Esham – “The Golden Age” review

This is the 24th studio LP from Detroit emcee/producer & Reel Life Productions founder Esham. Widely acknowledged as the godfather of horrorcore alongside his former Natas cohorts Mastamind & the late TNT, his run from 1989-2005 (particularly the albums KKKill the Fetus, Closed Casket & Doubelievengod?) would go on to lay out the groundwork for subsequent horrorcore acts such as the Insane Clown Posse & even Eminem. His output from Sacrificial Lambz onwards (essentially after his 2-album deal with Psychopathic Records from 02-05) has been a little hit or miss even though I love the single “S.S.M.D. (Stop Selling Me Drugs)” & Dichotomy respectively. Psyops however was a creative detour for Esham as he self-produced the whole thing for the first time in what seemed like a while conceptually revolving around what it was like for him living in Minneapolis during the George Floyd protests & a more rap rock inspired sound. He escaped Purgatory & preluded The Golden Age by serving up his 8th EP Amuse-Bouche, ushering the new era in 17 months later.

“The Golden Hour” sets up shop talking about rappers with no hope needing to cleanse their souls & introducing me to Count Tracula whereas “Power of Love” incorporates a vintage self-produced instrumental explaining that you don’t really want war with him. “CEO Killer” talks about hating liars & thieves more than being on welfare when he was growing up leading into “30 Gucci Purses” admitting he has no regrets of the amount of cash he’s spent.

Meanwhile on “Rain Drop”, we have Esham bringing back the boom bap vibes talking about the hate coming with the way he puts it down for the city since he does it so big while “F.I.L.A. (Fall In Love Again)” blends trap & pop rap tackling themes of romance. “Run It Back” goes for a smoother approach to the beat telling his lover there ain’t no slowing down since he has a lot speed while “Sexy” experiments with hip house interpolating “I’m Too Sexy” by Right Said Fred.

“Omg” starts the 2nd half of The Golden Age returning to the boom bap thanks to Dead Heat talking about being more insane than the wicked clowns themselves while “Narcissist” keeps things in the basement instrumentally speaking to himself showing y’all what wealth really is. “Slush” meshes a piano with kicks & snares talking about his heart being way too cold while the title track flexing that his paper’s too tall to fold.

Nearing the conclusion of The Golden Age, the song “Killing Time” finds himself waiting for a sickness to take him away while “A.M.F.D. (All My Friends are Dead)” combines dubstep production with horrorcore lyricism that winds up leaving me somewhat torn about it personally. “I Miss You” talks about the voices that he was hearing in his head was the money this whole entire time & “The Truth” finishes us off with a 2 minute rock outro showing off The Unholy’s singing chops.

Looking back at how reckless he was with his words when he was younger & cringing at it because the godfather of the wicked shit has obviously gotten much older, The Golden Age thematically opens up in regards to chasing what Esham thought success looked like whether it be industry recognition or respect from his own peers. Him continuing to do his own production again brings a smile to my face since that’s where a lot of his post-Psychopathic material until lately has lacked, recalling everything from the anxiety & depression to conquering Hell.

Score: 4/5

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Esham – “Amuse-Bouche” review

Detroit emcee/producer & Reel Life Productions founder Esham back for his 8th EP ahead of his 24th full-length. Widely acknowledged as the godfather of horrorcore alongside his former Natas cohorts Mastamind & the late TNT, his run from 1989-2005 (particularly the albums KKKill the Fetus, Closed Casket & Doubelievengod?) would go on to lay out the groundwork for subsequent horrorcore acts such as the Insane Clown Posse & even Eminem. His output from Sacrificial Lambz onwards (essentially after his 2-album deal with Psychopathic Records from 02-05) has been a little hit or miss even though I love the single “S.S.M.D. (Stop Selling Me Drugs)” & Dichotomy respectively. Psyops however was creative detour for Esham as he self-produced the whole thing for the first time in a while conceptually revolving around what it was like for him living in Minneapolis, Minnesota during the George Floyd protests & a more rap rock inspired sound. But coming fresh off escaping Purgatory last summer, East Side Hoes & Money is looking to serve the appetizer before the main entree on Amuse-Bouche.

The first song “Détroit (De-twah)” is a grimy self-produced trap opener to the EP talking about being stuck in the trap trying to get this cheese & after the first “French Lesson” interlude, “Back 2 Detroit” goes straight up boom bap charismatically telling the story of The Unholy himself. After the “Ahmooz-Boosh” interlude, Stretch Money went from growing up listening to his uncle playing Dead Flowerz & KKKill the Fetus to teaming up with the acid rap inventor himself on the single “Transmission Fluid” with it’s cloudy atmosphere & hi-hats repping 2 different generations of the east side, but then we’re treated to a surprising sequel to the title track of Esham’s first EP Erotic Poetry.

