Cult of the Damned – “Cultgangrapsh!t” review

Here we have the 3rd studio LP from England, United Kingdom collective the Cult of the Damned comprised of Blah Records founder Lee Scott, BeTheGun, Sly Moon, Salar, Bill Shakes, King Grubb, Tony Broke, Black Josh, Stinkin’ Slumrok, Bisk, Sleazy F Baby, Col. Mustard, Dr. Zygote, Sam Zircon & Reklews. Introducing themselves as a unit in 2015 off an eponymous debut EP, a sequel would come in the form of their full-length debut Brick Pelican Posse Crew Gang Syndicate & the sophomore effort The Church Of mostly produced by Nobodies Home was more rawer sonically. However, they’re returning to have Drae da Skimask solely produce Cultgangrapsh!t.

“SCOTTY2COMFY” by Bisk, Lee Scott & Sniff was a psychedelic boom bap intro talking about fathering MCs & breaking boundaries whereas “PUSSY2” by Bisk, Black Josh & Sniff featuring Jack Danz hooks up a piano sample mixed with kicks & snares so they can explain that you can’t be the greatest & a bitch. “FU” by the Antiheroes & Sly Moon eeriely brings the trio together over more key-driven boom bap instrumental for a hardcore hip hop track dismissing the need of a hook leading into “Belly” by Bisk & Black Josh featuring Jehst talking about life being a mess & controlling it all the way.

Stinkin’ Slumrok gets a solo joint of his own on the psychedelically raw “SLUMMY” looking to keep it going until the daylight comes prior to “JIM BEAM” by BeTheGun & Sly Moon going for a lo-fi boom bap vibe speaking of walking down the street & talking in their sleep at night. “DINOSAURFOOD” by Bisk & Black Josh jazzily finds the pair discussing less being more unless you’re short on the drawer while “Highlighted” lets Black Josh hold the fort for 113 seconds talking about having women on his mind over prominent vibraphone flip.

“Coffee, Pt. 2” by Bisk, King Grubb & Lee Scott nears the conclusion of Cultgangrapsh!t with a sequel to a standout off Cult of the Damned 2: Brick Pelican Posse Gang Crew Syndicate making it known that there ain’t nobody like them while “Free Tony” by Bill Shakes, Lee Scott & Tony Broke references UFC middleweight Nick Diaz. “Kosher” by Bisk & the Super Sag Bros finishes the album with all 3 of them talking about stealing women & only seeing greatness whenever shutting their eyes at night.

Since its title implies that we could a sequel or 2, this inaugural entry of the Cultgangrapsh!t series could by the weakest of the 3 full-lengths that the Cult of the Damned have given us in almost a decade. That said: I still enjoy it, just not as much as their previous material collectively. Drae da Skimask’s production suits their whole style & Reklews’ engineering, but it kinda feels like a compilation considering the lack of moments where there are 5 members or more appearing simultaneously. I’d also like to hear Reklews & Sam Zircon returning to produce a Cultgangrapsh!t 2whenever the time’s right.

Score: 3.5/5

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BeTheGun – “Miami Deco” review

Here we have the debut solo EP from London, England, United Kingdom emcee & filmmaker BeTheGun. A former member of the Children of the Damned collective & currently apart of it’s successor the Cult of the Damned, he’s probably the most elusive member of both crews making occasionally rare guest appearances on a handful of projects to come out of Blah Records for over a decade. However, we’re finally getting a better look at who Barebase is altogether using some Miami Deco.

“Excepts of Irony” hops over this funky beat produced by Lee Scott talking about nothing changing around his part of town whereas the title track goes for a lo-fi boom bap vibe instrumentally observing that everything seems to be the same to him. “Force Majeure” keeping the dustiness ensuring he maintains his audience & after “Better Daze” smoothly talks about knowing what some people out there have been looking for, “Metropolis” ends the EP discussing most of the frogs that got kissed became princes of darkness.

Keeping my fingers crossed that Miami Deco won’t be the only time we get to hear the original Children of the Damned member as a solo artist & was quite surprised it took BeTheGun this long for him to create a body of work under his own name, but it makes me hopeful it won’t take another extended period of time until he makes his full-length debut. The hook maestro & storyteller extraordinaire we were introduced to 15 years ago hasn’t lost a step & the production mostly handled by Lee Scott could be some of his greatest.

Score: 4/5

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Cult of the Damned – “The Church Of” review

The Cult of the Damned are a hip hop collective from England, United Kingdom consisting of Blah Records founder Lee Scott, BeTheGun, Sly Moon, Salar, Bill Shakes, King Grubb, Tony Broke, Black Josh, Stinkin’ Slumrok, Bisk, Sleazy F Baby, Col. Mustard, Dr. Zygote, Sam Zircon & Reklews. Properly introducing themselves as a unit in 2015 off an eponymous debut EP, a sequel would come in the form of their full-length debut Brick Pelican Posse Crew Gang Syndicate & are getting back together for a sophomore effort.

