Dead Players – “Faster Than the Speed of Death” review

The Dead Players are a hip hop trio from London, England, United Kingdom consisting of producer Ghosttown alongside emcees Dabbla & Jam Baxter. Making their eponymous full-length debut in the summer of 2013 under High Focus Records, they would later follow it up in the fall of 2015 with a sophomore effort called Freshly Skeletal until they embarked on an indefinite hiatus. They’ve surprisingly decided to reunite 1 last time for their 3rd & most likely final studio LP a few weeks away from former アイアンマンヘビーメタル級チャンピオン, EVOLVE Champion, 2-time 新日本プロレス世界認定TVチャンピオン, 3-time IWGPタッグチャンピオン, PWG World Champion, 2-time GHCジュニアヘビー級タッグチャンピオン, 4-time RPW British Heayweight Champion & 3-time RPW British Tag Team Champion Zack Sabre Jr. facing the current 2-time IWGPヘビー級チャンピオン内藤哲也.

“The Sooner We Die, the Sooner We Can All Go Home” begins with a sample-driven trap intro talking about what they’ve been up to since we’ve heard from them last whereas “Alaska Spearfishing” embraces a back-&-forth style of delivery wittily trading 8 bars with one another. “Just Above Water” talks about their ability to not let their struggles weigh them down while “Refried Nights” promises to stay weird throughout this final year of activity.

As for “Dustbowl”, we have Ghosttown going for a more somber vibe instrumentally so Dabbla & Jam Baxter can advise to never split your winnings with a thief leading into the 2-parter “Major Curse / Icepick” starting boisterously until hooking up a woodwind during the beat switch talking about coming back so they can crush some cities & switch it up again. “Bloodsuckers” however puts their chemistry in the spotlight once again to finish off the 1st half asking how those kind of people feel.

“Welcome Back Oh Cruel, Cruel Behemoth” kicks off the last leg of their coda sampling some violins & mixing it with some hi-hats talking about death not really being all that convincing to them while the 2nd single “Death by 1,000 Cocktail Sticks” speaks of the 1st life always being free of charge, hence why they’re living theirs quickly. The 3rd & penultimate single “Gasoline Sazerac” on the other hand advises to do your thing regardless of the world getting sapped of all meaning.

The lead single “Cherry Turbo” dropped 14 months earlier as a way of celebrating 10 whole years Players’ foundation going back-&-forth with each other without the need of a hook while “Neon Soup” talks about their thumbs ringing when they’re high whilst their lives flash in their faces. “Blue Crab Linguine in the Frosty Underworld” bittersweetly wraps up the album asking if everything sorted itself out the way they hoped.

Celebrating their evolution & staying true to the previous iterations of themselves, what could very well likely be the last time the Dead Players get back together sounds a lot more trap-oriented than self-titled & Freshly Skeletal were in earlier 2010s maintaining the signature abstractly hardcore lyricism that’s always made them stood out. Living up where the predecessor left off thematically, Faster Than the Speed of Death gives a peek at where the trio is now in their lives as they look back at their old selves along the way. Can’t forget to compliment Telemachus’ engineering either.

Score: 4/5

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Cardo – “MADeMAN” review

Cardo is a 40 year old producer & rapper from St. Paul, Minnesota notable for lacing a couple standout tracks on Wiz Khalifa’s best mixtape Kush & Orange Juice. He would later go on to become one of the most in-demand beatsmiths in recent memory, producing hits ranging from “THat Part” by ScHoolboy Q featuring Ye formerly known as Kanye West to “goosebumps” by Travis Scott featuring Kendrick Lamar or more recently “euphoria” by the latter serving as the first of 4 Drake disses. To celebrate his 40th birthday though, he’s stepping out as a rapper more for a debut album.

The title track sets the tone of what’s to come with this smooth west coast style beat talking about being a made man whereas “Thinking of Wayz” featuring Payroll Giovanni takes the g-funk route instrumentally trying to come up with ways to making straight up cash. “Bankroll” kinda gives off a Mobb vibe to talk about getting money being the only thing he knows, but then “Can’t Stop” returns to the g-funk refusing to slow down.

