Conway the Machine – “You Can’t Kill God with Bullets” review

Brand new LP & the 5th overall from Buffalo, New York emcee Conway the Machine. Blowing up a decade ago as part of the 3 OGs of Griselda Records alongside his brother Westside Gunn & their cousin Benny the Butcher, the trio have had hip hop on lock ever since their arrival by their constant work ethic balancing quality & quality as well as vividly detailing their lives in the streets. Con’s full-length debut From King to a God was my Album of the Year for 2020 & the Shady Records-backed sophomore effort God Don’t Make Mistakes is the most personal he’s ever been. Last we heard the Drumworm Music Group founder by himself was S.F.K. (Slant Face Killah), marking his Roc Nation Records debut with You Can’t Kill God with Bullets.

“Lightning Above the Adriatic Sea” produced by the J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League after the “Gun Powder” intro talks about this being the musical equivalent to the Super Bowl whereas “B.M.G. (Black Man is God)” goes for a soulful boom bap vibe thanks to Sndtrak so he can discuss African American excellence. “Diamonds” featuring Roc Marciano references former WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion & 2-time WWE tag team champion Carlito over a Conductor Williams beat while “Hell Let Loose” featuring Tony Yayo admits that being called names doesn’t mean shit to them.

Timbaland’s instrumental on “Crazy Avery” was fortunately better than I had initially expected it to be due of his recent AI shenanigans talking about his mind being deeper than the deepest river just before “The Painter” reunites with Daringer breaking down all the problems others don’t need in their lives. After the “Undying” interlude, “Nu Devils” featuring G Herbo takes the trap route courtesy of both araabMUZIK & Beat Butcha spittin’ that gangsta shit together while “Otis Driftwood” talks about him getting better with time over a JR Swiftz beat.

“Mahogany Walls” continues the 2nd half promising that Drumwork will reign for all of eternity bringing Conductor’s lo-fi boom bap sound back in the fold while “Parisian Nights” takes a moment to celebrate success over an E. Jones instrumental with chopped & screwed vocals at the backend of it. The lead single “17.5” goes for a drumless direction stylistically using the pen to paint imagery of the gangsta lifestyle while “Attached” featuring Lady London talking about the future being nonexistent when you’re living in the past.

Apollo Brown chops up a soul sample throughout “Never Sleep” adding some kicks and snares into the picture, asking God to forgive him for his foul ways while “Hold Back Tears” talks about the feeing of losing someone in your life that was close to your heart. The Alchemist strips the drums 1 last time during “Organized Mess” detailing the life money has brought him for the past 10 years & the closer “Don’t Even Feel Real (Dreams)” sends it all off on the soulful boom bap tip talking about his success being surreal to him.

Conway taking more time with You Can’t Kill God with Bullets than he did Won’t He Do It & S.F.K. (Slant Face Killah) was a very smart idea in my opinion because as much as I love both it’s predecessors, I can certainly tell you that this is the most I’ve enjoyed an album from him since God Don’t Make Mistakes. He takes a relatable approach to songwriting relating to whatever many are doing in life whether be celebrating, dating, lost someone special or struggling with mental health all whilst maturing the feeling of Reject 2 & G.O.A.T. (Grimiest Of All-Time).

Score: 4.5/5

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Westside Gunn – “Heels Have Eyes III” review

Buffalo, New York emcee, songwriter, entrepreneur, curator & professional wrestling promoter/booker Westside Gunn celebrating Halloween with the final chapter of the Heels Have Eyes trilogy. Proving his legend status & that he’s a force to be reckoned with all in nearly a decade whether it be running one of the hottest hip hop labels in recent memory to his first 2 full-lengths FLYGOD & Supreme Blientele. The success of the 4th Rope independent professional wrestling circuit has included 2-time RoW Heavyweight Champion Zilla Fatu becoming the inaugural 4th Rope Heavyweight Champion carrying on the legacy of his late father in former AJPW世界タッグ王座, FMWハードコアタッグチームチャンピオン and 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion Umaga as well as former 2-time WWE Cruiserweight Champion Real1 becoming the inaugural 4th Rope Flyweight Champion and even the current 4-time TNA World Tag Team Champions The Hardy Boyz becoming the inaugural 4th Rope World Tag Team Champions, following up Heels Have Eyes II with Heels Have Eyes III instead of FLYGOD is an Awesome God III.

