Max B – “House Money” review

Max B is a 41 year old veteran from Harlem, New York who came up as a member of the ByrdGang. He released a solid debut album in 2011 called Vigilante Season but with him setting to be released from prison in 2021, he’s making a comeback with his debut EP.

The opener “Take My Time” talks about the lavish life over a mellow beat while the next song “Super Bad” with French Montana is a decent cut taken from their latest collab mixtape Coke Wave 4 that came out over the summer. The track “Ride on ‘Em” with Jadakiss sees the 2 showing off over a ghostly instrumental while the song “So Cold” with A Boogie wit da Hoodie talks about how dope they are over a woozy instrumental. The track “Never Change” with Wiz Khalifa sees the 2 talking about staying the same despite being famous over a spacey beat. The penultimate track “Goodbye” is pretty much Cam & Max passing the torch over to Dave East & then the closer “Champagne Wishes” with A$AP Ferg is a luxurious club banger.

For a comeback after 8 years, this was ok. Max definitely still has it in him & the features all sound great, but the production that Paul Couture brings to the table is hit or miss. I’d love to see him hook back up with Dame Grease one day, but time will tell.

Score: 3/5

Jam Baxter – “Off Piste” review

This is the 2nd solo EP from London, England, United Kingdom emcee Jam Baxter of the Dead Players & Contact Play. Signing to High Focus Records, his 2010 solo debut Rinse Out Friday / Spack Out Monday was received positively & the sophomore effort The Gruesome Features would see a lot more critical acclaim. …So We Ate Them Whole in 2014 remains amongst High Focus’ most celebrated releases ever, following up Mansion & Touching Scenes to drop Off Piste with less than a month left of the decade.

“Red Hawaiian” produced by Dr. Zygote starts off with a boom bap opener by talking about what he’s got inside his bag whereas “All Clear” featuring Lee Scott finds the 2 speaking of pulling your brain out of your mouth & giving us the all clear. “Drowned Dogs” featuring Datkid teams up over a Dirty Dike instrumental trading verses back-&-forth with each other while “The Stump” advises on top of a Telemachus beat that one should’ve stayed true to themselves from the start.

Coinciding with a brand new book of the same name, Jam Baxter takes a couple loose singles & combines them with 2 previously released songs to craft an extended play that I enjoy a lot than the one he put out 5 years prior. The production’s a cut above Fresh Flesh’s in addition to reaching the same pedestal Touching Scenes did 12 months earlier, spending half of it holding down the fort by himself & the other bringing a couple of his labelmates beside him to add their own distinctive flavors regarding cadences or general mood.

Score: 4/5

Action Bronson – “Lamb Over Rice” review

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This is the 3rd EP from New York rapper, writer, chef & television presenter Action Bronson. Who blew up with release of his first 2 studio albums Dr. Lecter & Well-Done in 2011. This resulted in a joint venture with VICE Music & Atlantic Records along with a couple EPs & mixtapes. The most notable being the Blue Chips duology, Saab Stories & my personal favorite: Rare Chandeliers. Then came Bronson’s major label debut Mr. Wonderful in 2015 which has some of his best songs on there, but the end result would be a more glitzy mixed bag. Bronson’s next effort Blue Chips 7000 would go back to his mixtape roots & it would be his final release on VICE/Atlantic, as he would go onto form the EMPIRE distributed Action Bronson Corporation last year & debuted the imprint with the solid yet somewhat rushed White Bronco. Other than that, Bronson has put out very little music throughout 2019. But with Thanksgiving next week, he has decided to get back with The Alchemist for Lamb Over Rice. Which is honestly the most excited I‘ve been for an ‪Action Bronson‬ project in a while given the quality of his past few projects along with the fact that Alchemist’s production seems to bring the best out of Bronson like on that Rare Chandeliers mixtape & or the Mr. Wonderful single “Terry”, which I can make the argument for being the best song Bronson has ever put out.

The opener “Dmtri” finds Bronson angrily rapping about about knockin’ it out of the box over a calming instrumental while the song “Sven” saying his competition ain’t shit over an almost futuristic sounding beat. The track “Tear Away Shorts” flexes over a boom bap beat with rich keyboards while the song “Accountrements” gets confrontational over a funky bass-line. The track “Descendant of the Stars” is a hard hitting theme song for Bronson’s show Traveling the Stars referencing WWE Hall of Famer Mike Tyson while the song “Just the Way It Is” details his love life over a boom bap beat with a continuous piano note. The EP then finishes off with “Arnold & Danny”, where Bronson & Uncle Al both rap about success over an instrumental that sounds like something out of a 70’s flick.

I was expecting this to be Action Bronson’s best project in a while & that’s definitely what I got. Bronson sounds a lot more focused than he did on White Bronco & much like Rare Chandeliers, the instrumentals that Alchemist bring to the table fits Bronson’s personality like a glove.

