X-Raided – “A Prophecy in Purgatory” review

Sacramento, California veteran X-Raided starting October with his 19th album. Exploding onto the scene in 1992 off the strength of his full-length debut Psycho Active, he was shortly after sentenced to 31 years in prison on murder charges, only to be granted parole in the fall of 2018 & continued to build his discography by dropping a little over a dozen more albums whilst incarcerated. The Nefarious Loc surprisingly signed to Strange Music in 2022 & his debut for the label A Prayer in Hell was a true blue return to form, picking up where A Sin in Heaven left off for A Prophecy in Purgatory.

The title track works in some synthesizers from Matt Phoenix to talk about being barred from the pearly gates for committing a sin up there & after the “3 Days in Hades” skit, “Ecclesiastes” takes on a more orchestral vibe instrumentally calling for retaliation since God’s distracted. “Harrowing of Hell” talks about people he used to fuck with considering him dead over a g-funk beat while “HeLA Cells” featuring Kurupt maintains that same vibe referring to themselves as the blueprint.

“Queen of Hearts” puts a much deeper meaning to the concept of The Nefarious being superior to all these wack rappers out just before “Outside (3 Kings)” featuring Strange alumni Brotha Lynch Hung & C-Bobunites the trio for an increasing tribute to their hometown. “What’s My Name?” featuring Luni Coleone & Marvaless suggest to be respectful when speaking of them leading into “Bacc Outside” featuring Big Meek, Liq & T-Nutty brings the quartet together for a decent hardcore hip hop track.

Bleezo & King Infent both appear for the Wyshmaster-produced “Def Defying” to moderately get in their gangsta rap bag is while “Damnation” featuring Tech N9ne after the “Crucifixion” skit has to be another favorite collaboration of mine talking about death coming for us all. “Acidic Disposition” addresses the sickness of America deteriorating within the last 9 months while “Soldier” featuring C-Bo links back up over a piano trap instrumental talking about growing up during the Reaganomics era.

“Youthanized” incorporates some synthesizers to explain that he never asked to see this war his mother forced him in while “Thug Psalms” talks about speaking for the ghetto since he comes from the ghetto. “Measure of Wealth” thanks God in Heaven for his sons & “A Song for Grandparents” talks about being a grandfather a lot like WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg did last winter.

“Hail Mary” starts the final moments of A Prophecy in Purgatory with a piano heavy stoner’s anthem & not only would I consider “Still Outside” featuring Mozzy to be perfect choice of an outro, but an outro that I found myself enjoying more than “Bacc Outside” earlier at the halfway point of the album itself as somebody who enjoys Psycho Active & X’s material since signing to Strange and a fan of Mozzy since the soundtrack to The Walt Disney Company subsidiary Marvel Entertainment superhero film Black Panther.

Putting aside the fact that I enjoyed A Sin in Heaven only slightly less than A Prayer in Hell, the most personal & powerful opus that X-Raided has ever created fulfills a prophecy by landing right behind the latter for the best of the 3 full-lengths since signing to Strange Music. The production mostly handled by in-house producer & It Goes Up Entertainment subsidiary Project Be Well Inc. recording artist Matt Phoenix is amongst his greatest soundtracking a representation of the years The Nefarious Loc spent trapped between who he was & who he would become.

Score: 4.5/5

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Jehry Robinson – “Hella Highwater” review

Long Island, New York rapper, singer/songwriter & producer Jehry Robinson returning got his 4th LP. Coming up almost a decade ago off his eponymous debut EP & the debut mixtape Pts. IV-VI few months later, his biggest breakthrough came around Christmas 2019 after signing to Strange Music & quickly establishing himself with the KC indie powerhouse by dropping his full-length debut 20/Twenty the summer COVID had the world shutdown & a sophomore effort The Name’s Not Important the next fall. It’s already been a couple years since Drink More Water & is ending the month the way Strange started it with Hella Highwater.

