Ty Fontaine – “B.4.B.M.G. (Before Beautiful Michi Girls): The Experience” review

This is the 4th EP from Washington, D.C. rapper Ty Fontaine. Breaking out in 2018 off the debut EP Do Not Disturb, his profile continued to grow from there & eventually landed in a short-lived deal with Internet Money Records. The last I covered Ty on my platform was last summer when he dropped Ascension & with B.M.G. (Beautiful Michi Girls) coming down down the pipe later this year, he’s preluding it by dropping B.4.B.M.G. (Before Beautiful Michi Girls): The Experience.

“Keep IT Real” is a great opener with it’s triumphant horn sections advising to stay truthful to him while the song “OutTheWay” takes a synth-heavy route talking about avoiding fuck shit. The penultimate track “WE or I” is an acoustic ballad showing his love to his better half & “Love4free” ends the EP with a decent lil R&B jam about needing his girl’s company for everything he does.

Whether these are gonna be on B.M.G. (Beautiful Michi Girls) or not, I think it’s a dope appetizer before the main course. I really admire how much he experiments with new sounds throughout & this album could really expand more on the versatility he’s shown here.

Score: 3.5/5

Skribbal – “Man with the Screaming Brain” review

This is the 3rd EP from Los Angeles, California emcee Skribbal. Coming up in 2016 off the strength of his full-length debut Drug Spun Funk, this would catch the attention of the rising Wisconsin underground label Force 5 Records & they would put out his sophomore effort Skinwalker a couple years later. But once Skribbal dropped his debut EP Quarantine Sessions a month after the pandemic started, he would leave the label to form his own Sony Music imprint Hell Patrol Records & celebrated this newfound independence by dropping his 3rd album Black Eyed Children last spring distancing himself from horrorcore in favor of a more hardcore hip hop style. However after dropping In Their Blood…& from the Gutter a couple months back, Skribbal is already following it up by dropping Man with the Screaming Bad on his Bandcamp out of nowhere.

“Child of the State” kicks off the whole EP on some jazzy boom bap shit talking about what he’s learned throughout the course of his life whereas the Joe Blak-assisted “At War with the Enemy” works in some dusty drums & somber piano chords to spit some battle raps. The title track has a cloudy trap vibe taking about smoking motherfuckers while the penultimate song “Biz Markie” incorporates some organs to pay homage to the late Juice Crew member of the same name. Kaze Jones then comes into the picture for the closer “Shogun Assassins”, which fuses an operatic vocal sample with some pianos declaring themselves as the dynamic duo.

Now in comparison to In Their Blood…& from the Gutter being inspired by Dave Berkowitz, he takes it back to the hardcore style of Black Eyed Childrenon Man with the Screaming Brain. The features are bit underwhelming, but Skribbal manages to deliver some impressive performances on top of production of the traditional boom bap style.

Score: 3.5/5

Hatfield – “No Change” review

Hatfield is an MC from Toronto, Ontario, Canada who’s been steadily been dropping singles for over a year now like “Tax” & more recently “Did It All Without a Quake Feature”. But for his debut EP, he’s enlisting local producer DJ BLKUOS behind the boards for the whole thing given that they’ve been working with each other quite a bit as of late.

“Greenery” is a spacious boom bap opener telling everyone to leave him be whereas “Ohohh” takes a more calmer approach talking about acting clean around him. “No Lunch” returns to boom bap territory asking the lil homies what they doing leading into the groovy “My Ppl” paying tribute to his people of course. The song “Crosstheline” comes through with some heavy auto-tune detailing relationship issues while the title track takes a soulful route talking about being the one. “Stuck” ends the EP on a trap note challenging his opposition.

Overall, I think these guys gave us an impressive EP right here & I’m very intrigued by what they’re gonna do next. The amount of versatility that both parties show from Hatfield’s gritty raps to auto-tuned singing as well as DJ BLKLUOS’ production ranging from boom bap to trap really go hand-in-hand with each other & as a result, they present an admirably natural chemistry.

