Mcabre Brothers – “Tell a Friend” review

The Mcabre Brothers are a duo from the United Kingdom consisting of Runcorn, Cheshire, England emcee/producer & Blah Records founder Lee Scott alongside London emcee Milkavelli. Known for being members of Cult Mountain & the Children of the Damned, these guys made their eponymous debut in 2009 & followed it up with their debut EP Merry Critmass. Their sophomore effort Gonzo Lyricism was the last time we heard from the brothers & are back nearly a decade later with their 2nd extended play.

The title track sets the tone with a boom bap instrumental encouraging everyone to let their friends know the Mcabre Brothers are in effect again & after “Tie Die Sky” ruggedly talks about keeping it going until the job’s done, “Ring Back” featuring Black Josh works in more kicks & snares ending the 1st half comparing acid trips to an episode of the Discovery Global subsidiary Cartoon Network late night block [adult swim] hit series Rick & Morty.

“64 Bit” featuring Salar starts off the other leg of Tell a Friend with all 3 off them giving us witty video game wordplay over this industrial beat while “Flush” humorously talking about discarding mixtapes wack rappers are always passing out by making it go down the toilet. “No Chance” however wraps things up with this coldblooded boom bap instrumental dismissing the idea of any crew having the possibility of defeating them in a battle.

Ending the longest gap in-between releases so far, the Mcabre Brothers return after nearly 8 years for an EP making it clear as day for anyone listening to Tell a Friend they’ve returned & hopefully it won’t be the last time we hear them again. I’d still say their self-titled debut has the best production of all 4 projects Lee Scott & Milkavelli have done although I can appreciate the depiction of their style evolving over the course of an entire decade.

Score: 3.5/5

Drive-By – “4 the OG’s” review

Drive-By is a gangsta rap duo from Detroit, Michigan consisting of Blaze Ya Dead Homie & Anybody Killa. Both of whom the Insane Clown Posse signed to Psychopathic Records as solo artists in the early 2000s once juggalos began accepting their childhood friends Twiztid, dropping Pony Down in the fall of 2005 under the label that runs beneath the streets to fan backlash. Back on da Block & Run These Streets their own imprints Grundy Entertainment & Native World Inc., enlisting Majik Ninja Entertainment in-house producer Godsynth to fully produce their 4th extended play.

After the intro, “Fresh on the Scene” begins with a trap intro where Blaze & ABK are talking about pullin’ up lookin’ clean whereas “A Little Crazy” discusses the fact everyone has a bit of a looney side to them. “Black Dickies” reached the halfway point of the EP talking about being eastside family & after “In the News Again” discusses being wanted for criminal activity, “Shit Gets Real” takes a few minutes to explain what happens when things get serious. “Workin’ Girl” wasn’t that great of an outro however, falling flat as a club anthem.

Back on da Block & Run These Streets each have moments I find myself going back to more than Pony Down, but 4 the OG’s makes up for Drive-By’s lackluster debut over a decade ago with the best EP Blaze Ya Dead Homie & Anybody Killa have done as a pairing. Godsynth’s trap production paired with the lyricism toning down the gangsta rap & horrorcore elements in favor of a hardcore style, which I don’t consider that to be a bad thing.

Score: 4/5

Broom Man – “Spoof” review

Manchester, England, United Kingdom emcee Broom Man enlisting London jazz rap/boom bap producer Illinformed to solely produce his solo debut extended play. Someone who up until this point has yet to drop a collection of material under his own name, yet was introduced to him through his appearances on Cult of the Damned leader Lee Scott’s sophomore effort Stupid Poignant Sh!t. And considering that history, it doesn’t come as a shock for Blah Records to be the one who’s backing Spoof seeing the light of day.

After the intro, “BRM” hooks up a downtrodden boom bap instrumental so the Broom Man can lay out some gritty hardcore lyricism whereas “Safe Safe” works in some pianos mixed with kicks & snares to discuss his shit being pure. “Ovis” featuring Lee Scott finds the pair joining forces over a funky beat so they can talk about their egos driving them to places they didn’t want to go to just before “Astronope” brings some ominous chords in the picture discussing everything being fun & guns until getting stuck up for what you know.

“Monster City” maintains the boom bap vibes talks about being here to kick knowledge instead of lurking across the dance floors while “Kuato” after the “Quaid” interlude eerily speaks of opening our minds. “Zack Morris” gets back on the funkier tip instrumentally talking about being dafter trying to escape the fishnet & after the title track dustily makes it clear he could care less of appealing to a wider crowd, “Mr. Pope” featuring Bisk spends the concluding minutes of Spoof teaming up for a hardcore boom bap outro.

So it turns out the Broom Man began recording Spoof with Illinformed back in 2013 after he had recorded his verse for Stupid Poignant Sh!t until a devastating fire at the Blah Mansion in Blackburn, Lancashire convinced the label that the 22 minute recordings were destroyed & scrapped it. Thankfully, they were able to recover those lost sessions somehow someway & give the world his proper musical introduction outside of guest appearances the way it was initially conceived.