Struggle Jennings joins Jehry on the heartfelt intro “Gates” telling the story of a family member who was recently released from a 12-year prison sentence whereas “Pour Up” featuring Doobie finds the 2 talking about smoking or drinking when they probably shouldn’t embracing a county rap sound. “Good by Now” produced with Matt Phoenix mixes country, trap & pop realizing that love alone isn’t enough if the other person isn’t willing to grow while “Marathon” featuring Ty March sings about giving their lovers everything.

“Better” sends an sarcastic letter to that 1 person who’s constantly treats life like a competition over a creaky guitar & a smooth reggae-style inflection in his vocals leading into “Whispers” going for a pop rock vibe singing about not needing anyone to hold him down. “Whiskey Water” channels the energy of a lonely southern dive bar using water as a chaser whenever he consumes liquor while “Slumber” hopes of getting up from the darkness one day.

Wyshmaster produces the 2nd single “Pay Me” leaning towards country pop instrumentally singing that he doesn’t need to be saved because he’s too far gone while “Acoustic” featuring Jaimie Wilson joining forces for a duet about the group of people who only love you when you’re gone. “Backwoods” takes the Americana route a little passionately pleading that he doesn’t wanna slow down because it’s the only thing he knows while the summery “Mark on My Heart” experiences a breakup.

“Feel So Long” comes off assuring about all of us having our own sorts of pain & that contributing greatly to making us strong while the poppy “Why Don’t You” asking for the reason this person won’t say goodbye to him. “4 Seasons” featuring Zane Neale sings about loving their partners every season of the year & the self-produced “Pilot” closing Hella Highwater out by turning this plane around. “William Montgomery” however returns to his hip hop roots serving up a stunningly deft lyrical display.

Bringing musical fusion in a way fans have come to know as his specialty, Hella Highwater pushes Jehry Robinson’s artistry further than ever before whilst tackling a prominent theme revolving around all people having the capability of overcoming adversity & realizing our dreams no matter how badly we’ve fucked up in the past because we still matter to the important people in our lives. His palette is more diversified even if it’s more country themed, he’s more honest & extends a confidential reality check to those in need of it.

Score: 4/5

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King Iso – “ghetto psycho” review

Omaha, Nebraska emcee/producer King Iso is back after 23 months for his 7th LP. Coming up as a protege of San Diego chopper Twisted Insane, he would only drop first 2 albums & The Insanity Plea & Autophobia under Brainsick Muzik. Shortly after, they had an unfortunate falling out & it prompted Iso to put out his next full-length DeMenTia independently in 2018. However, I was thrilled to see him sign with Strange Music the following spring & his debut on the Kansas City powerhouse World War Me has quickly become one of the label’s best albums ever. Get Well Soon as well as 8 P.M. Med Call & iLLdren all went on to be equally well received, taking us on a trip through the mind of a ghetto psycho.

“Law 6126” starts with a dedication to the ghettos worldwide talking about having to prove to the state of Nebraska that Iso isn’t mentally insane over a self-produced cloudy trap instrumental whereas the deranged “Element” discusses the environment he grew up around. “Butcher Knife” featuring Snake Lucci blends trap & rock talking about being in the middle of the map with pistols on their laps while “Hell’s Architect” featuring Matt Phoenix finds the 2 talking about keeping life in those who need them.

Starlito appears for “Giving Down” hoping to succeed for the sake of their seeds & after the “Top of the Morning” skit, “Check” gives off a ghostly trap vibe staring in the face of death to say “aye that’s twin”. “Beat Box” throws it back to the g-funk era a bit talking about those envious of his name ringin’ the way it’s been while the hyphy-tinged “Crash Out” featuring E-40 after the “Gas Station” skit finds the 2 speaking of uncontrollable anger.

“S.D.G.A.F. (Still Don’t Give a Fuck)” featuring Kuniva aggressively unites the pair so they can talk about giving 0 while “Trip” heads for an eerie trap direction instrumentally explaining the ways of craziness life has to offer. After the “Checking In” skit, “Bloody” radiates a doomsday atmosphere that I find to be suiting going through shit he wants to forget while the smoky “High” talks about smoking the finest blunts.