“Never 2 Much” featuring Seafood Sam has this synth-funk vibe generally talking about being out here making that fetti just before the exuberantly groovy “Thumbin’” calls out people trying to speak to him when it has absolutely nothing to do with making the bread. “Woke Up Ballin’” has a summary trap flare talking about the money always calling him leading into the atmospheric west coast jam “Nameless” featuring Larry June refusing to be around anyone broke in their lives.

Kamaiyah joins Cardo on “Paper” continuing to flex their grind over a spaciously funky instrumental prior to the atmospheric “Mac Dre Flow” paying homage to one of the greatest Bay Area emcees of all time, the late Thizz Entertainment founder Mac Dre. “When You See Me” gets back on the Mobb tip a bit opening up more of having to get it on his own while the synth-driven “C-Bo Flow” featuring Payroll Giovanni gives their flowers to C-Bo of The Regime.

“Ain’t No Way” pushes towards the final moments of Cardo’s official full-length debut LP by hooking the g-funk sound back up pointing out that trying to come up with plots to stop this shit on his end is simply an impossibility & the outro featuring Payroll Giovanni ends MADeMAN with 1 final Mobb joint advising that you have to manage the money in order to master it, even having more income as a result of both of them changing their habits up.

Disregarding the fact that we’ve hardly heard Cardo on the mic as much as we have up until this point, MADeMAN as a producer album altogether happens to be a much more salvageable debut than the new Southside album Break the Silence or even the Pyrex Whippa album Sincerely, Rex. His production hones in on the west coast sound whether it be g-funk or Mobb music, his performances are stronger than both 808 Mafia members on their respective debuts & the minimal guests are well-selected.

Score: 4/5

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Lil Tecca – “Plan A” review

New York rapper, singer/songwriter, producer & Galactic Records founder Lil Tecca back with his 3rd LP. Blowing up in 2018 after signing a distribution deal with Republic Records & the viral single “Ran$om”, it would later be included on his debut mixtape We Love You Tecca that same year & would receive lukewarm reception although it’s truthfully grown on me a tad bit over the course of time. His debut LP Virgo World was released during the pandemic & is widely considered to be the weakest entry in his discography. The last time we heard from Tecca was a couple summers ago when Internet Money Records founder Taz Taylor executive produced a worthy sequel to We Love You Tecca & Tec from last fall showed maturity to the point where I recanted calling him a 1-hit wonder when Virgo World came out. Nearly a year to the day, Tecca’s commemorating by dropping Plan A.

“Taste” produced by Taz Taylor, Rio Leyva & Vendr showcases Tecca’s extensive selection of women over a cloudy trap instrumental to get the ball rollin’ whereas “Bad Time” works in some hi-hats & horns noting his dissatisfaction with the way some women in particular treat him. “120” goes for a futuristic atmosphere to beat reminding us that he’s not new & he’s been here, but then the rage-inducing “I Can’t Let Go” featuring Don Toliver locks in with Bugz Ronin to talk about still trappin’ out private projects.

The rattling trap vibes of “Vogue” are pretty fun admittedly boasting that life’s a bitch & he thought it was extortion further advising to send him your location while “24HRS” instrumentally feels skeletal despite him tryna keep his significant other on his mind. “2” cloudily brushes off Tecca’s side bitch tryna run the show & reposition herself as his main just before the atmospheric “Never Last” co-produced by venny discloses to his previous partners that they were easy to replace.

“Homebody” ends the first half of the LP on the cavernous trap tip courtesy of Noah Mejia gettin’ straight to business keeping the confidence instead of talking while the moody “Self2Self” explains everything dying soon as money gets involved & being rich longer than getting that Lawrence graduates degree. The cloudy “Separate Ways” asks if one took a different path if he’s M.I.A. switching with the technology leading into the synth-driven “Time & a Place” talking about having no time to waste whatsoever.