“Free Rolleys” featuring Benny the Butcher & produced by CG after an intro from former JCW World Juggalo Heavyweight Champion Joshua Bishop begins with a boom bap instrumental & Benny dissing Freddie Gibbs whereas “Mankind” featuring Stove God Cook$ references WWE Hall of Famer, former 3-time WWE Champion, 11-time WWE tag team champion, the inaugural WWE Hardcore Champion, CWA World Tag Team Champion & TNA World Champion Mick Foley over a soulful Daringer beat.

We have Westside Gunn over a boom bap instrumental with strings during “Eddie Bauer” shouting out the titular outdoor recreation brand just before “Tito Santana” featuring Rome Streetz gives their flowers to the WWE Hall of Famer, former ECW World Heavyweight Champion, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion & 2-time WWE Tag Team Champion of the same name. The pianos Denny LaFlare works in during “Tiffany Blue” suit the Halloween timing & West lets off some insane rhyme schemes.

“R-Truth” salutes the former 2-time NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion, 2-time NWA World Tag Team Champion, TNA World Tag Team Champion, 2-time WWE United States Champion, 2-time WWE Hardcore Champion & 2-time WWE tag team champion who recently made his foray into country music this summer while “Babas” gives off a lo-fi boom bap vibe instrumentally referencing WWE Hall of Famer, 2-time WWE Champion & WWE Tag Team Champion Bob Backlund.

After the “Grey St.” interlude, the final song “Gus Smacker” featuring Brother Tom Sos provides a taste of what’s to come from the latter’s upcoming debut album in 2026 teaming up over this jazzy beat talking about how some people need to be using common sense & an outro from former JCW World Juggalo Heavyweight Champion Joshua Bishop is what officially ends the Heels Have Eyes trilogy tying things up the way he started it only 25 & a half minutes earlier.

The insert of the Heels Have Eyes III states that FLYGOD is an Awesome God III will be released “soon” & whether that be within the next couple months or sometime the following year, Westside Gunn carries on his tradition of celebrating Halloween concluding what he started during WrestleMania XLI weekend curating 25 & a half minutes of the mafioso rap he’s become celebrated for with the production going from boom bap to jazz rap & drumless.

Score: 4/5

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Westside Gunn – “Heels Have Eyes II” review

This is the 13th mixtape from Buffalo, New York emcee, songwriter, entrepreneur, curator & now professional wrestling promoter after forming the 4th Rope independent circuit promotion Westside Gunn. Proving his legend status & that he’s to be a force to be reckoned with all in nearly a decade whether it be running one of the hottest hip hop labels in recent memory to his first 2 full-lengths FLYGOD & Supreme Blientele. The success of the 4th Rope promotion has included 2-time RoW Heavyweight Champion Zilla Fatu becoming the inaugural 4th Rope Heavyweight Champion carrying on the legacy of his late father in former AJPW世界タッグ王座, FMWハードコアタッグチームチャンピオン and 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion Umaga as well as former 2-time WWE Cruiserweight Champion Real1 becoming the inaugural 4th Rope Flyweight Champion and even the current 4-time TNA World Tag Team Champions The Hardy Boyz becoming the inaugural 4th Rope World Tag Team Champions, releasing a sequel to Heels Have Eyes.

“Heel Cena” after the “Bommes des Garçon” intro references 17-time WWE world champion, 4-time WWE tag team champion & 5-time WWE United States Champion John Cena’s short run as a heel over a vintage boom bap instrumental from CG whereas “Amira Kitchen” featuring Brother Tom Sos jazzily talking about everything working because God said it would. “Powerhouse Hobbs” featuring Benny the Butcher has to be one of the the grimiest moments here thanks to Denny LaFlare giving a nod to the current AEW World Trios Champion & former AEW TNT Champion alongside former 2-time AEW International Champion Will Ospreay leading into Conductor Williams sampling “Can You Lose by Following God” by Johnnie Frierson for “Mandela” & FLYGOD flowing all over it.

