated herself beyond her earlier out & the same can be said regarding the entire kiCK pentalogy initially conceived in the midst of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, finally returning following the series’ conclusion for her 9th studio LP.

The intro “No Ends” kicks off the opening 91 seconds sampling “In the Face” for a spoken word passage regarding shadows speaking to her whereas “Willow” somewhat gives me an Aphex Twin vibe instrumentally including a chorus describing a willow tree blowing in the wind. “Eidolon” heads for a deconstructed club direction singing in Spanish about living for the moment & “Heart” continues the Spanish performances calling for everyone to watch her transmute.

“Syncope” keeps things going from there taking a compositional approach & it feels like something the late SOPHIE would’ve made if she was still here just before “Raver” fiercely taking it bake to Arca’s own roots a bit in terms of sound. The minute & a half “Cinch” gives us a brief verse describing a woman who’s moving further into the unknown with her eyes closed while “Fuck” reaches the midway point of XXXXX yearning to have sex like her partner has sincere love for her.

Kicking off the 2nd half, “Finisher” interestingly samples “Family Violence” including these jaw-dropping string serine & an outro explaining you were never alone prior to “Taconeando” fully embraces the Spanish lyricism once again talking about heeling under the lights. “Futurality” lets the instrumental do the speaking for here basically telling us the future has become reality while “Grip” once again feels like a refined version of something Arca would’ve done on Xen.

“Enraptured” winds down XXXXX’s last act continues to refine the Xen aesthetics asking her partner if they’re ready to come & get it while “Throb” has moments that take me back to the “@@@@@“ single she dropped before the pandemic preceding the kiCK saga. “Everything” comes through with an optimistic spiritual successor to “Alive” off Mutant & the outro “Sueño” concludes with a finalized version of “Arpia” previewed last fall.

Many including myself had to ask where Arca would go beyond the kiCK series & XXXXX answers that with a return to form playfully interrupting the rhythm of the rest of her discography. deconstructed club, IDM, epic collage, glitch, UK bass, glitch hop, wonky, glitch pop, ambient pop, wave & progressive electronic production mostly feels like her interestingly trying to perfect what she was doing on her earliest output at many points, rawly exploring a space between worlds where transformation is both terrifying & freeing.

Score: 4.5/5

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DOMi & JD Beck – “WHO ASKED?” review

DOMi & JD Beck are a jazz fusion duo from Los Angeles, California consisting of keyboardist DOMi & drummer JD Beck. They would eventually sign a joint deal to Anderson .Paak’s own imprint Apeshit Inc. in tandem with the greatest jazz label of all-time Blue Note Records in 2022, dropping their widely lauded full-length studio debut NOT TiGHT that summer. Exactly 48 months have passed since to celebrate, it only makes sense that the pairing returned for a highly anticipated sophomore effort.

“ÈPiPHANiE” begins with this colorful 2 & a half minute compositional intro I can imagine hearing at the start of a wonderful day whereas “HAD ENOUGH” co-written by Anderson Paak. finds the pair singing about tomorrow possibly being the same despite not being too far. “EXiT” embraces a more autumnal vibe instrumentally assuring this isn’t the end & never showing signs of helplessness just before “SiLHOUETTE” asks if the fear causing doubt in your mind is worth the mind fading out.

Meanwhile on “GROWiNG OLDER”, we have DOMi & JD observing the inevitable process of aging in the midst of seasons quickly passing us by leading into “SOME THiNGS NEVER CHANGE” blissfully sings about staying frozen in place & holding steady since certain stuff remains the same. “RAiN” discussing both fear & comfort over more woodwinds combined with intense drumming until “SMALL EYES” contains a J Dilla influence showing the love they have for their dogs.

“LOVELY MASQUERADE” continues the 2nd half with one of WHO ASKED?‘s most infectious grooves singing about the possibility of being betrayed whilst the puppets dance blindly & after “PUZZLE PiECES” promises us it’s ok if life doesn’t make sense sometimes because there are moments where pieces fall apart for no reason whatsoever, “PHANTOM TREAD” endearingly pays tribute to an individual who greatly helped them at some point in their career.

The song “OUT OF SYNC” finds the pair lost inside their heads while “CONCERTiNO (FOR PiANO, DRUMS & ORCHESTRA)” hits us with another delightful instrumental piece comprised of pianos, flutes, strings & brass. My least favorite track “CLiMBiNG HiGH” awkwardly experiments with J-pop singing about the sky still being above when heading upwards for a better view & the “ÈPiLOGUE” concludes the LP in the form of this orchestral outro that I can imagine hearing in a Disney movie.

Regardless of WHO ASKED? being ranked behind NOT TiGHT in DOMi & JD Beck’s discography, it’s still an exceptional continuation of their music. They swap out the secondary influences of neo-soul & jazzstep to incorporate more elements of chamber music & classical crossover but more specifically, they’re singing a lot more than they did on their debut & I feel like they could make some improvements in that specific department going forward.

Score: 3.5/5

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King Kashmere – “0 Point Modulations” review

Grahame Park, London, England, United Kingdom emcee/producer King Kashmere getting behind the boards for his 8th studio LP. Notable for being a part of several groups or duos over the last few decades ranging from Kingdom of Fear & Invisible Inc. to Gawd Status as well as Old Children & Strange U, he also has 7 full-lengths & a few extended plays under his belt through a multitude of labels from Low Life Records to YNR Productions & Boot Records. The most recent being The Album to End All Alien Abductions & Sounds Like Home via High Focus Records, looking to kick off the 0 Point Modulations series strong.