Score: 3.5/5

Your Old Droog – “YOD Wave” review

This is the 5th EP from Ukrainian-American emcee/producer Your Old Droog. Emerging in the underground off his self-titled debut, many first thought he was an alter ego of Nas given that their voices are somewhat similar. Nonetheless, the guy has reached legend status at this point by proving that he was in his own lane off later albums such as Packs & It Wasn’t Even Close. But coming fresh off the incredibly conceptual TIME & Space Bar over the summer & fall respectively, Droog is kicking off his 2022 by enlisting Nicholas Craven to fully produce YOD Wave.

“Fela Kuti” kicks off the whole EP with some gorgeous piano melodies saying he’s being away for too long whereas “Scooby Snacks” takes a more soulful boom bap route looking back on where he came from before getting back to business. “.500” works in some dramatic string sections talking about having less than nothing just before the organ-laced “Purple Rain Freestyle (Game, Blouses)” comes through with some braggadocio.

The song “Black n Red Huaraches” with Tha God Fahim finds the 2 comparing their lives to operas even though the instrumental is my least favorite on the whole EP while the penultimate track “Lost Love” gets romantic over a drumless chipmunk soul sample. Fahim returns once more for the closer “Body Right, Mind Right” to jump on top of some solemn piano chords talking about taking no one’s advice.

Coming from someone who’s been down with Droog since the beginning, I genuinely believe that YOD Wave is the best EP he’s made yet. It’s not as conceptual as his last 2 albums, but he’s just spitting nothing but pure heat for 20 minutes accompanied by some of the most astonishing production that Craven had to offer.

Score: 4.5/5

RZA – “Saturday Afternoon Kung Fu Theater” review

RZA is a 52 year old MC, producer, actor & filmmaker from New York City who’s widely recognized as being the de facto leader the almighty Wu-Tang Clan. But he was the 2nd & last person of the group following GZA to come out with a solo effort before their full-length debut Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers, dropping his debut EP Ooh I Love You Rakeem under Tommy Boy Records just 5 months after The Genius put out his full-length debut Words from the Genius under Cold Chillin’ Records. It wasn’t until late ‘98 though where RZA put out his own debut album Bobby Digital in Stereo, which I think gets criminally overlooked because people were expecting The Cure. He then followed it up with a worthy sequel Digital Bullet, but I can’t say the same for Birth of a Prince or the conclusion to the Bobby Digital trilogy Digi Snax. But after teasing it during Method Man & Redman’s 4/20 Verzuz, he’s returning from a 14-year break in the form of his 4th EP produced entirely by DJ Scratch.

After the intro”, the title track kicks it all off on a symphonic note as Bobby Digital makes his glorious return whereas “Pugilism” mixes some keyboards & strings to get in his shit-talking bag except his vocals are mixed WAY better than it was when he originally dropped it on YouTube last spring. “Never Love Again” keeps the orchestra vibes going getting lovey dovey while the song “Fate of the World” dispiritedly vents about the current state of the world. The penultimate track “Fisherman” goes into jazzy territory talking about how “no one knows for whom the bell tolls” & lastly, “Kaiju” ends the EP getting conscious on top of a militant beat.

I really didn’t know what to expect from this EP given how mid Birth of a Prince & Digi Snax were as well as the 14 year time gap, but I can honestly say this is The Abbot’s best solo effort in 2 decades. I love how DJ Scratch’s production is pretty much a love letter to The RZA’s unique sound down to the Kung Fu movie samples as he details the collision between him & his alter-ego.

Score: 4/5

Jynx716 – “Careful What You Wish For” review

Jynx716 is a 33 year old MC from Niagara Falls, New York who came to my attention in 2020 off his debut mixtape The Green Album. This was followed up last spring with his debut EP The 33 & now just a month after killing a verse on Che Noir’s sophomore album Food for Thought, he’s enlisting Che to produce his 2nd EP from top to bottom & it definitely had me curious to check it out.

“Focus” kicks off the EP with some bells & a high-pitched vocal sample talking about avoiding trouble whereas the Ransom-assisted “Legacy” finds the 2 proclaiming themselves as legends on top of a captivating instrumental. “Electrifying” encourages listeners to stash more & stay in the moment over some fresh ass guitar licks while Stove God Cook$ tags along for the soulful “Lava Lamp” talking about going from broke to where they are now. Jamal Gasol’s verse on the penultimate track “Bitcoin” is a little underwhelming even though I like the chipmunk soul inspired production & “Wake Up” ends the EP on a cinematic note talking about how it’s his turn.