Stove God Cooks joins Westside Gunn on the Harry Fraud-produced “Brikolai Volkoff” referencing none other than the late WWE Hall of Famer & former WWE Tag Team Champion Nikolai Volkoff while “Aunt Gina” featuring Skyzoo dedicates itself to all type of people that they know from those in prison to brick movers. “Glowrealah” gives off a hypnotic boom bap vibe talking about possibly getting him a country chick just before “Prick” featuring Brother Tom Sos kicks the pianos back in effect talking about seeing dope fiends & broken dreams.

The song “Demna Left Balenci” begins the final leg of Heels Have Eyes II with DJ Muggs chopping up a soul sample & a bar referring to another current AEW World Trios Champion & former 2-time AEW TNT Champion Samoa Joe in addition to his reign as AEW World Champion while “Blow Hendry” featuring MIKE drumlessly references former TNA World Champion & the longest reigning TNA Digital Media Champion Joe Hendry, whom I had the pleasure of meeting at Astronomicon 8 this spring. The tape finishes with a sequel to the “Love U” interlude off Hitler Wears Hermes VII being used as an outro this time.

In no way am I trying to discredit the projects that followed Hitler Wears Hermes X because I enjoy And Then You Pray for Me for his attempt at experimenting with trap & Hitler Wears Hermes XI this past Valentine’s Day even if I still maintain that it felt more of a Peace FLYGOD sequel, but Heels Have Eyes II contains some of Westside Gunn’s greatest performances since what was originally the concluding chapter of his infamous mixtape series that continues today going back & forth between drumless & boom bap production with 5 other guests whose pen-games are individually unparalleled.

Score: 4.5/5

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Westside Gunn – “Heels Have Eyes” review

Here we have the 7th EP from Buffalo, New York emcee, songwriter, entrepreneur, curator & now professional wrestling promoter after forming the 4th Rope independent circuit promotion Westside Gunn. Proving his legend status & that he’s to be a force to be reckoned with all in nearly a decade whether it be running one of the hottest hip hop labels in recent memory to his first 2 full-lengths FLYGOD & Supreme Blientele. The success of the 4th Rope promotion has included 2-time RoW Heavyweight Champion & current HoG Crown Jewel Champion Zilla Fatu becoming the inaugural 4th Rope Heavyweight Champion carrying on the legacy of his late father in former AJPW世界タッグ王座, FMWハードコアタッグチームチャンピオン and 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion Umaga & even the current 3-time TNA World Tag Team Champions The Hardy Boyz becoming the inaugural 4th Rope World Tag Team Champions, putting together a joint pay-per-view with the Brett Lauderdale-owned deathmatch promotion Game Changer Wrestling (GCW) called For the Culture that will be taking place in Las Vegas tonight ahead of WrestleMania XLI live on the Comcast Corporation subsidiary NBCUniversal-owned streaming service peacock, surprise-releasing Heels Have Eyes to coincide with it.

After the “Fishscale Friday” intro, the first song “Einstein Kitchen” produced by CG is this piano-based boom bap opener taking y’all to the spot where the rhymes are cooked leading into the drumless “Goro” that Harry Fraud laced admitting that he had to go back inside the kitchen so he can go to SummerSlam XXXVIII in August that’ll mark the 1st to take place across 2 nights. “Davey Boy Smith” returns to the boom bap thanks to Denny LaFlare homaging the late WWE Hall of Famer, former WWE Intercontinental Champion, 2-time WWE Tag Team Champion & 2-time WWE Hardcore Champion of the same name & the closer “Egypt” featuring Doechii on the remix soulfully references former ROH World Television Champion, NXT Champion & 3-time WWE tag team champion Tommaso Ciampa.

In what’s already been a huge week for professional wrestling with WrestleMania along with AEW Dynamite outliving WCW’s Monday Nitro as Discovery Global’s longest running wrestling show in spite of WWE Hall of Famer & former 3-time WCW Hardcore Champion Eric Bischoff, West drops off a quick 10-minute EP to warm everyone up ahead of 4th Rope’s biggest event yet with the east coast hip hop styles that’ve made GxFR so beloved in the past decade & one that I might like more than the EP he put out 5 months ago. The production balances boom bap, drumless, a hint of jazz rap & chipmunk soul fluidly on top of the iconic curator handling the vocal performances solely by himself in contrast to having a bunch of guests on it.