Score: 4.5/5

Dream McLean – “ALIEN!” review

This is the 2nd EP & Potent Funk Records debut from Colchester, Essex, England, United Kingdom emcee Dream McLean. Emerging in the late 2000s/early 2010s off the I’m the British Dream duology & The Purple Promo trilogy of mixtapes respectively, he would later make his full-length debut the day prior to my 18th birthday during my senior year of high school with Greyscale preluded by his debut extended play Weatherman. 6 years later & the ALIEN! has returned after signing a label deal.

“Orange” blends rap rock & trap talking about being Ashton Kutcher with the flow the way we’re getting Punk’d whereas “Ameri” goes for an uncanny vibe to the beat keeping it movie despite reality itself. “D.W.” has a more lo-fi trap approach instrumentally talking about bad news coming in 3s while the lead single “E.T.” began the rollout by skillfully capturing his wordplay. “Out” leans towards a hazier sound continuing the witty penmanship & the syrupy “Tuff” concludes with him taking about sticking to your guns even if they’re jammed.

Notable for being amongst the most underrated artists within the UK hip hop scene, ALIEN! begins this new chapter of Dream McLean’s career spanning an entire decade by preluding a sophomore effort entirely produced by Potent Funk co-founder Sumgii with an EP that reaffirms the fact that Dream’s sound has gotten more laidback after all the drugs he’s been taking & him deciding to handle all the vocal performances by himself putting us inside the shoes of an outsider.

Score: 3.5/5

The Bermuda – “The Madd Giants” review

The Bermuda are a duo from Coachella Valley, California consisting of Mad Hatter & Ivy da Giant. They’ve been around for a little less than 4 years now, making their full-length debut in 2016 with Backyard Hooligans. But almost a month after dropping their mic session, they’re following it up with their debut EP.

It all kicks off with “Pow!”, where the duo trade charismatic bars back & forth over a funky boom bap beat. The next song “Lewis & Clark” finds Mad Hatter & Ivy comparing themselves to the explorers of the same name over a grimy beat while the track “Temptations” with King Serrano sees the 3 talking about keeping your head up over a slick boom bap beat with some jazzy horns during the hook. The song “Home” vents about being at a dead end over a melancholic instrumental while the track “Rugged” is laced with clever battle bars over a ghostly boom bap beat. The song “Luminous” talks about enjoying life over a beautiful guitar instrumental & then the EP finishes off with “Celebration”, where The Bermuda talk about the love they’ve gotten over a heavenly instrumental. Especially with the guitar solo at the end.

For an EP, this is the duo’s best work to date in my opinion. You really get a closer look as to who The Bermuda are & where they come from. The production on here is really tight as well. Really looking forward to see where they take things on the next project.

Score: 3.5/5

The R.O.C. – “Monsters Ain’t Real” review

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The R.O.C. is a horrorcore veteran from Detroit, Michigan who got his start as a member of the House of Krazees with Jamie Madrox & Monoxide. When the latter 2 went onto form the duo Twiztid & sign with Psychopathic Records, The R.O.C. hooked up with Skrapz to put out 1 last album under the HOK name before starting a duo of their own called HaLFBrEEd. Although they would only release 1 official album under the HaLFBrEEd name titled Kontamination, it would go on to become a horrorcore classic. Then in 2008, he signed to Psychopathic’s now defunct Hatchet House sub-label & put out his Welcome to the Darkside EP before “retiring” the following year. Eventually, The R.O.C. returned to making music in 2012 & signed to Majik Ninja Entertainment in 2014. His long awaited 3rd album Digital Voodoo finally saw the light of day in 2017 & would go down as his magnum opus in my personal opinion but 2 & a half years later, the Astronomicon mainstay is treating fans with his 6th EP.

After the “Have Some” intro, the first song “From Beneath” finds The R.O.C. comparing himself to a demon to over an orchestral trap beat. The track “A Dream” talks about being in a nightmare over a frightening instrumental from Eric Davie while the song “The Chase” talks about being hunted down over a demented instrumental. And then before the “Next Time” outro, the title track paints a vivid picture of insanity over an electronic-tinged instrumental.

If we’re getting a new full-length album from The R.O.C. in 2020, then this is a fantastic appetizer for the main course because he’s really been putting it down for the 313 for a long ass time yet doesn’t get the props he deserves. He’s always been the most underrated of MNE & this is no exception of proving that from his lyricism getting better with time to his ever-so chilling production skills. Really looking forward to a follow-up to Digital Voodoo whenever that time comes.

Score: 4/5

Crimeapple – “Viridi Panem” review

This is the 8th EP from rising New Jersey spotter Crimeapple, who first blew up in the underground with his Sweet Dreams EP that dropped on Halloween a couple years ago. This was followed up with his Big Ghost Ltd.-produced debut Aguardiente the following year but if dropping Wet Dirt with DJ Skizz & Medallo with DJ Muggs wasn’t enough for Crimeapple in 2019, he’s decided to close out 2019 with Viridi Panem.

After the “Initium” intro, we go into the first song “Lupos”. Where Crimeapple talks about being the greatest over a demented boom bap beat. The next track “Entenmann’s” compares the cocaine he’s pushing to the titular donut shop over a cavernous boom bap beat while the song “D’Angelo Vickers” gets mafioso over a gritty beat.