Dude’s been raising this for a few months now & to finally hear it, I can say Careful What You Wish For is the best thing he’s has done yet. Che Noir’s production is incredibly consistent & Jynx is just bringing his A-game rapping his ass off. If he keeps it up at this rate, I feel like he’ll be getting even better over time

Score: 4/5

Mach-Hommy – “Dump Gawd: Triz Nathaniel” review

Mach-Hommy is a 39 year old MC from Newark, New Jersey breaking out in 2017 when he dropped his sophomore album H.B.O. (Haitian Body Odor) under Griselda Records. However, he & Tha God Fahim fell out with them shortly after only to reconcile a little over a year ago & then Mach returned to the label over the spring with one of best albums of last year: Pray for Haiti. Then he followed it up a couple months back with Balens Cho but given the significance of yesterday, Mach is enlisting Conductor Williams to produce his 12th EP from top to bottom.

“Fernet-Branca” sets off the EP with Jay NiCE & Tha God Fahim accompanying Mach on top of a slowed down piano instrumental asking what you know about them while the song “Eskimo Bros.” with Your Old Droog showing an incredible back & forth chemistry over a hallucinogenic beat. The penultimate track “D’Paramountcy” works in a bass guitar as Mach goes back & forth with Fahim as well as he did with Droog, but then both MCs stick around for “Leisure Earned” which is a lavish boom bap closure bragging that they got all the styles.

I’ve been wanting Mach to drop a full project with Fahim & Droog for a minute now, but I think this is the closest thing we’ll get to that for now. Conductor Williams’ production is abstract as fuck, Mach continues to reign as the current King of New Jersey as far as lyricists from that region go & the guests mesh really well with him also.

Score: 4/5

Nicholas Craven – “Craven N 3” review

Nicholas Craven is a 29 year old producer from Montréal, Québec, Canada who gained notoriety in the underground by doing tracks for Griselda, the Dump Gawds, Hus Kingpin, Planet Asia & Ransom just to name a few. He’s also released a handful of beat tapes on his own & even 2 solo EPs: Craven N & Craven N 2. However to warm the fans up for his upcoming projects with Mike Shabb & Your Old Droog dropping later this year, Nicholas is closing out the Craven N trilogy by dropping his 3rd EP.

“Opulence” by Stove God Cook$ is a symphonic opener proclaiming that they’ve won whereas “Yzerman” by Boldy James named after the greatest Detroit Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman takes a glossier route talking about being tied in. “Breaking Atoms” by Evidence works in a soul sample to discuss righting wrongs & needing the pressure present, but then “Anchor” by Navy Blue follows it up with a piano ballad talking about how he ain’t trying to boast.

Meanwhile on “50 Wings”, we have Elucid on top of some killer guitars to discuss grace, peace, prosperity, fortune & wisdom just before “Serotonin” by Pink Siifu brings in some brass talking about seeing & showing it all. The track “YOD Body” incorporates an alluring vocal sample with Your Old Droog delivering some fiery bars & prior to the “Sud Wes Craven” outro, the final song “Nouvelle Religion” by Connaisseur Ticaso educates listeners on some French over a soul loop & it’s really admirable.

You can’t go wrong with either of the previous installments of the Craven N series, but this has gotta be my favorite installment so far. The guests all bring their A-Game lyrically & Nicholas continues to propel himself as one of the best hip hop producers in recent memory. If he keeps it up, 2022 might be his biggest year yet.

