Upfront MC – “Headrush” review

Bristol, England, United Kingdom’s very own Upfront MC returning for his 2nd extended play. A member of the Split Prophets collective, he would make his solo debut in 2012 off the Sound of Evolution… EP followed by the debut album Upfront & Personal and the sophomore effort Lettermorphosis. Coming off the inaugural entry of the Throwaway Thursdays mixtape series a couple years earlier, coming off Reflections to link up with Badhabitz & have his crew’s in-house producer solely handling Headrush’s production by himself.

“Nothing Guaranteed” hops over a cloudy boom bap instrumental to talk about embracing everything you have while it’s here prior to him confessing he’s been trying to “Stay Afloat”, advising everyone to accept change being a part of the process. “Toxic” hooks up more kicks & snares so he can talk about him losing his sanity being the cost of this music shit leading into “Daily Struggle” ending the 1st leg of the EP on a cloudier note explaining that there’s always a message within his rhyme patterns.

To get the 2nd half going, “Perspective” brings up a piano flip to talk about the issues of balancing the dreams he has & living in reality while the cavernously raw “C.B.F. (Can’t Be Fucked)” rawly asks if anyone has ever woken up feeling like nobody can fuck with them. “Fine Lines” leans towards an uncanny boom bap direction telling the world to not let anything break you & “Feel the Fear” somberly concludes with him talking about the Devil inside of his ear.

Over a decade since Sound of Evolution… & with the 10-year anniversary of Upfront & Personal approaching next summer, one of the Split Prophets’ strongest links moves on from his Reflections to embark on a sudden feeling of hardcore boom bap euphoria dropping what I firmly believe could be his greatest entry in his whole entire solo catalog. Badhabitz’ boom bap production is a cut above beppo’s 9 months earlier & lyrically, the Upfront MC is in top form.

Score: 4.5/5

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Tha God Fahim – “Dark Shogunn Assassin” review

This is the 39th EP from from Atlanta, Georgia emcee/producer Tha God Fahim. Coming up as an affiliate of Griselda Records alongside Mach-Hommy & Your Old Droog, he’s also built up an incredibly vast discography with a couple of standouts being Breaking Through tha Van Allen Belts & Dump Assassins. Now the last time I covered Fahim’s work was when he dropped his 19th full-length album 6 Ring Champ & the final installment of the Shot Clock King trilogy of EPs produced by Nicholas Craven shortly after last spring, but is reuniting with Griselda in-house producer Camoflauge Monk to drop Dark Shogunn Assassin following the NicoJP-produced Chess Moves only a few days prior.

“Gristle” is a jazzy boom bap opener with Fahim rapping about how the dumpin’ won’t stop until he says as well as bringing the pain similar to that of Method Man & asking who the boogeyman of this rap shit really is. Estee Nack of the Tragic Allies also happens to pop up during the 2nd half of the song to lay down the EP’s only guest verse & he absolutely obliterates it, raising my expectations for Nacksaw Jim Duggan even higher than it already was when Westside Gunn announced it on Twitter a month ago already. The penultimate track “Sword n Shields” blends some kicks & snares with these low-register synthesizers so he can treat his pen as if it was a blade moonwalking over MCs as if the late King of Pop himself Michael Jackson came back from the dead & advising that you can lead a horse to the pond, but can’t make them drink. “Never Back Down” finishes it all off on a more mellow note with Fahim talking about being up for any challenge that’s brought to him & coming up from the struggle.

Blvk Pearl, it’s sequel, Iron Monkey, Iron Monkey: Dump Olympics & Only God Can Judge Me are all essential Fahim projects in my book so my expectations going into this EP were significantly higher than Chess Pieces as a result of that. Needless to say, they did it again with Dark Shogunn Assassin. Yeah it’s only 3 tracks running at 9 minutes, but don’t let that scare you from thinking that Camoflauge Monk’s raw production & Fahim’s elevated lyricism make it more than worth your while because they really never miss whenever they join forces.

Score: 4/5

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Autumn! – “##B4GC3” review

This is the 19th EP from Louisiana rapper/producer Autumn!. Making a name himself in the plugg scene, he got his start by dropping 16 EPs & a full-length debut on SoundCloud since 2018 prior to signing to Victor Victor Worldwide & Republic Records after the Not Much Left EP. He made his major label debut last spring with his sophomore effort Antagonist!, following it up with ##B4GC2 & Golden Child 2. But with the final chapter of the trilogy on the horizon, of course twinuzis had to prelude it with ##B4GC3.