As for “4U”, we have Tecca dreamily telling this woman she’s lucky he even made the time for her & droppin’ dimes on her while the acoustic trap hybrid “Flowers” that BryceUnknwn cooked up confesses he didn’t know the hoe was gonna set his ass up. “Cold Girls” hooks up more at synths & hi-hats cutting off a lying bitch while the spacious “Mama” explains how risky shit got when he almost moved out west. “D1” playfully balls out telling the fakes running from life to face it & “All the Time” cloudily ends things talking about not overstepping.

Rather than making Plan A into this culmination of his career thus far, Lil Tecca instead takes the chance to reflect on the journey up to this point. Internet Money Records’ production evolves the sound that he’s spent the last few years cultivating & the general theme of his music career being all that he wants to do in life without a backup is truly motivating since you always got people talking about having a plan B.

Score: 3.5/5

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MC Lyte – “1 of 1” review

MC Lyte is a 53 year old emcee from Queens, New York who is widely regarded as amongst the pioneers of female rap. Her first 4 albums Lyte as a Rock, Eyes on This, Act Like You Know & Ain’t No Other were released through First Priority Music/Atlantic Records to positive reception as was her Elektra Records debut Bad as I Wanna B. Responses towards her 2nd & final Elektra offering 7 & 7 were more mixed while Da Undaground Heat & Legend are both regarded as the weakest entries in her discography. Nevertheless, I was still curious about her 9th LP since 2024 has been the year of the comebacks.

After the titular intro, the first song “Thank You”featuring Muni Long is this lavish opener produced by Nottz talking about lighting the fire whereas “Life & Luxury” takes the soulful boom bap route instrumentally thanks to DJ Scratch talking about an ungrateful adversary. “King King” featuring Queen Latifah continues to chop up the soul samples paying homage to men & after the “Sunni Block Barber Shop” interlude, “To Rock the Mic” works in a funkier groove to the beat from Warryn Campbell promising to keep ripping it lyrically.

The 2 & a half minute hardcore hip hop anthem “1-5” talks about how it takes skills to rip microphones & it’ll pay your bills if you’re lucky enough just before “Make a Livin’” boasts that she’s the live art in the gallery. “All Day All Night” with Easy Mo Bee behind the boards ends the first half of the album by tackling themes of romance, but then “Lyte Ghost Lil Mama” featuring Ghostface Killah & Lil Mama finds the trio over a dusty boom bap beat talking about the game being unattractive to them.

“Kick Back Relax” goes for a calmer approach telling everyone bringing negativity her way to kick rocks & after the “Vote 4 Change” interlude, “Change Your Ways” featuring both Common & Stevie Wonder has to be one of the most thought-provoking cuts here encouraging to make a change in your life. The captivating lead single “Woman” featuring Big Daddy Kane & Salt talks female empowerment while the soulful “Alright” that Cory Mo laced encourages that all will be fine. The final song “Music Is” following the Easy Mo Bee interlude ends 1 of 1 by telling us it’s all she does.

I personally haven’t enjoyed an MC Lyte project since Bad as I Wanna B almost 28 years back & her first offering in nearly a decade proves to be a 2nd coming of age now that she’s at a different place spiritually as well as yet another example of hip hop’s veterans returning to form. She showcases her signature blend of love, braggadocio & storytelling to inspire, uplift & educate listeners over some of the best production that I’ve heard backing her in quite a while.

Score: 4/5

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Katy Perry – “143” review

Katy Perry is a 39 year old singer/songwriter & television personality from Santa Barbara, California who started in 2001 by releasing a Christian rock album under her birth name Katy Hudson. She later signed to Capitol Records for the sophomore effort One of the Boys & 3rd album Teenage Dream launched Katy into international superstardom. PRISM, Witness & Smile were all released to mixed reception & some of the singles building up the Unsub Records founder’s 7th LP here had me interested.

“Woman’s World” starts with what is easily one of the worst songs that I’ve heard all year uglily mutating dance-pop, synthpop, synthwave & hi-NRG despite the themes of female empowerment whereas the poppy trap duet “Gimme Gimme” featuring 21 Savage finds the 2 getting lustful. “Gorgeous” featuring Kim Petras gives off an electro dance-pop flare shouting out the girlies for looking stunning just before “I’m His, He’s Mine” featuring Doechii works in elements of pop rap, Atlanta bass, contemporary R&B & trap getting possessive towards their lovers.