JB’s appearance on “Bad” doesn’t do a whole lot for me & nor does the topic of his woman’s attractiveness while “Concrete Boxspring” featuring Don Trip only slightly improves despite the theme of keeping their souls in tact. After the “On the Way” skit, “Travis O’Guin” gives his flowers to the Strange Music CEO himself & the founder of it’s subsidiary It Goes Up Entertainment while “Talk to Me” explains to his woman that he’s going ghost to count paper.

“Normal” starts ghetto psycho’s final act by assuring that it’s usual for all of us to have our unusual quirks while the title track embodies the core theme of the album over a booming trap instrumental with some keys. “Against the World” takes a moment to deliver a heartfelt lyrical tribute to his whole entire family & “W.O.O.T.S. (Writ Out Of The Script)” featuring Taebo tha Truth ends with both of them advising not to be omitted from the game plan.

Pushing himself out of the darkness & ignites his own light, ghetto psycho simultaneously embraces King Iso creating his own sound handling the production much like the rest of his discography except he’s incorporating more live instrumentation & adding his own unique sauce to any different style of beat you’d want from him. Conceptually, what he considers to be the most important work of his career engages in lyrical homicide on a massive scale whilst his mask of sanity is slipping.

Score: 4.5/5

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Rakim – “The Re-Up” review

This is the 2nd EP from pioneering Long Island, New York emcee/producer Rakim. Notable for being 1/2 of the seminal golden age duo Eric B. & Rakim, they put out 4 classic albums together from the mid-80s to the early 90s, with their debut Paid in Full & the sophomore effort Follow the Leader laying out the groundwork for future generations of hip hop to come. Kid Wizard eventually went solo in late ‘97 signing to Universal Music Group for an acclaimed debut The 18th Letter & the follow-up The Master while not as acclaimed still received positive feedback. Reception to The 7th Seal a decade after The Master was more mixed due to the lackluster production although the lyricism was certainly praised & G.O.Ds Network (REB7RTH) was a step in the right direction despite the heavy features, but Big Ghost Ltd. producing 2 new tracks on The Re-Up minus the 7 remixes raised my expectations greatly as a fan of both him & The God.

“I’m Good” makes for the only track of the 2 piece that doesn’t have a guest on it, but The God still delivers on the mic nonetheless over a boom bap instrumental from none other than the The Hands of Zeus himself whereas the final song consisting of brand new material & it’s sole single “Not to Be Defined” featuring Lazarus is also the sole moment that Big Ghost didn’t produce, leading it up to Dem Jointz showing the rhythm of the souls in both lyricists’ hearts.

I’m only gonna rate this purely based on the short batch of material that we got from The Re-Up because 1 thing that I wanna make clear is that the 5 remixes from G.O.Ds Network (REB7RTH) rival the original versions from the previous EP that I prefer more since that was all new material. Nevertheless, I still believe that the 3 newly recorded cuts are worth mentioning because they continue to exemplify that Rakim is still The God almost 4 decades later. G.O.Ds Network (REB7RTH) 2 has been said to have lesser guests than the predecessor & if that’s true, it could be on The 18th Letter caliber.

Score: 3.5/5

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Tech N9ne – “5816 Forest” review

Kansas City, Missouri veteran Tech N9ne kicking summer in full gear with his 26th studio LP. 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 the next summer with Bliss to mixed reception. C.O.S.M. (Class of Strange Music) became the best Collabos entry since my personal favorite Welcome to Strangeland & 5816 Forest looks outdo himself even more with only 2 guests on it because of people clowning him for overloading his projects with guests in the last 2-3 years or so.

After the “Donnie Call” skit, “The Birth” takes a trip down memory lane over some keyboards from Matt Phoenix speaking candidly on his mother’s health struggles whereas “Fridee to Sundee” (Triality)” demonstrates his storytelling abilities & unique slang taking a darker trap approach to the beat. “Yoda” featuring Lil Wayne finds the 2 likening themselves to the Jedi Grand Master from The Walt Disney Company-owned Star Wars franchise until “Ball” recalls another story from his household growing up.