“Baby Fewch!” is an atmospheric trap opener to the EP with Autumn! talking about getting this shit too easy whereas the song “Colors!” takes a more vibrant route detailing his mob boss & not stressing over fuck boys. The penultimate track “Recollections of Fame!” embraces the pluggnb sound we all came to know & love him for as he clarifies that all his brothers roll with him prior to “The Remorse!” ending things on a somber note recalling a phone call that he received in New York & trying hard to find some sort of closure.

As we await for Golden Child 3 which is said to be a self-produced full-length album unlike the past installments of the series being EPs, this’ll sure be enough to hold us off until then. It’s pretty much a mix of his pluggnb roots & some new sounds that he successfully decided to try out. At this rate, the final entry of this series that introduced me to dude’s music is sure to be something special.

Score: 3.5/5

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Ice Spice – “Like..?” review

Ice Spice is a 23 year old rapper from The Bronx, New York who actually grew up with a hard knock life at the Hudson Street Orphanage ran by Agatha Hannigan. After being adopted by Oliver Warbucks, she grew up to pursue a music career last summer after uploading a couple viral music videos & landing a Capitol Records contract. Drake eventually flew her out to join him at OVO Fest not too long after & unfollowed her on Instagram rather quickly once the festival concluded, with him calling her “a 10 trying to rap” & that her music is “good on mute” on the highlight track “BackOutsideBoyz” off his recent collab album with 21 Savage that dropped a couple months ago Her Loss. But to prelude her full-length debut, she’s surprise dropping her debut EP in only a few hours’ notice.

“In Ha Mood” is a decent sample drill opener with a jersey club flare to it convincing her mans to stay with him even though she wants to turn up whereas “Princess Diana” compares herself to the late Princess of Wale over some more safer drill production. “Gangsta Boo” with Lil Tjay averagely flips “I Need a Girl, Pt. 2” by Puff Daddy a.k.a. P. Diddy or Diddy touching on gangsta love & having nothing to do with the late Gangsta Boo whatsoever while the song “Actin’ a Smoochie” staying in sample drill turf getting raunchy. The penultimate track “Bikini Bottom” has a fresh slack-key guitar as she discusses what fame has brought her & “Munch” is a Brooklyn drill closer paying tribute to cunnilingus.

Before I wrap things up, lemme just say the Annie references at the beginning of the review were clearly jokes. As far as the quality of the music being presented, it’s a decent EP. I can definitely see why she’s popular in the Brooklyn drill scene, but it’s just that I’ve heard the sample drill style that she also pulls from on here pulled off better with projects such as RealYungPhil’s 7th EP Dr. Phil & even Pasto Flocco’s most recent stuff.

Score: munch/5

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Bobby J from Rockaway – “Radio Days” review

This is the 2nd EP from Queens emcee Bobby J from Rockaway. Coming up as a protege of Kwamé, he would begin to turn heads in the underground during the summer of 2019 off the strength of his full-length debut Summer Classics along with his Statik Selektah produced debut EP Endless Summer, the latter being my introduction to his music along with 1 Mic & a Drum’s eponymous EP. Bobby then joined forces with Detroit veteran Hush to drop the collab album 718 II 313 last summer, of which they had the honor of playing 80% of to me at a studio a year prior. But just about 6 months later, he’s enlisting NYC producer Nef behind the boards to drop Radio Days.

After the intro, the first song “From the Jump” with J57 finds the 2 over a triumphant boom bap instrumental describing their plot to expand prior to Street Smartz & Wais P assisting Bobby on the soulful “Leaving” declaring that they’re never putting down the mics. “Something Like” is a rap rock/boom bap hybrid paying tribute to all the b-boys out there just before “Mind, Body & Soul” comes through with a more mellow sound as Bobby & Michael Fiya talk about feeling the vibes.

“1 Love” brings back the soul for the ladies while the 7182313 interlude reunites with Hush to show off their chemistry over a trunk knocking beat. The penultimate track “Fade Away” mixes a crooning sample with some keys & a country guitar talking about what’s gonna happen when the flame burns out while “The Hangover” is a bluesy closer detailing having too much to drink the night before.

Endless Summer still stands as my favorite EP that Bobby has ever done but to have Radio Days be his first solo effort in 3 years, I’ll still take it. Nef’s production is some of his most interesting to date as the sounds I don’t think I’ve ever heard Bobby experiment with in the past, but that’s what makes it exciting because it tells me that he’s continuing to grow as an artist. If this is only a precursor to a sophomore album, then it could very well end up being his best.

Score: 3.5/5

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Sk8star – “rebel” review

This is the 4th EP from Atlanta, Georgia recording artist Sk8star. Blowing up in the spring of 2021 off Superstar Status, he would go on to follow it up last year with both the B4NWØ EP & his debut mixtape New World Ørder respectively. The latter being my introduction to Sk8’s music after my lil brody UnreleasedSnip put me on, with songs like “Standin’ on Business” & “YSL Flow” being the standouts for me personally. He just dropped his previous EP Mogul a month after we saw him live in Brooklyn & just so happened to surprise drop rebel here over the weekend, 4 weeks later.