Meanwhile on “Crush”, we have Katy singing over a house beat about falling in love leading into “Lifetimes” going dance-pop, garage house, diva house, Euro House & future house paying tribute to her daughter Daisy. “All the Love” maintains the house vibes instrumentally accepting that love wasn’t for her until Daisy came into her life prior to “Nirvana” expressing Katy’s desire to be taken to a spiritual place of perfect peace & happiness through her current partner through sexual intimacy.

“Artificial” featuring J.I.D nears the conclusion of 143 in the form of this dance-pop/pop rap hybrid wanting to know who’ll save them from losing their minds while the song “Truth” demands transparency within a relationship even if it hurts her over an atmospheric trap beat & I can definitely tell that she’s referring to Russell Brand. The closer “Wonder” ends the album the eponymous wonder in everything no matter the age & no matter the circumstances that the wonder finds itself in.

Starting the deluxe run, “I Woke Up” is this happy go-lucky dance pop tune singing about having another day not doing the relatable theme of life not being promised any justice while “Has a Heart” tries way too hard to preach it’s message to the world of sharing the prospect of love to one another. “No Tears for New Year’s” embraces a synth-pop vibe refusing to let anyone cry soon as New Year’s Day begins & the final bonus track “OK” finishes by remaining optimistic ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

It’s crazy to think that the same woman who had damn near every single song on her major label sophomore effort like “California Gurls” featuring WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg or even “E.T.” featuring Ye formerly known as Kanye West has now given us what many including myself are now regarding as the worst body of work in her entire discography. I have no doubts that she wrote it from a sincere place since it’s named after what she calls her angel number, the biggest flaw here is the production playing catch-up to the dance party trends.

Score: 1/5

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Jamie xx – “In Waves” review

Jamie xx is a 35 year old musician, DJ, producer & remixer from Wandsworth, London, England, United Kingdom notable for being 1/3 of The xx or producing the title track off Drake’s best full-length album Take Care. He even put out a critically acclaimed solo debut In Colour during the summer of 2015 shortly after I graduated high school prominently based around UK bass with elements of future garage, deep house, downtempo & alt-pop included additionally. However, he’s FINALLY returning for a sophomore effort.

“Wanna” is this calming instrumental opener that rightfully sets the tone whereas the 2nd single “Treat Each Other Right” pulls from future garage, UK bass, progressive breaks & chipmunk soul talking about how that’s all we gotta do. “Waited All Night” by Oliver Sim & Romy maintains the future garage & progressive breaks elements throwing a hint of alternative R&B in the mix prior to “Baddy in the Floor” featuring additional vocals provided by Honey Dijon dabbles with garage house, funky house, speed garage & French house telling the baddies to let loose on the dance floor.

The fusion of future garage, UK bass, alternative R&B, neo-psychedelia, Atlanta bass & deconstructed club on “Dafodil” only remembering the lovely sweetness in the air after being with a beautiful female in London for the night while “Still Summer” serves as another instrumental piece for you to play during the final moments of summer itself. “Life” by Robyn borrows from funky house, Latin house, dance-pop & ballroom singing about her man making her feel alive just before “The Feeling I Get From You” lives up to it’s name by incorporating a warmer atmosphere.

“Breather” starts the final leg of In Waves with this epic 6 & a half minute kinda giving off a progressive house vibe while “All You Children” produced with The Avalanches celebrates the joy of community, connection & the transformative power of dance through tech house, melodic house & melodic techno. After the “Every Single Weekend” interlude, “Falling Together” featuring Oona Doherty on spoken word ends with what’s actually the song “Pale Blue Dancer” teased at Coachella almost 2 & a half years ago.