“RDV” after the “Alyia Call” skit throws it back to the days of old school hip hop instrumentally harking back to his 57th Street Rogue Dog Villians days & “Lola” takes it a step further remembering the woman to convince him to go from beatboxing to MCing. “Black Walt Street (The New Breed)” dabbles with hyphy a bit reminiscing of his middle school days when he took on the original moniker Black Walt, but then “Excited” cheerfully talks about making his days the brightest.

Wrapping up the first leg, “The Nice One” cloudily remembers when the “white ones” used to come up to his locker telling him what people have said regarding him while “The Punishment (Lockdown)” paints a picture of a formative childhood memory backed by some thick bass & organic percussion. The chipmunk soul-based “What I Do” recalls beginning to steal during his freshman year of high school & after the “Reign Call” skit, “No Rub” takes it back to a hyphy vibe suggesting he should’ve smashed raw.

“Fish Captain” remembers when his stepfather gave him a summer gig because of the kids he was rolling with at the time of his adolescence while “Sacrifice” featuring Strange Music signee Jehry Robinson acoustically admits to working on their craft instead of what regular kids did. After the “Bella Call” skit, “Livin’ in the Sky” brings a trap flare back refusing to write sad songs for those in his life who’ve passed on & can’t be with us today.

After the “Call with 2 Year Old Alina” skit, “This I Know” blends bright piano blinks beneath triumphant horns along with a loose bluesy guitar & a soul sample reaching back into his earliest memories to make a big screen-worthy image of his formative years prior to the closer “J6’s” finishing up talking about not knowing his life would change at some point when life deals you bad hands lot of times & avoiding these issues by coming up with a plan.

Maybe the most I’ve enjoyed a Tech album since N9na, it’s such a deeply personal & sonically ambitious LP that marks a significant chapter in a legendary career for the indie titan. 5816 Forest reminisces on legacy, loyalty & the roots of independence in hip hop revisiting the foundational moments that shaped him & Strange Music resulting in a raw, reflective body of work that combines hard-hitting lyricism with moments of vulnerability, grit & growth.

Score: 4.5/5

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Chino XL – “Map of Bones” review

Right in front of us is the 7th full-length studio LP albeit 2nd posthumous offering from East Orange, New Jersey emcee Chino XL. Breaking out in the mid-90s after signing to American Recordings & releasing the classic full-length debut Here to Save You All, he eventually went on to beef with 2Pac & I genuinely feel sorry for anyone who writes him off because of that. Especially since that I Told You So, Poison Pen & the Viper Records-backed RICANstruction: The Black Rosary all contain some of the best songs in his whole discography. Stu Bangas was brought in to produce God’s Carpenter couple summers & that became a near-flawless comeback, with Darkness & Other Colors recorded back in 2020 foreshadowing his own death from beyond the grave. Continuing to warm up for God’s Carpenter 2, what would’ve been Chino’s 51st birthday is being commemorated with Map of Bones recorded between 2008-2012.

“Hard to Kill” opens up by ruggedly suggesting that you should come heavy if you ever making threats & getting at his best when things get intense whereas “Die 4” angrily asks if anyone wants war with him. “Not Ok” works in these prominent horns so he can tackle the theme of mental health from beyond the grave leading into the heinous “Monster” talks about his beast status.

As for “I’ve Seen”, we have Chino over heavy sampling telling us everything he’s experienced during his time in the music industry just before “‘Til Death Do Us Part” shows his affection towards his wife-now-widow. “Capable” talks about people casting doubt over what he’s competent of doing, but then the chaotic boom bap hybrid “Keep Diggin’” speaks of staying loyal to the code o until the streets phase.

“The Search” becomes 1 with the ocean Jesus once walked on while “Numb” featuring Roc C triumphantly sees the pair back on the block. “You First” gets split into 2-parts with an EDM flare during the 1st half & boom bap for the other getting bloodthirsty while “Still Sailing” refers to every word he wrote as a symphony. The title track hauntingly rounds it out by talking about the suicidal thoughts that sadly took him.