Score: 4/5

Big K.R.I.T. – “T.D.T.” review

Big K.R.I.T. is a 32 year old MC & producer from Meridian, Mississippi who started out by releasing a total of 5 mixtapes from 2005 up until 2009. However, he signed to GoodTalk Records in 2010 & his 6th mixtape K.R.I.T. Wuz Here that same year landed him a joint venture with Def Jam Recordings & a spot in the 2011 XXL Freshman Class. He then released his first 2 studio albums Live from the Underground & Cadillactica in 2012 & 2014 respectively, but then he departed from both Cinematic & Def Jam shortly after to form his own label Multi Alumni. His first outing under the imprint being 4eva’s a Mighty Long Time in October 2017, which is EASILY the best double disc hip hop album of the decade. He dropped a handful of tracks at the tail end of last year but now to kick off 2019, he’s delivering his very 1st compilation.

Things kick off with “Energy”, which is a dedication to K.R.I.T.’s significant other over a smooth Danja instrumental. The next song “Learned from Texas” is an ode to chopped & screwed music over a video gamey beat from DJ Khalil while the track “Pick Yourself Up” is a motivational anthem with a bouncy beat. The song “Glorious” is a charismatic bragging anthem with a cloudy trap beat & while the track “1 Oh Oh” has a blissful beat, the content about how his ex is keeping it real even after the breakup doesn’t interest me.

The song “Higher (King Pt. 6)” gets intellectually spiritual referencing Amazon founders Jeff Bezos over a lovely settle yet spacey instrumental with some background vocals that literally sound like they were sampled from Kanye West’s 808s & Heartbreak & then the penultimate track “Look What I Got”, Big KR.I.T. vividly vents about all that he did before he got famous over an atmospheric beat Supah Mario co-produced. The comp then finishes with “4 tha 3”, which is a dedication to Meridian with a soulful beat.

Personally, I think it’s really smart that K.R.I.T.’s kicking off this new year by combining THRICE X, DOUBLE DOWN & TRIFECTA into 1. Mostly because hearing these cuts on their own (i.e. DOUBLE DOWN) were just alright & bringing them all together really makes them a lot more cohesive in my opinion. A couple features would’ve been nice too, but I think this is a nice short taste of something bigger to come as Krizzle’s lyricism is well thought out & the production is mostly on par with 4eva’s a Mighty Long Time.

Score: 3.5/5

Cormega – “MEGA” review

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Cormega is a legendary 48 year old MC known for being an original member of The Firm. Since his departure from the group right after being signed to Aftermath Entertainment, he has gone onto release a handful of solo efforts including The Realness and Born & Raised. However, it’s been 4 years since the release of his Large Professor produced 5th album Mega Philosophy & now he’s finally returning alongside StreetRunner with his 1st EP.

The EP begins with “Say No More”, where Mega spits battle bars over a luscious beat. The next track “On Everything” talks about self esteem over a soulful beat while the song “Live Your Best Life” with Havoc pretty much speaks for itself over a vocal sample with some drums overpowering it. The penultimate track “Genuine Article” talks about his over a smooth piano-heavy instrumental & then the EP finishes with “Empty Promises”, which is a fitting sequel to the opener.

Overall, this was a pretty solid EP. Mega still has the passion & lyricism & the StreetRunner production was better than I had anticipated, but I was hoping that we got about 2 or 3 more tracks. That being said, I am looking forward to the album in 2019.

Score: 3.5/5

DJ Akademiks – “Clout Chaser” review

DJ Akademiks is a 27 year old media personality known for covering hip hop news on his YouTube channel & co-creating COMPLEX’s Everyday Struggle with Joe Budden in 2017, but I guess now he’s taking a jab at rapping by dropping this random ass EP on Christmas Day.

The opener “Chug Jug” is a response to “Fall” off of Eminem’s latest album KAMIKAZƎ, but it comes off as so plain & basic. The song “Durag” brags about a girlfriend of his who I’m not even sure exists over a trap beat with some prominent bells & while the penultimate track “Celina” is a dedication to Celina Powell, the delivery is awful & the beat is bland. The EP finally ends with “Super Lit”, which is a boring attempt at making a club banger.

Yeah, this was much worse than I expected. Ak’s commentary on both YouTube & Everyday Struggle has always made me feel like I’m losing brain cells, but he really takes it to the next level with dime a dozen production, flows & lyricism.

Score: 0/5

Vic Mensa – “Hooligans” review

Vic Mensa is a 25 year old rapper & singer/songwriter from Chicago, Illinois who rose to fame in 2013 with the release of his INNANETAPE mixtape. He then dropped his debut album The Autobiography last summer & now in the midst of his recent BET Cypher controversy, he’s delivering his 4th EP.

Things kick off with “Dancing in the Streetz”, where Vic compares himself to a messiah over a nondescript trap beat that was surprisingly self-produced. The next song “Dark Things” sounds like a dime a dozen take on the current emo rap trend while the track “In Some Trouble” is a corny love tune. The song “Rowdy” with G Herbo is a mediocre club banger while the track “Reverse” with G-Eazy is a bland bragging anthem with an EDM beat from Marshmello.