Score: 4.5/5

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Westside Gunn – “Hitler Wears Hermes XII” review

Buffalo, New York emcee, songwriter, entrepreneur, curator & now professional wrestling promoter after forming the 4th Rope independent circuit promotion Westside Gunn continuing the Hitler Wears Hermes series with his 12th mixtape & the 12th installment overall. Proving his legend status & that he’s to be a force to be reckoned with all in nearly a decade whether it be running one of the hottest hip hop labels in recent memory to his first 2 full-lengths FLYGOD & Supreme Blientele. Initially set to come last month, the 12th chapter is here ahead of joint pay-per-view between 4th Rope & Game Changer Wrestling (GCW) called For the Culture taking place in Las Vegas during the same weekend as WWE’s WrestleMania XLI live on the Comcast Corporation subsidiary NBCUniversal streaming service peacock.

After the “Michelle World” intro, the first song “Boswell” featuring Estee Nack & Stove God Cook$ is this 5-minute boom bap opener dropping hardcore lyricism including a reference to the current ROH World Tag Team Champion & ROH World 6-Man Tag Team Champion Dustin Rhodes leading The Sons of Texas faction in AEW/ROH over a sample provided by Denny LaFlare whereas “Adam Page” featuring Stove God named after the former AEW World Champion, AEW World Tag Team Champion & 2-time ROH World 6-Man Tag Team Champion who became more over after his feud with former AEW World Champion, AEW World Tag Team Champion, CZW World Heavyweight Champion, CZW Wired TV Champion, 3-time DEFY World Champion, DEFY Tag Team Champion, Evolve Champion, MLW World Heavyweight Champion & NXT North American Champion Swerve Strickland talks about being crazy rich these days.

“Veert” by Estee Nack & Stove hops over a drumless piano instrumental from Daringer to showcase their skills the soulful “055” demands you praise West & Stove. “Health Science” featuring Brother Tom Sos that the homie CG slickly laced lets off shots to the head as if it’s personal leading into Brother Tom Sos sticking around for “Gumbo Yaya” having somewhat over a funkier vibe to the beat talking about them living it & having it for a grip. “East Miami” featuring Estee Nack strips the drums again to portray the gangsta lifestyle for 4 & a half minutes just before “Bury Me with a Stove” featuring Estee Nack gives their flowers to former 4-time WWE world champion, WWE United States Champion & CWA Heavyweight Champion Sid Eudy.

The only single “Outlander” finds Rick Hyde’s son & Benny the Butcher’s nephew Myles behind the boards interestingly hitting the backend of the 12th installment of the Hitler Wears Hermes saga referencing the late WWE Hall of Famer, former WWE Intercontinental Champion, 3-time WWE United States Champion, WWE Tag Team Champion & 2-time WCW World Television Champion “Rowdy” Roddy Piper showing some jazzier influences this time around prior to the drumless “Dump World” featuring Stove God Cook$ taking shots at those who failed at throwing dirt on their names.

Hitler Wears Hermes XI last Devil’s Night was a huge indication that the infamous series can carry on right when everyone initially thought Hitler Wears Hermes X would be the end of it & if anything, Hitler Wears Hermes XII feels more like a sequel to Peace FLYGOD other than both of Brother Tom Sos’ appearances primarily because of Estee Nack & Stove God Cook$ being featured all over it like they were on Peace FLYGOD in addition to the strong production during the 43 & a half minutes.

Score: 3.5/5

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Westside Gunn – “Still Praying” review

Here we have the 8th studio LP from Buffalo, New York emcee, songwriter, entrepreneur, curator & now professional wrestling promoter/booker with the foundation of his own 4th Rope independent circuit promotion Westside Gunn. Proving his legend status & that he’s to be a force to be reckoned with all in nearly a decade whether it be running one of the hottest hip hop labels in recent memory to his first 2 full-lengths FLYGOD & Supreme Blientele. He just put out the 11th installment of his infamous Halloween mixtape series Hitler Wears Hermes yesterday & is now following up And Then You Pray for Me with Still Praying.