Word’s been going around since last fall regarding Chino XL having a collaborative effort with Dheezy called The Mantis coming out at the end of 2025 & we’ll have to cross that bridge until we get there to see if that actually happens, all I know is that I appreciate Map of Bones for feeling as complete of a product as Darkness & Other Colors was. Even if I find myself preferring Body Bag Ben’s production on the latter, DJ Fokus’ left-of-center style is a bit refreshing & hearing Chino continuing to foreshadow him taking is life over a decade ago hits differently.

Score: 3.5/5

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Stuyville – “Welcome to Stuyville” review

This is the 3rd collaborative project between Brooklyn, New York duo Stuyville consisting of emcees Eddie Kaine & Rim. Both of whom initially got together over 4 years ago on Devil’s Night 2020 for their moderately received 1st collab effort BK Caminates produced by iamT2 followed by the Meta EP a couple summers later to more mixed reception across the spectrum. Welcome to Stuyville on the other hand here had high potential of surpassing both of it’s predecessors soon as it was announced than 38 Spesh & Camoflauge Monk would both be producing it on top of Holy Toledo Productions & Compound Interest Entertainment backing it.

“What’s This” eerily welcomes everyone to Stuyville by spitting that real shit over a grisly boom bap instrumental from Camoflauge Monk whereas “Ice Cold” takes a more soulful route thanks to 38 Spesh talking about their hearts being as cold as they are refusing to fold. “Never Stop” featuring Che Noir hooks up an organ with kicks & snares promising not to hang it up leading into “Check Check” talking about bench-pressing whenever they be lifting weight off the scale.

Hus Kingpin joins Eddie & Rim on “Da Whispers” fusing cloud rap & boom bap into 1 boasting that all 3 of them stay war ready & keepin’ it gutter while “Stay Focused” motivationally talks about still getting to the dough even when the odds are against them. “Salute” featuring Benny the Butcher goes drumless as the trio do exactly what they have to, but then “Breakfast” talks about focusing on being great.

“Reminisce” featuring Kurupt begins the final leg of Welcome to Stuyville on a jazzier note reflecting on the fact that the block ain’t the same these days while “Chop House” strips the drums again in favor of a bare flute suggesting not to ride the wave if you ain’t the skipper. The closing track “Made Men” featuring the late Fred the Godson finishes the LP with everyone talking about their successes in the rap game.

Only a week into the new year, Welcome to Stuyville greatly surpasses BK Caminates & META in being the best collaborative effort that Eddie Kaine & Rim have done with one another & an early Album of the Year candidate that’ll hold it’s strength until next winter. Camoflauge Monk & 38 Spesh’s production here is more palatable than the last couple & the chemistry that the individually talented Brooklyn lyricists share gets elevated.

Score: 4.5/5

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Chino XL – “Darkness & Other Colors” review

This is the 6th full-length studio LP albeit posthumous debut from East Orange, New Jersey emcee Chino XL. Breaking out in the mid-90s after signing to American Recordings & releasing the classic full-length debut Here to Save You All, he eventually went on to beef with 2Pac & I genuinely feel sorry for anyone who writes him off to this day because of that. Especially since that I Told You So, Poison Pen & the Viper Records-backed RICANstruction: The Black Rosary all contain some of the best songs in his whole discography. Stu Bangas was brought in to produce God’s Carpenter last summer & that became a near-flawless comeback, so I was interested in hearing Darkness & Other Colors recorded back in 2020 ahead of God’s Carpenter 2 following Chino’s passing this summer.

The self-produced “Words in the Color of Death” sets the tone of the album perfectly morbidly acknowledging his departure from beyond the grave whereas “Sermon in Crimson” works in a drumlessly symphonic loop talking about putting bars over bullshit. “Sepia Files from the Last Supper” hooks up a boom bap instrumental so he can take selfies at the final meal Jesus shared with his apostles in Jerusalem prior to “The Red You Deserve” finding Body Bag Ben keeping things in the basement flexing he’s iller than anyone who’s still alive.

After the organ heavy “Saged Sleep” interlude, “Byzantium Darkness” mixes this eerie backdrop with kicks & snares addressing the darkness that was following him at that point in time leading into “Blue Obsidian (Been Telling You)” strips the drums once again telling anyone who’s listening to this that he’s in the darkness with all of them. “Burn in Ivory” returns to the boom bap airing out those who ain’t ever stand beside him just before the somber, guitar-driven “Black Room” talks about getting back to people from the titular room.