“Kulcha” by Gawd Status after the intro starts us off with Joker Starr hitting us with skillful lyricism over a boom bap instrumental whereas “Shadows” by Durrty Goodz, Flirta D & Harry Shotta comes through with their own rendition of “Valley of the Shadows” by Origin Unknown. “Big(Bad)” by Dabbla, Genesis Elijah & Killa P aggressively joins forces to piss off their detractors including a brief beat switch prior to “Good Morning” by Harry Shotta, Jaz Kahina & PAV4N spitting flows that’ll leave people impressed.

As for “All Night”, we have Jae Mann taking the mic so he can talk about how it’s always the people who don’t do shit who be disrespecting those that put in the work just before “I.Y.N.K. (Illest You Never Knew)” by Cappo returns to the boom bap ruggedly boasts of reaching a level many wish they could achieve. “Earendel” by Illaman suggests to meet him in the courtyard with bars prepared until Flowtecs & Ramson Badbonez team up for the spooky “Violatorz”.

“Doin’ It” by Micall Parknsun talks about his detractors being pissed that he’s still around making music when it’s their own loss while “I Smoke” by BVA ruggedly discusses being ready to body anyone in a battle. “Alive” by Farma G & Fliptrix wraps up the 1st leg of 0 Point Modulations talking about keeping this shit going strong while “God Complex” by C.o.N-Vers talks about swinging swords whenever it’s time for war.

Verb T gets his own solo track with “Heights” talking about the feeling he has of taking things to higher levels musically while “Dragon’s Lair” by the Double Dragons grittily expresses Ray Vendetta & Tommy Biz’s refusal of surrounding themselves with artists who’re insignificant compared to them. “Is It?” by HPBLK talks about revving a chainsaw after being cast in the dark while “Cooked” by Reign MC dismisses those who claim they can smoke him.

“Classic Style” by Confucius MC dustily talks about the autobiographical subject matter he’s kicking being superior to a simple novel & becoming impactful when it’s laid out on wax but after “No Stress” by Alecs DeLarge poses the question of winning when people aren’t even rooting for themselves to achieve said victories in the first place, “Unfunny” by Truemendous talks about never being apart of a joke she doesn’t find humor in.

The track “Anne Boleyn” by Anyway tha God & Ragga Zulu Rebel references King Henry VIII’s 2nd wife who was beheaded due to fabricated charges of high treason & adultery in the 1500s while “Nuisance” by Fliptrix & JayaHadADream talks about leaving the past behind now that their voices have been found. The final song “Phone on Silent” by Larwood preceding the outro concludes 0 Point Modulations explaining that life’s about timing & making every second count.

King Kashmere has been producing since the late 90s & after fine-tuning that aspect of his career since 2010 when he began evolving behind the boards, 0 Point Modulations officially rings in this new chapter of his storied career shining the brightest light on The Iguana Man’s true calling although I can respectfully understand the 77 minute runtime being lengthy for some listeners. His production experiments with different genres other than hip hop like grime or dub & dubstep developing ways to make the process authentic through sampling & enlisting an all-star cast of MCs representing the UK hip hop scene’s past & present.

Score: 4/5

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Dave East – “Price of Pain” review

Harlem, New York emcee Dave East reuniting with Harry Fraud for his 6th solo LP. Breaking out in 2014 off his 8th mixtape Black Rose, this resulted in the man signing a joint deal with Def Jam Recordings & even Nas’ independently owned Mass Appeal Records as well as a spot in the iconic 2016 XXL Freshman Class. However, his full-length debut Survival wouldn’t come out until 3 years later & was very disappointing in the sense that he tried appealing to a more mainstream audience that just didn’t exist. The sophomore effort Hoffa proved to be better as did his final Def Jam offering Fortune Favors the Bold & APT 6E produced by Mike & Keys marked a return to his independent roots, coming off the araabMUZIK-produced Living Proof so he can break down the Price of Pain.

“Papaya Juice” opens up with this soulful intro talking about not wanting to hit a studio unless it’s fireproof whereas “Everything’s Up” featuring Benny the Butcher hops over a sample-driven boom bap beat explaining how they don’t do anything basic. The crooning “Hot Peas & Butter” featuring AZ celebrates the revelation of their lives since making music while “Minding My Business” talks about lasting longer if people follow through with that simple advice.

WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg appears on “Follow My Lead” gives off an opulent boom bap vibe instrumentally cautioning to stay alert just before “Rasta Pasta” talks about having no time to waste at all. “Alley Oop” featuring Styles P wraps up the 1st act discussing that all you have is yourself when your back’s against the wall over a cloudy yet dusty beat while “Clyde Frazier” talks about staying far away from the kind of people who feel like they’re entitled.

“No One Like You” & “Thirsty” are easily the most romantic cuts here even if I prefer the latter’s grooviness while the drumless “Life Cycle” introspectively reflects on his younger days. “Hu$$le in My Nature” featuring Cruch Calhoun finds the 30 for 30 pair standing 10 toes down & after “Stay with Me” soulfully talks about not letting his conscious down ever, the closing track “Fill a Casket” asks himself various questions like taking all the homeless people off the street & feeding them lobster.

People would generally say Dave East’s output since the last time he got with Harry Fraud almost 5 years ago has been average at best, but all 3 of Price of Pain’s singles made me confident of it becoming Dave’s strongest material since leaving Def Jam & I can confirm that’s very much the case. The production takes more influence from boom bap, drumless & chipmunk soul rather than maintaining Hoffa’s jazzy trap sound bringing a tighter guest list on board to describe cost of suffering.

Score: 4/5

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