The deluxe run begins with Erykah Badu getting on the house-driven “F.U.” talking about being in the club calling for all the laddies & the brothers to get wild while the repetitive “It’s So Good” was a loose from last January fusing UK funky, funk brasileiro & IDM. “Do Something” dabbles with New Orleans bounce a bit while “Let’s Do It Again” crosses over in favor of progressive house, funky house, future garage & melodic house. “Kill Dem” ends the collection of bonus tracks returning to a UK funky sound 1 more time removing the funk brasileiro & IDM undertones in favor of ragga & stutter house

Almost a decade after his debut solo masterpiece, we get a melancholy paradise of bliss alongside heartbreak & introspection that eclipsed the heights of its predecessor somehow making all supernatural adjectives & analogies seem understated. He replicates the emotional crescendos & thrilling volatility of an almost mystical night out telling the story of a journey where you merge into the divine pulse of shadows, light & dance floor rhythms or a strobe light epiphany about the illimitable possibilities & spiritual capacities of humanity.

Score: 4.5/5

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Blu & Exile – “Love (the) Ominous World” review

One of the most well regarded Los Angeles, California hip hop duo Blu & Exile are back for the 4th album in their discography. Their 2007 full-length debut Below the Heavens: In Hell Happy with Your New Imaginary Friend is rightfully considered by many to be one of the best hip hop albums to come out within the past 15 years, receiving a nod on “Radio” off Vince Staples’ final Def Jam Recordings album Dark Times a few months ago. They went on to release a follow-up in 2011 with Give Me My Flowers While I Can Smell Them as well as the 2017 rarities compilation In the Beginning: Before the Heavens & the previous LP in the B&E canon Miles: From an Interlude Called Lifeserved as their last to be distributed by Fat Beats Records. 4 years later, Dirty Science Records is now joining forces with Soulspazm Records to help put out Love (the) Ominous World.

“Hello L.A.” perfectly begins sampling soul music talking about life in south central whereas “Undisputed” takes the boom bap route instrumentally going for a hardcore approach from a lyrical angle on top of it. “Smack” featuring Fashawn is this dusty jazz rap collab leaving muhfuckas on the curb mumbling their last words, but then “Homies” featuring Cashus King & Pistol McFly serves as a soulful dedication to their dogs & their squad.

Moving on from there with “Sugaz & Buttaz”, we have Blu & Exile joined by Rae Khalil for a summery ballad about missing the lovin’ from their respective partners in life just before “Gold” returns to the boom bap refusin’ to take a break since he got all his chains on looking to stay fly. “Chucks” featuring Kurupt & KXNG CROOKED ruggedly serves as an ode to their Converse Chuck Taylor All Star sneakers leading into “Suge” aggressively expressing his frustration with some of these dudes acting like bitches.

“Ominous World” featuring RBX finds them keeping it in the basement sonically taking us on a journey through the shadows of the trenches while the song “Precipitation” brings another soul flip to the table talking about rain being good for the health every now & then. The penultimate track “Valley of Kings” strips the drums completely talking about the possibility of having to do it all over again & lastly, Emanon joins Blu & Exile for “Love is Blu” to end the 4th classic B&E album talking about love being here over a jazzy boom bap beat.

Every single project these 2 have done with one another remains special in their own different ways & Love (the) Ominous World achieved this by brilliantly building on their soulful, reflective foundation with stunning musicality & sharp songwriting venturing into new territory while embracing & refining what made them special. It’s easily their most unique work to date since they took a different approach with the direction while still staying true to the culture their music has built with their fanbase.

Score: 4.5/5

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Babyface Ray – “The Kid That Did” review

Detroit rapper, songwriter & actor Babyface Ray is back a year after claiming the previous summer to be his for the 4th LP on his discography. Starting in 2014 by joining the Team Eastside collective, he has since gone on to drop 5 mixtapes as well as 5 EPs & a well received debut within the last 6-7 years before turning heads worldwide & becoming one of the 2 biggest up-&-comers in the city next to Babytron, both of whom eventually landed spots in last year’s XXL Freshman Class. Coming off Mob & Summer’s Mine which were both enjoyable follow-ups to Face, he’s looking to tell the story of The Kid That Did.