After the “Waly Fay” intro & the “Justin Roberts” skit provided by the AEW Yapper Dapper who started in WWE over 2 decades ago, the first song “Beef Bar” produced by Denny LaFlare & Statik Selektah is a lavish boom bap opener welcoming everyone to the lifestyles of the rich & famous whereas “Max Caster” named after the former AEW World Tag Team Champion & AEW World Trios Champion of The Acclaimed dustily worries about the almighty dollar. “Dr. Britt Baker” featuring Brother Tom Sos named after the former AEW Women’s World Champion keeps it in the basement thanks to DJ Muggs introducing y’all to the dentist who gave them multi-million dollar smiles & “I Know Verdy” maintains a boom bap edge refusing to show pity.

“Speedy 40” hopped over this slow, morbid instrumental from long-time Griselda in-house producer Daringer talking about being too greedy while the cutthroat “Duran Duran” that JR Swiftz laced salutes Jeff Hardy of the current 3-time TNA World Team Champions The Hardy Boyz. “Runway Pieces at the Last Supper” works in a mellow backdrop mixed with kicks & snares reflecting on the war they used to have while “Free Shots” by Hall ‘N Nash or hip hop’s equivalent to former 2-time AEW World Tag Team Champions, ROH World Tag Team Champions, AAA Mundial Parejas Campeons, IWGPタッグ王座, & 5-time WWE tag team champions FTR after “Bike Air” interlude pays homage to incarcerated Drumwork Music Group artist Shots Almigh over a Conductor Williams beat.

The title track featuring Benny the Butcher, Boldy James, Conway the Machine & Stove God Cook$ pushes towards the final moments of Still Praying with this insane 7-minute Griselda posse cut while the song “Underground King” featuring Rome Streetz returns to the boom bap talking about how both of them are the greatest of all shit talkers including a reference to former 2-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, 2-time WCW World Television Champion, 3-time WCW World Tag Team Champion & 5-time WWE United States Champion Lex Luger. “LeSalle Station” properly finishes the album by reflecting on all the people that he’s lost back to back.

Coming off the most personal project that West has ever made Hitler Wears Hermes XI only 24 hours ago, he’s continuing the hot streak with a follow-up to And Then You Pray for Me that I think people are gonna like a lot more than the predecessor. The production is rooted in the traditional boom bap sound Griselda is known for in contrast to the trap heavy influences of last time & the guests all maintain his level on the mic.

Score: 4/5

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Conway the Machine – “S.F.K. (Slant Face Killah)” review

Buffalo, New York emcee Conway the Machine is back with his 4th LP. Blowing up in late 2015 as part of the 3 OGs of Griselda Records alongside his brother Westside Gunn & their cousin Benny the Butcher, the trio have had hip hop in a headlock ever since their arrival by their constant work ethic balancing quality & quality as well as vividly detailing their lives in the streets. Con’s full-length debut From King to a Godwas my Album of the Year for 2020 & the Shady Records-backed sophomore effort God Don’t Make Mistakes is the most personal he’s ever been. Won’t He Do It just celebrated it’s 1-year anniversary last weekend & coming fresh off the Conductor Williams-produced Conductor Machine from last winter, Won’t He Do It 2 is now being scrapped in favor of S.F.K. (Slant Face Killah).

After the “Despertar” intro, the first song “Mutty” featuring Stove God Cook$ is a dusty boom bap opener produced by Conductor Williams explaining that those who fucked with them ain’t here to talk about it whereas “Give & Give” takes the soulful route instrumentally thanks to Cool & Dre needing something to hold on to. “Milano Nights, Pt. 1” works in some pianos, kicks & snares to break down overcoming all trials & tribulations just before “Kin Xpress” featuring Larry June psychedelically strips the drums talking about being unfuckwitable.