“king of the hill” is a guitar-tinged trap opener with Sk8 talking about a baddie in high heels being totally unaware of how good he makes her feel whereas “mono boots alyx” has a more atmospheric approach asking a shorty what her sign is & shows off the titular boots that he happens to own. “imma ride” works in some hi-hats & strings speaking on being by his homie’s side, but then “status” takes the cloudier route to talk about how he been ballin’. The woozy penultimate track “in the shadows” finds Sk8 acknowledging that he’s doing better than his enemies & they hate him for it just before “motion” produced by Nosaint & ReidMD of Vanguard Music Group sends things off on a peppy yet melodic note having just that.

If anyone’s still not up on this dude yet, then I recommend you change that because I think one of the ATL’s most exciting up-&-comers at the moment is gonna go even harder than he did last year when I got put onto him & this definitely goes to show it. It’s really fresh to hear him detail where he’s at in his life currently & even displaying his versatility with some the beats that these producers bring to the table.

Score: 3.5/5

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Bukshot – “When Hell Freezes” review

This is the 18th EP from Louisville, Kentucky emcee & Mobstyle Music founder Bukshot. From his lengthy solo discography to the group & duos that’s formed with some of the biggest names that the underground has to offer, there’s no question that dude’s been putting it down for the culture for a grip at this point. He just dropped the ferocious Never Safe last spring prior to his appearances at Astronomicon around that same time & is now seeing fit to put When Hell Freezes up on DSPs in light of Friday the 13th.

After the “Kafkaesque” intro, the title track truly opens up the EP with a cinematically haunting instrumental courtesy of MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 airing out those who want him out of the game prior to the almighty Alla Xul Elu & Lo Key tagging along for the apocalyptic trap banger “Rise Up” talking about running this shit from underneath. Stevie Stone fresh off making an entrance theme for former NXT North American Champion Solo Sikoa of the WWE’s most dominant faction The Bloodline comes into the picture for the cavernous “We Was” looks back to the days on the block while the song “Chant” with the Super Famous Fun Time Guys sees the trio over some kicks & snares talking about having these ways of crushing their dreams. The penultimate track “Death Dance” with the Lune Squad has a more morbid trap flare to it confessing they see their skeletons dancing & the Godsynth-produced “Beat ‘Em Up” ends with The Underground Avengers reuniting alongside Zitro for a fight anthem.

Mobstyle have been rightfully experiencing a rise in popularity within the underground wicked shit scene within the last 3 years & if this is how Buk’s gonna ring in 2023, then it only increases my anticipation for what Mobstyle has coming down the pipe such as Cabal’s sophomore album The Bottomless Pit & of course The Horde’s eponymous debut. The production’s knocking, nearly every feature comes correct & Buk sounds as ruthless as before.

Score: 4/5

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Mickey Diamond – “Oroku Saki” review

This is the 6th EP from Detroit underground emcee Mickey Diamond. Emerging at the beginning of 2020 off the strength of his debut EP Bangkok Dangerous, the dude has since gone on to turn quite a few heads in the underground by building up the impressive discography for himself with his previous 6 albums alongside 5 EPs & a mixtape. His last 2 outings Gucci Ghost & Gucci Ghost 2produced by Big Ghost Ltd. that dropped back to back last month have quickly become my favorite bodies of work that Diamond has put out yet so when I found out that one of my favorite graphic artists in recent memory Ral Duke would be behind the boards for Oroku Saki in it’s entirety, it was only right to give it my first review of 2023 since Gucci Ghost 2 was my last review of 2022.

After the “Can Opener” intro, the title track is a symphonic boom bap opener where Mickey talks about how he’s gonna make you learn to respect the throne whereas “Chrome Dome” works in some more strings whilst dashing some jazzy undertones to the beat as well referring to himself as the masked man. “Wow!” hooks up some kicks & snares with a piano loop talking about how those listening be knowing his style & making the sun shine like WWE Hall of Famer Luna Vachon leading into “Multiverse” following the “Krangstrumental” interlude takes a more cavernous route in terms of sound echoing the iconic Tribe Called Quest joint “Can I Kick It?” painting images of the wicked mean streets. “Turtle Soup” is a killer rap rock cut talking about what he be dining on tonight & ruthlessly hijacking your whole residence while “The Foot” returns to the boom bap talking about how he could never take all of this from a rat. After the “Ooze” interlude though, Mondo Slade come into the picture for the closer “Shredder vs. Casey Jones” as he & Diamond essentially battle rap one another over an uncanny instrumental with co-production from & Swab.