“Groupies & Goodfellas” is an atmospheric opener to the album talking about muhfuckas moving goofy this day in age whereas “Count Money” featuring Bossman DLow was a weak choice of a single from the decently synth-based Detroit trap production to the underwhelming guest performance talking about stacking chips. “Rubberband Man” tells us how he responds when people ask what his name is over an orchestral Detroit trap beat prior to “Shy Kid” hopping over more synth/Detroit trap crossovers to talk about pacin’ through the house tryna find some service.

Moving on from there, “I Need Some Motivation” maintains his hometown’s distinct take on trap music altogether in a heavenly fashion flexing that he be smelling like money while “Wavy Navy University” featuring Veeze finds the 2 over one of my favorite instrumentals on the album from tana representing both of their crews Navy Wavy & Wavy Gang leading into another atmospheric joint “Watching My Page” produced by Pooh Beatz talking about monitoring his pager.

“Delusional” featuring Hunxho takes a spacious turn thanks to LulRose talking about the rollercoaster that’s called life while another highlight “Cherish” works in some guitars & hi-hats courtesy of DJ Esco talking about being stuck in his ways since he never really had shit. Funny enough, “Stuck in My Ways” featuring King Hendrick$ fuses cloud rap & Detroit trap further elaborating on a theme from the previous joint, but then “Nights Like This” passionately reassures everyone that his success ain’t luck.

Carlo Anthony has another one of my favorite beats on “2 for 6” with it’s bell-heavy Detroit trap sound & the lyrics flexing that he ain’t ever going back going from having crack to plaques just before “Fish Tail Fish Scale” bringing the synthesizers back in the equation once more to talk about how he’s been fucking up cheese & getting more. “Legacy” featuring Doughboyz Clay gives off a soulful trap flare flexing that he wen’t from being broke to the man while “Money on My Mind” spaciously tells us he’s got paper on the brain.

“$1M Baby” continues to go for an airy trap vibe instrumentally confessing his mom been having heart attacks with the amount of money that Face be blowing while “Ghetto Boyz” featuring Peezy brings the pair together for a grimy ass Detroit trap banger. “High Off Life” dreamily reps for the team while “Guardian Angel” addresses his own personal type of angels assigned to protect & guide him. “The World is Yours” featuring Fabolous ends with this empowering Boi-1da beat staying away of suckas & ditching groupies.

Summer’s Mine was a dope switch-up from cold climes to extreme heat & The Kid That Did in comparison sheds light on the subtle details about what success really looks like. Face makes his point clearly know that he’s a realist instead of an entertainer & his sweet spot counters opulence & drama with cold hard facts over a decade of establishing himself in the 313, eventually landing a spot as one of the city’s most respected artists in recent memory.

Score: 3.5/5

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SosMula – “Sleez Religion” review

Manhattan, New York rapper SosMula returning for the 3rd LP in his discography. Coming up as 1/3 of the now defunct City Morgue alongside fellow emcee ZillaKami & producer Thraxx, they’ve released 2 full-length albums & an EP together up before branching out on their own for a little bit. Sos was the first to step up to the plate by dropping 13 Songs 2 Die 2, which was a bit of a disappointment in my opinion due to the features & production. ZillaKami followed it up a month later with HIS solo debut Dogboy & the duo reunited to drop Bottom of the Barrel the month after that, both of those I found much more tolerable. 2 High 2 Die was better than it’s predecessor & the Sleez Machine EP that fall was the worst solo effort of his yet, which resulted in me hoping Sleez Religion would bounce back from it especially since City Morgue’s final album My Bloody America finally dropped nearly a year to the day as this.

After the titular intro, the first song “Confessionary” is this eerie trap opener talking about breaking all your bones whereas “Sleezy Bastard (Slasher)” brings hardcore hip hop, trap metal & gangsta rap together referring to himself as a toe tagger. “Candy Man” featuring Kim Dracula works in pianos & hi-hats referencing the titular horror film while “Death Dealer” morbidly talks about takin’ souls.

“Shark Teeth (Death Dealer 2)” has this devilish trap flare to the beat likening the Klean Up Krew to being sharks in the water leading into the energetic “Sgt. Slaughter” named after the WWE Hall of Famer, former WWE Champion & 2-time WWE United States Champion flexing that his mafia style is similar to that of one of my top 3 shows The Sopranos. “Fred Flinstonez” grimly lets everyone know the type of shit he’s been on since City Morgue’s disbandment, but then “Patched Jeans” goes some emo rap over heavy guitars.