“Death by Snu Snu” named after a quote from one of the best Futurama episodes advising that “they don’t take sex styles back broken” & after another “French Lesson” interlude, “X-Men” featuring Jack Frost & Mastamind gives me a jazzy boom bap vibe instrumentally thanks to Dead Heat nearing the conclusion of the EP by having all 3 MCs explaining that some of y’all out here need to learn how to keep a different hoe & “I.G.S.O.I.D. (I Gotta Stop Or I’ll Die)” officially wraps up Amuse-Bouche talking about drug addiction & having to actually try to break the habit or else he’ll lose his own life.

Keeping in mind that Esham has a whole new LP coming down the pipe at some point in the near future, I completely understand why put banged out 7 new songs & sprinkling only 3 interludes in-between until then. In fact, this EP makes me excited for the new album since it further continues towards the trajectory that Psyops started & Purgatory traveled further down in the sense he’s gradually making better projects again. His production balances old & new sounds, the very few guests are fine represent different generations of motor city & the godfather of the wicked proves he’s still very much a capable storyteller.

Score: 3.5/5

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3-Headed Monster – “Rampage” review

This is the sophomore full-length album from horrorcore supergroup the 3-Headed Monster. Consisting of Detroit pioneers Esham & Violent J alongside Ouija Macc hailing from Las Vegas, all 3 members each have a distinctive history of their own. The first being the unholy godfather of the wicked shit founding Reel Life Productions, the other co-founded Psychopathic Records as 1/2 of the Insane Clown Posse whom the Boogey Man was once signed to from 2002-2005 & Ouija became the hatchet’s biggest solo act in 2017 following ICP severing ties with their former protégés the demented duo Twiztid earlier that same year despite them departing Psychopathic only 5 years before that to form Majik Ninja Entertainment now continuing to gradually build Chapter 17 Records as a dominant subsidiary of the label that runs beneath the streets as he’s been their only current artist other than the wicked clowns themselves since the pandemic. But as they begin the 2nd leg of their tour promoting their full-length debut Obliteration from over the summer displaying 3 generations of hip hop’s most underappreciated subgenre, the trio’s continuing their Rampage.

The intro begins with all 3 members aggressively going back & forth with each other on the mic over a rugged trap instrumental for a couple minutes proclaiming their greatest joy in life is to crush & destroy whereas “Bulldozer” works in a shimmery backdrop & hi-hats from Shaggytheairhead cautioning that everyone’s in danger. “End of Days” gives off a more cavernous trap vibe thanks to Devereaux making it clear that there ain’t no heroes in this saga just before the “Bepis” goes into atmospheric territory so Ouija Macc can whip up a solo joint & his rhyme schemes throughout are some the craziest he’s ever jotted.

“Sinister Super Sinister” by Violent J continues to demonstrate the talents of each member of the supergroup as he hops over a trap-rock crossover declaring himself to be exactly that leading into Esham’s solo cut “Cult Leader” diving headfirst into boom bap territory with some keyboard embellishments asking if one wants to lead a cult of their own. The 3-Headed Monster reunited as a unit for the chaotic trap banger “Red Pavement” looking to leave the haters laying, but then “Cobblestone” finds Ouija on his own again blending a suspenseful loop & hi-hats talking about them Sin City killas being at your neck.

The song “Pillow Talk” by Violent J goes for a more subdued trap sound proclaiming he gets down all the time killing for real & love how his new chick never asks why his clothes are bloody even though his raspy delivery is a little off-putting while “Dinero” by Esham talks about the money over a groovy sample flip. The title track though rounds out the trio’s sophomore effort with a 5 & a half minute trap heater taking away all the sunshine & rain in favor of smoke & fire instead.

The 3-Headed Monster’s formation has to be my personal favorite thing that Psychopathic has done all year even though I stand by me being happy to see them pumping out music at the rate they’ve been doing so all year, but I actually might like Rampage better than Obliteration by a hair. They’re stepping up their chemistry together on top of getting a couple chances to shine individually again & I love how the production sounds harder than our introduction to them over the summer.

Score: 4/5

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Esham – “Purgatory” review

This is the 23rd full-length album from Detroit emcee/producer & Reel Life Productions founder Esham. Widely acknowledged as the godfather of horrorcore alongside his former Natas cohorts Mastamind & the late TNT, his run from 1989-2005 (particularly the albums KKKill the Fetus, Closed Casket & Doubelievengod?) would go on to lay out the groundwork for subsequent horrorcore acts such as the Insane Clown Posse & even Eminem. His output from Sacrificial Lambz onwards (essentially after his 2-album deal with Psychopathic Records from 02-05) has been a little hit or miss even though I love the single “S.S.M.D. (Stop Selling Me Drugs)” & Dichotomy respectively. Psyops however was creative detour for Esham as he self-produced the whole thing for the first time in a while conceptually revolving around what it was like for him living in Minneapolis, Minnesota during the George Floyd protests & a more rap rock inspired sound. But after having the honor of meeting him personally last fall & coming fresh off the 3-Headed Monster’s full-length debut Obliteration last month, East Side Hoes And Money is looking to escape Purgatory.

