Mick Jenkins – “The Circus” review

This is the 4th EP from Chicago, Illinois emcee Mick Jenkins. Who rose to fame in 2014 with the release of his 3rd mixtape The Water[s]. He then released his debut album The Healing Component & now just a little over a year after his sophomore album Pieces of a Man, he’s taking listeners on a trip to The Circus.

The anti-industry anthem “Same Ol’” still slaps as hard as it did when it first appeared on Mick’s 2018 EP or more…The Frustration & then the next song “Carefree” talks about enjoying life over a smooth Black Milk beat. “The Light” with EARTHGANG talks about taking time & not rushing things over a cloudy beat while the track “Flaunt” of course sees Mick flexing over a druggy beat. “The Fit” gets more insightful over an intoxicating whereas the song “I’m Convinced” talks about how “people know the feelings” over a woozy instrumental. The EP then finishes with “Different Scales”, where Mick continues to show off his smart pen game over a somber boom bap instrumental.

As much as I enjoyed Mick’s last album, this EP was just ok. The rapping is fine, but the beats are hit or miss with me personally. Whenever his next album is coming, I hope the production choices are a lot better.

Score: 3/5

Stu Bangas – “Beats & Blood” review

Stu Bangas is a producer from Boston, Massachusetts who’s been making a name for himself in the underground for decades now from his collaborative work from Philly beat-maker Vanderslice to producing projects for Esoteric & Ill Bill. However to kick off 2020, he’s surprising fans with his 2nd EP.

It all starts with “Open the Lane”, where Detroit’s very own Ty Farris comes through with some vicious battle bars over a dystopian beat. The next song “The Healing Remedy” by Vic Spencer talks about being someone you should idolize over a mellow beat while the track “Inherit the Earth” by Mr. Lif & Nowaah the Flood sees the 2 getting conscious over a suspenseful boom bap beat.

The song “Keeping Time” by Juga-Naut touches down on doing just that over a euphoric instrumental while the track “Gideon” is a vicious Watson & Holmes reunion backed with a suiting Recognize Ali verse. The song “Sound the Horns” by Verbal Kent talks about beefing over a boom bap beat with some perfectly incorporated trumpets while the penultimate track “Prayers Up” by PhybaOptikz speaks about his family over a futuristic-sounding beat. The EP then finishes off with the titular song, where Celph Titled gets murderous over an apocalyptic beat.

To kick off a new decade, it’s pretty solid. A few of the performances could’ve been better to me personally, but Stu‘s production is absolutely great. If you wanna see a beat-making veteran ringing in the new year on a high note, then give this a listen.

Score: 3.5/5

Cactus Jack Records – “JACKBOYS” review

Houston, Texas record label Cactus Jack Records dropping off a brand new showcase EP. Founded in 2017 by trap music’s current mastermind Travis Scott, they’ve been steadily building itself up since its foundation by signing those from Sheck Wes to Don Toliver & Luxury Tax. However when it seemed like Travis was gonna take 2019 off due to the massive success of ASTROWORLD last summer, he’s finally showcasing his camp as a whole with JACKBOYS as a late Christmas gift ahead of UTOPIA.

The EP starts off with a remix to “HIGHEST IN THE ROOM”, which was an obvious leftover from ASTROWORLD. However in this case, Rosalía & Lil Baby both add redundant verses. Then after a 47 second “intro”, we get into the first actual song “GANG GANG”. Where Travis, Sheck & Don get with Luxury Tax to talk about their brotherhood over a woozy trap beat from WondaGurl. The track “HAD ENOUGH” by Don, Offset & Quavo sees the 3 talking about being fed up with this promiscuous woman over a spacey beat while the song “OUT WEST” sees Travis & Young Thug getting sexual over an abrasive Buddah Bless beat. The penultimate track “WHAT TO DO?” by Trav & Don is them describing how they would treat their significant others over a trap beat with a plucky acoustic lead then there’s the closer “GATTI”, where Travis gets with Pop Smoke to talk about people cappin’ over a dark yet bouncy instrumental.

These record label showcase projects are never really all that great to begin with, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that this is a mediocre EP. Travis himself sounds lively as always, but almost everyone else involved seems to be playing it safe both instrumentally & performance-wise. That being said, I’m still really looking forward to what LaFlame is gonna do next year.

Score: 2.5/5

Boldy James – “Boldface” review

Boldy James is a 36 year old MC from Detroit, Michigan who blew up on the scene with his Alchemist produced 2013 debut M.1.C.S. (My 1st Chemistry Set). He then landed a contract with Nas’ independent label Mass Appeal Records, but sadly went to prison for a while. Boldy eventually made his comeback a couple years ago with his House of Blues mixtape & now it seems like he’s trying to rekindle the flame with Uncle Al on his 3rd EP.

It all starts off with “Ill Advised”, where Boldy gets mafioso over a symphonic instrumental. The next song “Method of Madness” continues the lyrical themes of the previous cut over a grimy trap beat while the track “Summer Nights” gets reflective over an instrumental with a harmonious sample. The song “Dinavolino” with The Cool Kids gets homicidal over an intimidating instrumental & even though the closer “My 1st Offense” recalls the first time he got popped over a funky beat, it’s way too short.

If this is just an appetizer for a main course, then I’m all for it. Boldy sounds like he never even left really whereas The Alchemist’s production still fits his gritty pen-game like a glove. Would love to see them make another album together because even though this only runs it 15 minutes, they still recapture what made M.1.C.S. (My 1st Chemistry Set) so great in that short amount of time.

Score: 4/5

Bub Styles – “Smoke Crudo” review

Bub Styles is a veteran MC from Brooklyn, New York that first came on my radar in 2017 with his debut EP Long Nights, Cold Winters in 2017. This was followed up with his sophomore EP Boar’s Head Bubs, Cold Cut King that came out earlier this year & if that wasn’t enough, Bub is teaming up with Philly producer Level 13 for his 3rd EP over here.

The EP starts off with “Lamb & Onion”, where Bub gets mafioso over a luxurious sample. The next song “Loose Blunts” continues the lyrical themes of the previous joint over a woozy beat while the song “By the Way” with ARXV sees the 2 telling their competition to get with the times over a soulful boom bap beat. The penultimate track “Bubble Goose” with Fastlife, Ren Thomas, Effyoo & Madhattan Mayor is a decent East Coast posse cut & then the closer “Hold Up” gets sexual over a smooth sample.

Personally, this is Bub’s best work to date. The features could’ve been better, but Bub’s gritty lyricism & husky voice fits with Level 13’s classy production pretty well for the most part. If they plan on collaborating more in the future, than I’m all for it.

Score: 3.5/5

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