“Meth Back!” featuring Flee Lord, Method Man & SK da King brings the quartet together returns to the boom bap thanks to Daringer talking about this being a stickup leading into “Ninja Man” going into a luxurious direction courtesy of Swizz Beatz addressing those out here who stay talking. Joey Bada$$ joins Conway for the grimy 2nd single “Vertino” with Camoflauge Monk & Sadhugold behind the boards boasting how raw they are, but then “10 / Rya” featuring Key Glock is this 2-part trap joint that Don Cannon laced talking about being on 10.

“Dasani” throws these pianos & hi-hats into the picture talking about having this bitch running while “Raw!” featuring Tech N9ne finds Cardo pulling inspiration from the Memphis scene boasting their lyrical ferocity. “Surf & Turf” featuring Ab-Soul, Jay Worthy, T.F & 2-11 brings everyone together for some jazzy gangsta shit referencing WWE Hall of Famer, former 6-time WWE Champion, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 2-time WWE United States Champion, 5-time WWE Tag Team Champion & NWA World Tag Team Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin while “Karimi” comes with a hazy boom bap flare talking about wanting the bread. “The Red Moon in 大阪” ends the album with climactic closer produced by The Alchemist including a bar referring to the Los Angeles Dodgers’ designated hitter/pitcher 大谷翔平.

Won’t He Do It had its high points despite not being one of my favorite projects in Con’s discography, but what was supposed to a sequel tot get previous LP we got from La Maquina over a year ago makes improvements in the departments where it was lacking. The production is a mix of boom bap & trap generally, we have an interestingly versatile guest-list & the Drumwork founder passionately explains why they call him the S.F.K. (Slant Face Killah).

Score: 4/5

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Westside Gunn – “And Then You Pray for Me” review

Westside Gunn is a 41 year old emcee, songwriter, entrepreneur & curator from Buffalo, New York proving his legend status & that he’s to be a force to be reckoned with all in only the span of 8 years whether it be running one of the hottest hip hop labels in recent memory to his first 2 full-lengths FLYGOD & Supreme Blientele. Last we heard from West was the 10th & final installment of his infamous Hitler Wears Hermes mixtape series last fall only 3 days before Halloween, but is making his 7th & final official LP a sequel to his 4th one Pray for Paris over 3 & a half years ago already.

After the “FLYGOD DiD” intro, the first song “Mamas PrimeTime by Hall ‘N Nash featuring J.I.D is a dusty boom bap opener produced by Beat Butcha & Mr. Green boasting about how devine they are whereas “Kostas” by Griselda goes into trap territory thanks to Tay Keith including a bar about the Indiana Jones franchise owned by The Walt Disney Company subsidiary Lucasfilm. “1989” featuring Stove God Cook$ finds the 2 turning up 36 ounces in public housing even though Westside’s chopped & screwed verse is distracting, but then “Suicide in Selfridges” works in a hazy loop with kicks & snares courtesy of Conductor Williams so DJ Drama can help welcome y’all to the new golden era.

Stovey returns for the orchestral “Kitchen Lights” explaining that the wrists be shining differently leading into “FLYGOD 2x” flexing the fact that he can get anything these days over a lo-fi boom bap beat. “DunnHill” featuring Rick Ross finds the 2 over more trap production making it clear that the protocol is to hit everybody just before “House of Glory” named after the Amazing Red & Brian XL’s independent circuit wrestling promotion of the same name that Westside Gunn & Master P have invested themselves into has a beautifully classy RZA instrumental flipping Gladys Knight so West & Stove God asking what they’d have to weigh it for since it’s all good.

Estee Nack joins Westside & Stovey for “JD Wrist” over a futuristic trap beat from FLYGOD Jr. with additional vocals from DJ Trap-A-Holics cautioning not to trip like this while “Disgusting” featuring Giggs keeps the spacey vibes going with some hi-hats in the mix with a bar about The Simpsons trademarked by The Walt Disney Company & on the Fox Corporation’s flagship property. “Chloe” luxuriously returns to the boom bap provided by Denny LaFlare getting his romance bag while “LL Bool Gunn” finds West singing over some keys & hi-hats paying homage to LL Cool J himself.