The track “Alium” gets romantic over a slow yet eerie instrumental while the song “Phil Spectre” goes at his competition over a ghostly instrumental. The penultimate track “Dead Gringos” of course gets murderous over an ambient/boom bap fusion & then the EP ends with “Time to Go”, where Crimeapple brags over a soulful instrumental.

This is yet another example of why Crimeapple is one of the best MCs in the underground right now. His lyricism continues to stay grittier with each release & even the production from Buck Dudley is pretty hard as well.

Score: 4/5

Earl Sweatshirt – “Feet of Clay” review

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This is the new surprise EP from Chicago, Illinois born/Los Angeles, California raised lyricist Earl Sweatshirt, known for being a member of the now defunct Odd Future collective. He made his debut in 2010 with his only mixtape to date Earl which was solid, but Earl’s mother would send him to a therapeutic retreat school for at-risk boys in Samoa sometime after until February of 2012. Earl was then granted his own Columbia Records imprint Tan Cressida Records & released his debut album Doris in 2013 to critical acclaim for improving on Earl. Then came the duo Hog Slaughta Boyz with OF affiliate Na’kel at the beginning of 2015 along with Earl’s sophomore album I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside a couple months after. Many of which consider to be better than Doris for it’s darker aesthetic. Earl laid low until last November with his magnum opus Some Rap Songs & almost a year later, here we are with Feet of Clay.

The opener “74” is pretty much Earl shittalking over a grimy piano sample while the next song “EAST” touches down on alcoholism over an odd accordion sample. The track “M.T.O.B.” talks about the death of his father over a soulful instrumental while the song “OD” venting about loneliness over some horns & background vocals. The track “El Toro Combo Meal” with MAVI sees the 2 getting reflective over a smooth ovrkast. instrumental while the song “Tisktisk / Cookies” vents about depression over a dark instrumental. Then the closer “4N” with Mach-Hommy finds the 2 talking shit just like the opening cut & I really like the clever Michael Henderson sample on here.

This was a nice lil Halloween surprise. It feels more like a small collection of Some Rap Songs leftovers from the lo-fi production as well as the content & the brevity, but I’ll take it. Can’t wait to see where Earl takes things on the next album.

Score: 3.5/5

Kut 1 – “The Icons, Vols. 1 & 2” review

Kut 1 is a producer from Melbourne, Australia & this is the inaugural installment of a series of EPs celebrating the grimier side of underground hip hop. We got Kut paying homage to Queens veteran Neek the Exotic on the first half & then to Bronx titan 9 on the other.

The opener “Welcome to Violence” with Kool G Rap & Royal Flush sees the 3 delivering grim bars in their own unique styles over a sinister instrumental then the next song “We Do It” reclaims his prowess over a high-pitched soul sample. The track “Everything’s on Course” with Large Professor sees the 2 talking about their longevity over a boom bap beat with some luxurious keyboards & then the final Neek song “I Don’t Know” talks about the culture being his life over a blissful instrumental.

Then we get into the second half with “Basquiat”, where 9 talks about his craft over a woozy beat. The next song “When Ah Pull Up” gets into the mind of a criminal over a suspenseful instrumental while the track “Might Get Shot” gets paranoid over a gloomy instrumental. The track “Welcome to New York” is a vivid description of life in 9’s home-state over a mafia-like instrumental & then “Gimme My Money” is a cool bonus cut where 9 perfectly switches up his flow over a militant instrumental. The uncredited guest rap verse near the end was alright too.

For the first installment, this isn’t bad. Neek & 9 both go on to remind us that they’re some of the rawest NY spitters of all-time with Kut 1’s grimy production suiting their bars fantastically.

Score: 4/5

SevidemiC – “Bending Teeth” review

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SevidemiC is a rapper from Compton, California that performs his own style of music called “zombie hop”. The man has released a handful of projects throughout the 2010s, but his biggest breakthrough yet wasn’t until this year when he signed to Lyrikal Snuff Productionz & dropped his 7th EP Xenogod this past March. But with Halloween being 6 days away, Sev has decided to give fans yet another EP.

The opener “Groundfall” talks about how he came to fuck shit up over a glitchy yet moody beat & the song “Solipsistia” right after is an annoyingly repetitive club joint which I completely get, but it just doesn’t do anything for this reviewer personally. The next track “Get Off Me” though is a completely off the wall banger both lyrically & sonically while the song “Zedicine” is another party starter like “Solipsistia”, except SevidemiC’s performances are more captivating & the electro-funk instrumental is infectious. The track “Nip / Tucc” is basically a “fuck everyone” anthem over a bassy trap beat with some synths & then the closer “Amen” finds Sev comparing himself to a demon over a skeletal trap beat.

I honestly think I like this EP more than Xenogod. Bending Teeth continues to reveal how unique SevidemiC truly is to LSP’s roster with it’s synth/trap production as well as his lyricism continuing to step up. Definitely looking forward to his full-length debut with the label even more now.

Score: 3.5/5