“Lumps of Silver” samples soul & rock declaring that absolutely nothing can break him regardless of him suffering greatly while “Grey Discipline” featuring Eto after the “Chardikala (Chardi Color)” interlude grittily talks about others only respecting the bickering instead of the discipline. The spine-tingling “Lifted Gods Auburn” featuring Sauce Money shows off the wild style both MCs are known for & “Vanilla Sky” ends the LP soulfully reassures listeners he’s still alive within lucid dreams.

I’m well aware of the drama between Chino’s estate & Holy Toledo Productions founder/A&R extraordinaire M80 surrounding the release of this album but I gotta admit as someone who admires Chino’s art, I can see why M80 wanted to drop Darkness & Other Colors since it very much offers explanation that he was clearly adamant of perfecting it back in 2020 when he was still here with us during the COVID lockdowns.

Score: 4/5

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Joey Cool – “Roller Coaster” review

Kansas City, Missouri emcee Joey Cool making his 8th studio LP a double-disc effort. Starting out as a long-time affiliate of local independent hip hop powerhouse Strange Music dropping a total of 4 mixtapes & a studio album on his own until Tech N9ne decided to officially sign him to the Snake & Bat in 2017, he then dropped an eponymous sophomore album the next spring followed by Old Habits Die Hard as well as Coolie High & I Tried to Be Normal Once. Coming off The Chairman of the Board & the Mario Casalini-produced Enjoy the View however, the Swankiest of Strangeland is taking us on a Roller Coaster.

After the “Poor Sinner’s Hand” intro, the first song “Madhouse” sets the Roller Coaster in motion with an atmospheric trap instrumental talking about Satan making him crash out spazzing whereas “Commotion” works in more of a robotic beat allowing Joey to break down, just exactly how he was made. “Heart” featuring Doobie & produced by C-Lance interestingly has this grotesque trap sound flexing he can drop a bag & it’ll still follow him since he lookin’ like he hit the lottery, but then the cloudy “Out the Way” talks moving surgically as opposed to being merciful.

“Drippin’ 3” explosively picks up right where “Drippin’ 2” from the Swank Sinatra mixtape left off reuniting with Mario Casalini telling y’all to catch him outside with the swank leading into “Indecisive” pulling inspiration from the hyphy scene instrumentally describing a woman as being inconclusive pleading for her to actually make up her mind. “Trouble Town” featuring Lil Wyte hooks up a guitar & hi-hats suggesting to let the world burn since there’s no looking back just before “Give Thanks” featuring The Popper finds both KC spitters praising the higher power over a thunderous trap beat.

The 5th & final single “OG Cool” concludes Disc 1 by having Wyshmaster lace Joey with a rubbery instrumental all in his zone hitting his stride & after the “Price of Admission” intro, “G.O.Y.F. (Get Out Your Feelings)” featuring X-Raided starts Disc 2 with both Strange Music artists over pianos & hi-hats telling everyone listening to do exactly that. “I Sent the Text” is a decent, auto-tune heavy pop rap joint meaning no disrespect to the woman he texted & made this very track about while “Static” marks an energetic trap turn likening this to all of his powers assembling.

“Parlez Vous” is this organ/hi-hat crossover that Lowkey tha Wizard of the unConventionAl KingZ cooked up spitting the gospel while “Vibe Check” refers to himself as the cream of the crop over more hyphy production. “Sail Away” featuring Ubiquitous finds the 2 trying to take their time on top of this guitar/trap fusion with Matt Phoenix on the hook while “The Fuse” finds him on the verge of exploding over horns. “Slow Down” smoothly tells his girl to take things in their relationship slowly remaining the man even if he ain’t rich as she thought he was and “Crawl Space” featuring Tech N9ne reaches the end of the ride with a trap metal closer feeling on the edge.