“Babylon Bis” featuring Stove God Cook$ has a sumptuous boom bap quality to it that JR Swiftz hooked up talking about them knowing their drug of choice prior to “Ultra GriZelda” featuring Denzel Curry justifiably boasting that they be running shit up over a cloudy trap beat. “Jalen Rose” featuring Boldy James looks at Daringer pulling off an eerie trap vibe showing off their globetrotter statuses while “Steve & Jony” featuring EST G compares themselves as the Steve Jobs & Jony Ive of the streets over a woozier instrumental.

Jeezy slides through on the energizing “Mr. Everything” to drop some braggadocio in their own respective styles while “Freddy Js” featuring Detroit trap star Peezy finds the 2 over some piano chords talking about their eastside roots. “The Revenge of the Flips Leg” featuring Rome Streetz brings back the kicks & snares showing respect to Eastside Flip, but the title track featuring KayCyy closes out West’s last LP on a peaceful & beautifully sung note.

Pray for Paris is easily one of my favorites from the FLYGOD, so to hear And Then You Pray for Me as a counterpart makes a noticeable change in sound. The production’s more based around trap music even though he doesn’t abandon his boom bap/drumless roots at all as he pulls inspiration from all across the world by bringing a humongous list of guests with him throughout the journey.

Score: 4/5

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Conway the Machine – “Won’t He Do It” review

Conway the Machine is a 41 year old MC & entrepreneur from Buffalo, New York who blew up in late 2015 as part of the 3 OGs of Griselda Records alongside his brother Westside Gunn & their cousin Benny the Butcher. Ever since the trio have rose to prominence, they’ve had hip hop on lock by their constant work ethic balancing quality & quality as well as vividly detailing their lives in the streets on top of boom bap production kin to that of RZA & Havoc in their music. Con’s full-length debut From King to a God was my Album of the Year for 2020 & the Shady Records-backed sophomore effort God Don’t Make Mistakes is the most personal he’s ever been. But coming off Organized Grime 2 & the Big Ghost Ltd.-produced What Has Been Blessed Cannot Be Cursed, the Machine is now making up for the delays surrounding his long-awaited 3rd album by dropping it ahead of a sequel later this month supposedly.

“Quarters” lets it off with a boom bap instrumental courtesy of Khrysis talking about how everyone knows the way they rock & catch you comin’ out your bitch spot whereas “Brucifix” gets on some good ol’ Hall ‘N Nash shit with Daringer dabbling with drumless bare loops talking about how neither he or West don’t rock with any of these industry motherfuckers. “Monogram” has a more luxurious approach to it expressing his desire to sell cocaine forever just before Ransom comes into the picture for “Stab Out” to smoke everybody over some pianos, kicks & snares courtesy of JR Swiftz:

Moving on to “Flesh of My Flesh”, we have La Maquina confessing it’s still hard to fathom what over done with Daringer pulling from rock music a bit with the beat leading into “Kanye” literally gives everyone something to talk about considering Hall ‘N Nash’s stellar feature on “Keep My Spirit Alive” (the original KayCyy version all day. He should’ve never fucked with it) off DONDA a couple summers ago & both of them in the studio with Dr. Dre last August around the 1-year anniversary saying he had some convos with the my 6th favorite producer of all-time that he’ll simply keep to myself over a piano instrumental from the J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League.

Jae Skeese comes into the picture for “The Chosen” sampling “Above & Below” by Charlie Steinnman displaying the strong chemistry that we got a couple months ago on their recent collab EP Pain Provided Profit prior to GooseByTheWay & Dave East sliding through for “Water to Wine”, which is an exquisite ballad that E. Jones laced for the girls that just wanna have fun. “After the “Kill Judas” interlude, “Brick Fare” acknowledges that he’s been a shooter comparing his lyricism to former 2-time UFC Heavyweight Champion Stipe Miocic alongside 2-time WWE Hall of Famer, former 16-time WWE world champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, 6-time WWE United States Champion, 6-time WWE tag team champion & 9-time NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair over a spooky boom bap beat while “Brooklyn Chop House” with Benny the Butcher & Fabolous ditches the drums for a bare string instrumental talking about their progress being impossible to stifle.