“Active Shooter” is a rap metal opener with the acid rap pioneer can discuss the issue of kids killing kids whereas the self-produced “Circle of Proud” goes into a more groovy trap direction talking about “white noise”. More specifically: the far-right. “Circle of Wraith” shifts gears into rap metal territory again talking about sacrificing a goat, but then the first of 2 tracks featuring Jack Frost called “Circle of Avarice” has a rawer, drearier approach instrumentally to speak on greed.

Jack makes his 2nd consecutive & final appearance on the album with “Circle of Gluttony” over a bloodcurdling beat to habitual greed just before “St. Detroit” gives off a more angelic flare musically produced by the Drunken Master to pay homage to the 313, the city where they’ll eat motherfuckers for dinner. The title track embraces a more boom bap sound detailing the place we all fear leading into the acoustic heavy “Circle of Sloth” talking about all your pieces going back in the box when you’re done with the game of life.

“Bro” makes it clear that he don’t fuck with no rats over some twinkling keys & hi-hats while “Watch Me Do My Dace” kinda has a quirky trap appeal instrumentally telling everyone to witness him do exactly that. “Big Motion” is a synthesizer/boom bap crossover provided by the homie Dead Heat talking about rappers out here being way too dry while the glamorous trap cut “Me” featuring Mastamind getting on the more wicket side of things.

The dejecting piano chords & hi-hats on “El Sicarios” featuring Mastamind for the 2nd consecutive & final time comparing themselves to hitmen while “I Can’t Believe” is a sample-based boom bap joint talking about how wack is wack is regardless of what the streaming stats are which I agree. The song “Woke Up Quick” gives more of a synth-trap feeling doing exactly that simply because he’s from Motown while the atmospheric penultimate track “O.T.B. (Old Thing Back)” takes a trip down memory lane. “It’s a Vibe” is a fun closer celebrating that he’s still alive out here & that they gon’ ride.

Psyops being a step in the right direction for Esham as it was had me anticipating Purgatory a bit more than I’ve done so with some of his material within the last 15 years truthfully & he continues to move towards that trajectory a year & a half later. The political rap metal influences from that previous album makes it’s way here dashed with boom bap & trap detours too so the Unholy can take us through uncovering the secrets lying beyond the intermediate state after physical death for expiatory purification.

Score: 3.5/5

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Violent J – “Bloody Sunday” review

Violent J is a 50 year old MC, producer, professional wrestler/manager, Juggalo Championship Wrestling (JCW) Commissioner & the longest reigning 2-time JCW World Juggalo Tag Team Champion from Detroit, Michigan notable for forming the Insane Clown Posse & co-founding the label that runs beneath the streets Psychopathic Records with Shaggy 2 Dope. He’s also released a few EPs & a full-length on his own within the last 3 decades, with my personal favorite of the handful being Wizard of the Hood. The last we heard from the Duke of the Wicked solo-wise was the Brother! EP on New Year’s Eve 2018, but J is making up for the 3-month delay of his sophomore solo album by giving it to the fans as a Juggalo Day treat.

The intro is an occult trap opener produced by Devereaux with J confessing he doesn’t want to be alive anymore whereas the title track gives me a more slower albeit still morbid approach to the beat thanks to Brian Kuma talking about a never ending cycle. “Clown Blood” returns to trap territory with J showing off some crazy flows as he describes the clown blood flowing through him leading into “In the Hole” blending some hi-hats & synths talking about where your soul will suffer.

Meanwhile on “Pitch Dark”, we have J over a more rugged instrumental describing total blackness just before “No Friends” is a decent guitar ballad about being friendless. “Scatterbrain 2” is a trap-flavored sequel to “Scatterbrain” which has always been one of the best songs off Eye of the Storm in my opinion & picks up where the predecessor left off wonderfully referencing both former 2-time SMW Heavyweight Champion & ECW World Tag Team Champion Tracy Smothers and WWE Hall of Famer, former WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion, 3-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion & WCW World Tag Team Champion Rick Rude until Mike E. Clark returns to lace “The Stiff” with his uniquely quirky sound asking if he made a friend until the end or fucked up again.

“Horrendous Ways” jacks for beats as the Duke of the Wicked asks why great lives end in the titular fashion while “Something’s in My Room” takes a turn into boom bap describing the titular being in his room staring at him. The song “The Hurter” has a more carnivalesque flare to the instrumental courtesy of Shaggytheairhead describing the titular character while the penultimate track “A Harrowing Time” is a bassy trap cut about Satan calling him. “Some Good Pussy” though ends the album with a shitty country rock ballad about a man being unhealthily obsessed with a bitch.

Wizard of the Hood is such a classic EP & I know The Shining gets a bit of mixed reception with a lot of juggalos that I know personally, but it’s most certainly no question that Bloody Sunday stands as Violent J’s finest solo album to date. It’s a lot more darker than the previous efforts that he’s put out on his own, he sounds focused & the production is a healthy mix of both the old & new sounds throughout the 3 decades that he’s been in the game.

Score: 3.5/5

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