All 8 of the new joints that Joey gave us off the deluxe version of what’s easily the most emphatic offering of his career Enjoy the View back March unquestionably could’ve made it onto the final product that celebrated it’s 1-year anniversary almost a couple weeks ago but either way, it was a dope way to hold us off until he took us on a Roller Coaster trip full of all the twists & turns, ups & downs you can expect from an elite MC on his level of skill.

Score: 3.5/5

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X-Raided – “A Sin in Heaven” review

Here we have the 18th full-length studio LP albeit Strange Music sophomore effort from Sacramento, California veteran X-Raided. Exploding onto the scene in 1992 off the strength of his full-length debut Psycho Active, he was shortly after sentenced to 31 years in prison on murder charges, only to be granted parole in the fall of 2018 & continued to build his discography by dropping a little over a dozen more albums whilst incarcerated. The Nefarious Loc surprisingly signed to Strange in 2022 & his previous offering A Prayer in Hell was a true blue return to form, so A Sin in Heaven had me expecting no differently.

“2400” is a trap opener airing out everyone for getting here late & flexing that he got here early whereas the rapid-fire “Sacrilegious” discusses not understanding the dark if you ain’t ever been in the light. “Can’t Hold Us Down” has a gospel trap vibe to the beat looking to ball in the midst of them tryna keep his people broke, but then “California State” featuring Locksmith is a cloudy tribute to the state out in the west coast that raised them.

Meanwhile on “Boy Meets World”, we have X over a much more bouncier beat from Mario Casalini talking about wanting to become a banger as he was growing up just before the groovier “P.T.S.D. (Passing The Story Down)” talks about his story being passed on to his children. “A Favor for a Favor” featuring Nox finds the 2 coming together so they can tell a hustler’s story but after the “Waste Management” interlude, “A Cold Day in Hell” featuring C-Mob & Joey Cool refuses to choose hoes over his bros supposing that’s the way life goes.

“Olly Olly Oxen Free” featuring Bleezo, Tech N9ne & T-Nutty has these nervous undertones throughout stepping on these muhfuckas in a real way acknowledging that only the top MCs be fuckin’ with them while “The Sunken Place” produced by Wyshmaster solemnly lives in a drunken state. “Anymore” strips the drums completely hopping over pianos asking if it’s too late to admit he’s broken & “Pray” hooks the trap vibes back up talking praying when all else fails.

Moving on from there, “Conception (Aneraé’s Song)” produced by Matt Phoenix atmospherically looks to break all generational curses in his family tree while the trap-driven “Invigorated” featuring Ellis Prescott as well as Macntaj & Trizz talks about the feeling of being revitalized. “It’s Up” featuring KXNG CROOKED & Ras Kass sees the trio coming together for a 3 & a half minute west coast barfest while “Juggernaut” goes drill refusing to ever stop now that he’s home.

“Paranoia” featuring Tech N9ne blends a guitar & hi-hats allowing them to demonstrate speedier flows revolving around the theme of being paranoid referencing WWE Hall of Famer Drew Carey & after the “All or Nothing” interlude, the psychedelic rock/trap hybrid “No Conversations” tells everyone to hold their breaths as he balls. “Baby Mama Music” wittingly expresses his gratitude to be free while “Water” featuring Ellis Prescott, Jerome Dillard, Laza & Macntaj takes a delicately melodic approach.

Pushing further towards the end of A Sin in Heaven, the penultimate track “Elevating” featuring Don P is this gospel/trap hybrid finding both of them talking about constantly evolving from an artistic standpoint while MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 laces the closer “Gladiator” featuring C-Mob & King Iso finding all 3 of them coming together passionately referring to themselves as being trained to fight with weapons against others.

Only the 2nd release from the Strange Music camp this year following Tech’s first Collabos album in a long time C.O.S.M. (Class of Strange Music) after signing a new distribution deal with both RBC Records founder Brian Shafton’s new label Compound Interest Entertainment alongside Virgin Music even last summer & it’s a worthy successor to what has already become X’s strongest body of work in recent memory. He takes things full circle experiencing joys in life now that he has crafted a life he could only have imagined just a few years ago.

Score: 3.5/5

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