The song “Tween Cross Tween” works in some kicks, snares & a flute from Graymatter saying you can play all you want as he stays grinding while the title track with 7xvethegenius comes through with a buried sample from Cozmo & G Koop talking about trying to get more cheddar even though people are envious of them. “Super Bowl” featuring Sauce Walka was the lead single to this album & ends the album with a decent trap banger produced by Juicy J dropping braggadocio.

God Don’t Make Mistakes happens to serve as the bridge to the next phase of his already decorated career that begins with Won’t He Do It & it’s a super solid look into what the future holds for him even though he never disappoints to begin with. The hooks are kinda iffy, but the production is a fine melting pot of the sounds he’s dabbled with up to this point & Con’s bars absolutely make up for it.

Score: 4/5

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Westside Gunn – “Hitler Wears Hermes X” review

This is the 11th mixtape from Buffalo emcee, songwriter & entrepreneur Westside Gunn. Whether it running one of the hottest hip hop labels in recent memory to his first 2 full-lengths FLYGOD & Supreme Blientele, he truly has proven his legend status & that he’s to be a force to be reckoned with all in only the span of 7 years. just put out his last tape PEACE FLYGOD over the summer & with in tradition to the Halloween season, West is dropping the true conclusion of the decade long Hitler Wears Hermes mixtape series after originally dropping the 8th & 9th installments last fall.

Doe Boy tags along for the trap opener “FLYGOD Jr.” produced by West’s son hence the title after the intro to spit some gangsta-laced braggadocio whereas “Super Kick Party” works in a sample-based boom bap instrumental courtesy of Conductor Williams taking it’s name after the finisher of AEW EVPs, former 2-time AEW World Tag Team Champions, the inaugural AEW World Trios Champions, 2-time ROH World Tag Team Champions, 2-time ROH World 6-Man Tag Team Champions, HoG Tag Team Champions, AAA Parejas Campeons, 2-time IWGPタッグ王座, 7-time IWGPジュニアタッグ王座, 3-time NEVER無差別級6人タッグ王座 & 4-time PWG World Tag Team Champions The Young Bucks.

A$AP Rocky & Stove God Cook$ both come into the picture for the uncanny yet dusty “Shootouts in Soho” getting on their hustler shit including a bar referring to WWE Hall of Famer Mr. T, but then Black Star tags along for the heavily soulful “Peppas” to blend their conscious styles with Westside’s boasting including a reference to former 2-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones & him using an excerpt of his appearance on the Discovery Global-owned TNT series AEW Rampage last month for the outro is the ultimate flex.

Meanwhile on “Nigo Louis”, we have West over a drumless yet groovy beat with a guitar talking about hitting shit in broad daylight leading into the Rome Streetz-assisted “BDP” spitting that fly gangsta shit hitting harder than UFC Hall of Famer, the inaugural UFC Women’s Batnamweight Champion, former WWE Women’s Champion & the current WWE Women’s World Champion in her 2nd reign Ronda Rousey accompanied by a crooning boom bap instrumental. The Margo Guryan flip from Swizz Beatz throughout “Science Class” with Busta Rhymes, Ghostface Killah, Raekwon & Stovey is remarkable as the 5 talk about being the plug just before “God is Love” weaves a drumless sample into the fold prior to a beat switch during the last minute & a half as Estee Nack & Stove God talking about how they done made this work.

The song “Switches on Everything” with Run the Jewels has a jazzier sound to it thanks to Mike Shabb admitting the only way to get them to leave the crib while the penultimate track “Mac Don’t Stop” turns the jazz levels up to 11 with the help of Pete Rock including a bar referring to lucha libre popularized by the Lutteroth family-owned Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) & it’s rival promotion Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA) owned by the Peña–Roldán family. “Red Death” however ends the tape with an epically grimy 10-minute Griselda cut produced by none other than The Alchemist showcasing the unique styles of everyone who laid & killed their verses.

Now as solid was Hitler VIII & IX both were in their own rights, X to me is a great note to end the iconic Halloween mixtape series on in light of Ye formerly known as Kanye West’s antisemitic comments at the beginning of the month & I wanna thank West for all the memories that it’s given me along the way. It’s more focused than PEACE FLYGOD as expected, the features all compliment him in their own respective fashion & the production throughout is just absolutely stellar.

Score: 4.5/5

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