The song “Klonopin” is a horrid auto-croon ballad produced by Travis Barker of all people while “The 1 That Got Away / No Shoes” starts off promising talking about success over a soul sample, it’s really the 2nd half of it that ruins it. The EP then ends with “Deserve It”, where Vic continues to boast over a boring trap beat.

I’ve been holding out hope that Vic would continue to show his potential on this, but this made me realize it was a total pipe dream. Instead, he’s trying to sound trendy & cool when it’s not working at all.

Score: 1/5

The Alchemist – “Bread” review

The Alchemist is a 41 year old producer, DJ & rapper from Beverly Hills, California who started out as 1/2 of the duo The Whooliganz in 1993 with Scott Caan. The duo disbanded a year later after recording a debut album that eventually got shelved & Scott went onto acting. Alchemist however, quickly established himself as a household name in hip hop production by working with a handful of legends from Mobb Deep to Eminem. He dropped a short 4-track EP back in April of this year called Lunch Meat & now he’s following it up with this 6th EP right here, which is equally as long as the predecessor.

The EP kicks off with “Ray Mysterio” by Hall ‘N Nash, where Westside Gunn & Conway the Machine deliver their signature gritty street bars over a smooth yet mystic sounding instrumental. The next track “Roman Candles” by Black Thought & Roc Marciano sees the 2 getting boastful over a jazzy beat while the penultimate song “Mac 10 Wounds” by Conway talks about how he’s not weak over a sinister beat. The EP then finishes off with E. Coli by Earl Sweatshirt, where he gets spiritual over a harmonious vocal sample & some strings.

Even though I would’ve loved 3 more tracks just like with Lunch Meat, this is on par with it’s predecessor in terms of length, production dynamics & passionate yet raw lyricism from beginning to end. Hopefully, Uncle Al drops something bigger as we head into 2019.

Score: 4/5

Jaz Kahina – “School Run” review

This is the long-awaited solo debut extended play from Hackney, East London, England, United Kingdom emcee Jaz Kahina. One of the most recognizable names in the UK underground hip hop scene with a career spanning over 2 decades, she’s made numerous guest appearances across several projects despite never hunkering down for an entire body of work that she could call her own until now refraining from having guest appearances & bringing some interesting producers on board for a School Run.

“Round Eere” poses the question of why these individuals are in her parts of town over a boom bap instrumental with some strings & after “Worth” produced by Beat Butcha embraces a more vibrant approach talking about understanding your value, “284” over a trap beat from Danny Wolf to end the 1st half of the EP letting us know the kinda shit she’s on compared to everyone else.

Micall Parknsun gets behind the boards for “Fatal Attraction” leaning more towards a futuristic yet cavernous trap sound to kick off the 2nd leg of School Run calling out a guy for dating a basic bitch while the penultimate track “Quitter” talks about all love surviving by the time the sun comes up. The outro “Carry On” spends the final 3 minutes on a jazzier yet soulful tip explaining the inevitable truth of people having to eventually move forward with their lives.

Intended to showcase Jaz Kahina’s ability as a skilled & versatile artist across the board, School Run’s production ranges from boom bap to grime & trap for her to rip apart for 20 minutes. I’m fairly confident a full-length studio debut LP could surpass this if she gets the right producer or producers & maybe a guest appearance or 2 from some UK veterans, but it’ll hold well enough for anyone eager to hear something bigger coming down the pipe whenever that may be.

Score: 3.5/5

Black Thought – “Streams of Thought 2: Traxploitation” review

Black Thought is a legendary 47 year old MC from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania most notable for being the frontman of The Roots. Fans were been wanting some sort of solo project for a long time now (especially after his iconic Hot 97 freestyle this past winter) & did just that earlier this summer by dropping a flawless EP with The Soul Council called Streams of Thought. Now if that isn’t enough for you, he’s officially following it up except with Salaam Remi producing it in it’s entirety.

The EP kicks off with “Fentanyl”, where Thought compares his skills to the drug over a gloomy beat. The next track “Soundtrack for Confusion” gets conscious over some live drumming & a bass guitar while the song “Get Outlined” talks about the rough life in Philly over the same instruments that popped up on the previous joint. The track “History Unfolds” is filled with angry battle bars over a sinister guitar while the song “How to Hold a Choppa” is about teaching the youth to defend themselves over a minimalist instrumental with a prominent saxophone. The track “The New Grit” brags about his rapping prowess over a funky guitar & more live drumming while the song “Liveth” goes back to the vicious battle bars with a smooth instrumental. The penultimate track “Streets” continues the theme of the last joint over a menacing boom bap beat & then the closer “Conception” talks about fame, race & religion over a soulful instrumental.

While this is a fantastic EP, it’s not better than the first one. I can appreciate Black Thought for holding it down on his own & for it being longer than the predecessor, but I would’ve loved to hear a different featured MC on a track or 2. However, that doesn’t stop Thought from continuing to prove himself as one of the illest MCs of all-time. Here’s to Vol. 3 (if planned).

Score: 4/5