Score: 4/5

Insane Clown Posse – “Wicked Vic the Seed” review

The Insane Clown Posse are a horrorcore duo, the founders of Juggalo Championship Wrestling & the longest reigning JCW World Juggalo Tag Team Champions from Detroit, Michigan consisting of Violent J & Shaggy 2 Dope. They originally started as a quartet alongside John Kickjazz & Kid Villain, but both of them left before their full-length debut Carnival of Carnage dropped 3 decades ago & Greez-E only stuck around their best EP in my personal opinion: Beverly Kills 50187. Not only would The Duke of the Wicked & the Southside Strangla go on to create seminal wicked shit albums like The First 6, but they gained an extremely loyal fanbase in the process & their self-owned Psychopathic Records became an independent hip hop powerhouse as the label’s roster continued to grow. I was a bit worried about their latest album Yum Yum Bedlam given that the prelude EP Yum Yum’s Lure was panned by fans when it came out last Juggalo Day but when Halloween came around, they proved me wrong with what I believe to be my 3rd favorite card in the 2nd deck. Here we are 365 days later & they’re actually kicking off The Seeds of Yum Yum trilogy by letting Wicked Vic the Weed be the first in season.

After the repetitive “Wicked Vic” intro, the first actual song “Send in the Clowns” starts off the EP pretty well with J & Shaggs talking about “When makin’ sense makes no sense at all is when you hold the grease paint stick & draw that smile” on top of a playful trap beat whereas “Clown Bounce” is a boom bap-flavored dance tune reminiscent to “Clown Walk” off Forgotten Freshness 4 or even the cringey “Cha Cha Slide” cover “Chop Chop Slide off my 2nd favorite card of the 2nd deck: Bang! Pow! Boom!.

“Mutilator” has a bit of a rock feel to it with the wicked clowns letting listeners in on what it is to be such while the song “Hyde Park Pedaler” goes back to quasi-boom bap turf as Violent J tells the story of the titular serial killer. The actual closer is a cover of the Duran Duran track “Hungry Like the Wolf” except it’s inferior to the rendition that Twiztid happened to do for their 13th album Mad Season a couple years back as for Brian Kuma’s remix of “Ain’t No Time”, it’s alright.

To start off the trilogy, it’s pretty decent. In comparison to the more personal subject matter that the album had to offer, this EP finds J & Shaggs mixing that old school carnival sound with the new sounds they’ve been dabbling in & there’s even some wicked shit laced in as well. Let’s just see how Pug Ugly the Stink Bud & WOH the Weepin’ Weirdo play out.

Score: 3/5

Dr. Dre – “The Contract” review

Dr. Dre is a 56 year old producer, rapper & entrepreneur from Compton, California who came up in the mid-80’s as part of the World Class Wreckin’ Cru octet. They would only put out 2 full-lengths before disbanding, but would go on to have a HUGE impact on the culture. Popularizing gangsta rap as part of N.W.A, getting everyone in the whole west coast to ride the g-funk bandwagon with his solo debut The Chronic, expanding that sound on 2001, the Beats headphones & who can forget introducing likes of Eminem or Kendrick Lamar to the world? His previous album Compton: A Soundtrack by Dr. Dre in the summer of 2015 was said to be his “grand finale” but ahead of his Super Bowl LVI halftime performance next weekend, he’s dropping off 6 new songs attached to GTA V’s latest DLC.

“Falling Up” is an entrancing yet charismatic opener co-produced by Dem Jointz with Dre spitting some braggadocio whereas “Gospel” finds him rightfully calling his ex-wife a gold digger & I don’t mind the piano instrumental backing him, but the Eminem verse will test your patience. Bink! weaves in a soul sample for “Black Privilege” to get in his grown man bag while the late Nipsey Hu$$le tags along for “Diamond Mind” to talk about how crazy their lives have been & those guitar licks that Alchemist uses throughout the beat just gives you nothing but summertime vibes.

The penultimate track “ETA” with has an insane sample of “You’re the One For Me” by The Edwards Generation starting off with Anderson .Paak & Dre going back & forth with one another leading into the playful hook that WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg lays down as well as a monstrous Busta Rhymes verse to end it. “The Scenic Route” closes out the EP on a somewhat jazzier note with Dre going back & forth with none other than Rick Ross to talk about putting their families first in line.

A lot of music tie-ins with movies as well as TV shows & video games have become pretty boring in recent years. However, I knew for a fact that this wasn’t going to be the case with this & I stood corrected. The production & guests all come correct as always, but I should also note that The D.O.C. recently replied to a fan on Twitter saying that Dre’s starting to write his own verses now. If that’s indeed the case, then it’s definitely impressive.

Score: 3.5/5

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