After the “Thy Kommandmentz” interlude, “Dead Presidentz” shoots for a more psychedelic trap approach instrumentally thanks to ilykimchi of Working on Dying calling himself the Mickey to her Mallory just before the rap rock-driven “Sex Pistol” opening up about being on adderrall lately & smashing every single IG model. “Cydeborg” keeps the guitars in tact boasting that he’s in Hell being hella bored while “Passport to Magonia” cavernously expresses his desire of running to the stars & after the “Kommit Ur Life” interlude, “Santorini in Spain” menacingly gets in his gangsta bag.

“Boogie Man” hooks up some horrorcore undertones burning houses down like fireplaces as dumb as that sounds while “Slasher 2” pulls inspiration from the trap metal scene he helped pioneer once again further quenching for blood. “Sprain-Ankle” hops over a rage beat reminding everyone of the type of people he hangs with while “Supa-Savage” wickedly calling himself a knight in shining armor.

As for “Assault Rifle Facial”, we have Sos chaotically talking about clapping all your corny ass friends with the stick while “Sonic” featuring G Herbo sees the pair sharing their homicidal thoughts towards their opponents over a synth-based beat with Detroit trap bass. After the “Strangers in Barcelona” interlude, “Red Gutz” coldly discusses his ghetto mindset while “Burning Flags” warning that the .30 hitting your chest will devour you.

After the “Lost in Magonia” interlude, the penultimate song “Grimy-Hoez” featuring Sematary nears the end of the LP with this piano-trap crossover hanging with the slimiest homies they know & the shrilling “Berzerk-O” ahead of the “Immortal” outro happens to be a proper closer talking taking his own soul in kamikaze style being traumatized.

2 & a half years since Sos bounced back from his debut on 2 High 2 Die & unfortunately, I ended up liking Sleez Religion less than the predecessor. Maybe even less so 13 Songs 2 Die 2, joining Sleez Machine in being another subpar entry in his solo catalog. I’ll give him credit for the production mixing the sounds that he’s dabbled with up to this point all into 1 except it absolutely didn’t need to be almost 30 tracks.

Score: 2/5

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JOBA – “Russell Boring” review

JOBA is a 31 year old rapper, producer, singer/songwriter & audio engineer from Houston, Texas notable for being a founding member of the now defunct BROCKHAMPTON collective. The debut single “Sad Saturdays” back in 2015 should also be noted as really the only time we’ve heard what he’s capable of musically doing on his own & coming off a production credit on Ski Mask the Slump God’s sophomore effort 11th Dimension this summer, we’re getting a better look as to who he is on his full-length solo debut.

“Ghost” starts us off by singing about a ghost he saw & asked what the problem was over bare pianos whereas “Embryo” takes the exuberantly futuristic route instrumentally further employing a melodic delivery expressing his desire of wanting to be with his romantic interest. “American Fever” pulls from progressive pop, piano rock & art pop to sing about every single one of us being born to be wild in some way, but then the magical “Emerald Eyes” tells us of his amazement over this individual.

As for “Lonestar”, we have JOBA hopping over more colorful production singing his heart out that he’s standing his own ground even after BROCKHAMPTON’s dissolvement leading into the guitar-driven “Doormat” knowing everything will work out in the end & wanting his partner’s love. “New Beginnings” cheerfully talks about starting anew at this point in his career while “People Need People” mixes baroque pop, piano rock & psychedelic pop longing to be his lover’s soulmate. “Gospel of the Moon” closes the LP by singing that all he feels is concrete tears.

Matt Champion’s solo debut Mika’s Laundry from earlier in the year was a fantastic representation of his artistic versatility & Russell Boring takes that to different heights except it’s much more personal conceptually. His production culminates in the styles of art pop, art rock, piano rock, progressive pop & baroque pop spending the 9 song offering spanning a tad bit over a half hour in his personal life.

Score: 4/5

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