It’s funny how Gucci Ghost 2 was a last minute addition to my best of 2022 list & now here is 3 weeks later kicking off the new year the exact same way: By giving us his 3rd consecutive classic. As someone who enjoyed the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series as well as the first 2 movies from the early 90’s & the ‘03 series, the concept of the EP is incredibly cohesive as Mickey ties in references into his hardcore lyrical style excellently. Now the only time I can recall hearing Ral Duke production a track was “Painkillers” off Conway the Machine’s 11th mixtape Everybody‘s F.O.O.D. 2: Eat What U Kill & that was always a highlight track for me personally, but I genuinely appreciate how much his production here has fluctuated so much in the last 4 years or so.

Score: 4.5/5

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BeenOfficial – “America’s on Drugs II: America’s Still on Drugs”

This is the 3rd EP from Bronx emcee BeenOfficial. Coming up in the winter of 2015 off his 1st single “Why U Lie? (Y U Lie?)”, it wouldn’t be until 5 years later where he would put out his debut EP God’s Jewelry using that time to put out more songs to build up anticipation & eventually followed it up a couple months later in the form of America’s on Drugs. But as the 2 year anniversary of the latter continues to approach slowly & surely, the man himself’s returning in the form of a sequel merely days after Christmas.

The intro starts things off by briefly yet ruggedly reintroducing himself for those that don’t know whereas “Can’t Get Away” has a more sample-based trap flare to it looking back on the days when he was down & how he’s been doing better as of late. S.C. Money tags along for the luxurious “Life or Death” spitting that hustler shit just before “H.W.T.C. (Heavy Wears The Crown)” follows it up with a horn-inflicted boom bap instrumental talking about being his way now.

S.C. Money comes back 1 last time in the form of “I’m Working”, where both of them detailing that they’ve been putting it on over top of a beat that’s reminiscent to that of my favorite Slaughterhouse cut “Microphone” while the penultimate track “Got a Gun” returns to the boom bap acknowledging just how crazy it be out in his parts. The outro is just as short & raw as the intro, except the lyrics touch on those not knowing what it’s like to have a price on your head & thinking about the money he’s bout to collect whilst driving on the highway.

It’s really fresh to hear how much this guy’s grown as an artist in the last 7 years because as dope as his last EP was, America’s on Drugs II: America’s Still on Drugs to me further proves that evolution as much as the predecessor did almost a couple years ago. Lyrically, the themes of drug trafficking are stronger as they were before with Adwerdz’ production continuing to pull from boom bap & trap keeping it at a healthy balance.

Score: 3.5/5

Super Famous Fun Time Guys – “Holiday EP: Advent” review

The Super Famous Fun Time Guys are a self-deprecating horrorcore duo from Ohio consisting of Mr. 8 Legz & Whipstick. They originally broke out in 2018 off their full-length debut Our Album & then the Super Dudes Crooning the Tunes EP that same fall, where they freestyled over songs like Yasiin Bey’s “Mathemathics” or even Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September”. Following their sophomore effort How Do You Fit a Cassette in a Discography? & their solo debut EPs, they became the very 1st act to sign to the almighty Alla Xul Elu’s independently owned Long Live Evil label & their 3rd album Don’t Hug Me from the Front quickly won a lot of people (including myself) over with how well it mixed horrorcore with comedy. But ahead of their official LLE sophomore effort next year, Whip & Legz are celebrating Christmas with their 3rd EP.

After the “Reindeer Rental” intro, the first song “Mandatory Holiday Function” is a cheery way to kick things off by talking about how tis the season to have a Fun Time party while the song “Cute & Cuddly” takes the boom bap route calling themselves gremlins that came from a path full of snakes similar to that of current AEW manager, WWE Hall of Famer & former SMW Heavyweight Champion Jake “The Snake” Roberts. The penultimate track “Frosty Tips” laces some bells with piano chords & a thunderous bass-line to get on their hardcore shit prior to Doc Gruesome, Donnie Menace & Stray Withers all assisting the greatest tag team to never even step into a ring for the 9-minute trap closer “Humbugs in Your Bed” talking about St. Nick pulling up to your city.

Now if any of y’all are looking to have a fun time this Christmas, then you’re gonna wanna add Holiday EP: Advent onto your rotation this weekend because it’s without a bit of doubt the best Christmas-themed project that I’ve heard in a while. The humorous yet nihilistic lyricism & exciting chemistry we’ve all come to know & love them for both make their way onto here except the production has a more seasonal twist to it. I know they said at the 2nd annual Camp Xul this past summer to expect their next full-length in 2023 & I’m still keeping my fingers crossed that Billy Obey is producing it in it’s entirety but regardless of the latter, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there & maintain all anticipation for it.

Score: 3.5/5

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