“Ahem!” begins with this 5 minute posse cut asking over a guitar-driven boom bap instrumental from Nobodies Home if anyone listening has been picking this important signal whereas “Internal Error” talks about being the modern day No Limit Records & everyone else being their children. CLBRKS joins the Cult on “Worship” representing the crew with guns in their hands just before “WTH” finds the B-Movie Millionaires with BeTheGun & Milkavelli talking about them being sick in the head.

BeTheGun brings Sly Moon & Stinkin’ Slumrok besides him on the mic during the piano boom bap crossover “Rotation” realizing the has-beens they used to kick it with amounted up to nothing leading into “Norman’s Theme” talking about them being averagely normal as they come. “AB NO (Red Leicester)” dismantling little league MCs who want to battle them knowing they wouldn’t stand a chance while “W.Y.T.B. (What You Talkin’ ‘Bout?)” ends the 1st half with the Cult posing that very question to people flapping their lips.

“Gung Foo” hits us with another posse cut to start the 3rd quarter continuing to spit battle raps over a boom bap beat while “Skid Row” hilariously disses an adversary claiming to be all the knowledge when they don’t know a damn thing about them at all. “Step” featuring Danny Lover has a bit of a cloudier tone instrumentally talking about their need of succeeding & rewriting the whole game plan while “Good News” featuring Bang On! grittily obliterates rappers with basic penmanship.

To get The Church Of’s last leg going, “Castles” talks about being better off staying inside & smoking weed because of their bent-up whips while “Rear View” fuses jazz rap & boom bap so they can speak of seeing things a lot more clearer than they did previously. “Henny Shots” comes through with a 2-parter where the entire squad’s having a toast & “Brick Pelican’s Lament” finishes by having King Grubb holding down the outro for a solo track of his own.

Diminishing the grime undertones of Cult of the Damned 2: Brick Pelican Posse Crew Gang Syndicate significantly, the 2nd album from the Children of the Damned’s spiritual successor takes themselves beyond their self-titled EP & their previously mentioned debut for a great follow-up to the Cult of the Damned’s early output. The boom bap production’s darker than Brick Pelican Posse Crew Gang Syndicate’s, the inclusion of outside guest appearances was only a matter of time & every member’s verses remind me of the almighty Wu-Tang Clan in that they’re all unique swordsmen of their own category.

Score: 4/5

Cult of the Damned – “Cult of the Damned 2: Brick Pelican Posse Crew Gang Syndicate” review

This is the full-length studio debut from England, United Kingdom collective the Cult of the Damned consisting of Blah Records founder Lee Scott, BeTheGun, Sly Moon, Salar, Bill Shakes, King Grubb, Tony Broke, Black Josh, Stinkin’ Slumrok, Bisk, Sleazy F Baby, Col. Mustard, Dr. Zygote, Sam Zircon & Reklews. Introducing themselves as the Children of the Damned’s spiritual successor in 2015 with an eponymous debut EP, they’re picking up right where they left off on Brick Pelican Posse Crew Gang Syndicate.

“Part 2” begins with a boom bap sequel to the intro of the Cult’s self-titled extended play produced by Dr. Zygote where most of the members are asking if one knows which way to take at an intersection whereas “Salt Water” by the B-Movie Millionaires, Salar & Swamp Harbour references WWE Hall of Famer, 6-time WWE world champion, 4-time WWE United States Champion, 14-time WWE tag team champion, 2-time WWE Hardcore Champion, RoW Tag Team Champion & TNA World Tag Team Champion Booker T over a Sam Zircon instrumental.

BeTheGun, Lee Scott, Sly Moon & the Super Sag Bros all appear on “No Explanation” demanding everyone respects them just before Bill Shakes & Tony Broke trade verses over a Reklews beat during “The Usual” referencing UFC ring announcer Bruce Buffer. “From the Depths” has an eerier boom bap vibe instrumentally dismantling anyone who wants to step up to them in a battle leading into “Never No” brings Bill Shakes, Hock Tu Down, King Grubb, Milkavelli & Salar together talk about those who don’t know the deal with the Cult by now never knowing.

“Nicole” gets the other half of the LP going making their own version of “Triumph” dropping 7 verses without the need of a hook while “Civilized” dustily talks about waiting at the top. “Connect 4” finds the Antiheroes joining Bill Shakes & King Grubb for a chorus-less hardcore hip hop track but after “Coffee” has Bisk tagging in for Grubb & the Mcabre Brothers replacing the Antiheroes cautioning people will learn who they are once they start smoking again, “Bad Card” spends the last 4 minutes giving straight bars over a rugged boom bap beat.

Making a broader extension of their self-titled debut EP after I had graduated from high school, the Cult of the Damned dives deeper into their universe making sure all of the wide range of side projects that’ve formed before & after the Children of the Damned’s merger with Cult Mountain are included. The boom bap production contains more elements of grime than their 2015 introduction did albeit to a much lesser extent & lyrically, they’re cementing themselves as one of the most unstoppable forces in all of UK hip hop.

Score: 4.5/5