Westside Gunn – “Hitler Wears Hermes VII” review

This is the latest mixtape from Buffalo, New York emcee & entrepreneur Westside Gunn, who first rose to stardom in 2016 with his debut album FLYGOD. This has been continued with a handful of mixtapes, his 2018 sophomore album Supreme Blientele & his own label Griselda Records even signing a distribution deal with Shady Records. Westside has a history of releasing new installments of his Hitler Wears Hermes mixtape series on Halloween & despite being delayed a day, this is the 4th year in a row of that.

The opener “FCKNXTWK” finds Westside providing a very brief verse as DJ Drama’s pretty much talking all over some harmonious vocals in the back while the next song “Broadway Joes” is a self proclamation as the King of New York over a rugged beat. The track “Size 42” gets cutthroat over an eerie Daringer beat while the song “Connie’s Son” brags over a soulful beat.

The track “Banana Yacht” with Estee Nack finds the 2 flexing over a grand instrumental & while I like how menacing “GONDEK” is, it’s way too short. The track “Kelly’s Korner” with Fat Joe sees the 2 getting bloodthirsty over a jazzy beat from Statik Selektah while the DJ Green Lantern produced “Undertaker vs. Goldberg” named after WWE’s 2nd annual Super Showdown’s main event gets on the classic Hall ‘N Nash vibe.

The track “Whoopy” talks about wanting to be with this woman over a laidback instrumental while the Animoss produced “Love U” is a better continuation of the previous cut. The track “Kool G” is an epic Griselda cut where Westside, Conway the Machine & Benny the Butcher use the same rhyme scheme throughout with this raw Alchemist/Daringer beat while the song “It’s Possible” with Boldy James & Jay Worthy sees the 3 talking about making it out of the hood over a beautiful soul sample.

The track “Lucha Bros.” with Benny the Butcher & Curren$y named after the current HOG World Tag Team Champions & AAA Mundial Parejas Campeons The Lucha Brothers who’re also former Tag Team Champions in PWG & TNA Wrestling sees the 3 getting rowdy over a vintage Alchemist beat boasting that current AAA Mega Campeon as well as former PWG World Champion, KO-D無差別級王座, DDTエクストリーム王座, KO-Dタッグ王座, KO-D6人タッグ王座, IWGPヘビー級王座, IWGPインターコンチネンタル王座, IWGPジュニアヘビー級王座, IWGPジュニアタッグ王座, the inaugural IWGP USヘビー級王座, NEVER無差別級6人タッグ王座 & the only gaijin to win the G1クライマックス Kenny Omega whipped an extra brick while the song “Westside Gunn Day” goes at Westside’s competition over a symphonic boom bap beat from JR Swiftz. And before a spoken word outro from Keisha Plum, the final song “Kesington Pool” pays tribute to NY over a decent boom bap beat.

This is a lot better than FLYGOD is an Awesome God that came out earlier this year. Westside goes back to his roots more on this one in comparison to taking more risks on his last album. The beats are punchier & the pen game continues to flourish.

Score: 3.5/5

Conway the Machine – “Look What I Became” review

This is the sophomore album from Buffalo, New York emcee Conway the Machine. Who rose to stardom with his brother Westside Gunn & their label Griselda Records just a few years ago. Last we heard from Conway was in July when he dropped the song “Bang” with Eminem, which is the lead single to his upcoming Shady Records debut God Don’t Make Mistakes. And to prep us for it, he’s releasing Look What I Became independently.

The album kicks off with “No Women No Kids”, where Conway gets mafioso over a haunting Alchemist beat. The next song “Hawks” attacks his biters over an intoxicating instrumental & after the “RIP Owen” interlude, the song “Tito’s Back” is just pretty much Conway & Benny the Butcher showing off their chemistry over a Daringer beat with some eerie keyboards.

The track “Black Spoons” gets back on the mafioso tip over a demented DJ Muggs beat while the song “Vino D” with Dave East & Jim Jones pays tribute to Conway’s friend with the same name over a boom bap beat from JR Swiftz. The track “Half of It” talks about his success over an organ-inflicted trap beat from Rick Hyde & then after the “Bells Palsy” interlude, the closer “You Made It” pays tribute to his mother over a relaxing beat from Statik Selektah.

This is a fantastic prelude. Couple tracks I could’ve done without, but the beats are mostly grimy & Conway’s lyricism just keeps progressing with each new project he drops. Definitely looking forward to his major label debut coming soon.

Score: 4/5

Westside Gunn – “FLYGOD is an Awesome God” review

Westside Gunn is an MC from Buffalo, New York who’s been making noise with his label Griselda Records since 2016 with the release of his debut album FLYGOD. They eventually signed a distribution deal with Shady Records in 2017 but now that their major label debut is finally on the way as well as a little over a year after dropping his incredible sophomore album Supreme Blientele, Westside is preparing us for it with his 3rd full-length album & the sequel to the one that got him where he is today.

The album starts off with “Jul 27th”, which is mostly a spoken word piece from Raekwon over some synthesizers. The next song “Sensational Sherri” with Benny the Butcher sees the 2 about living what he raps homaging former WWE Women’s Champion & WWE Hall of Famer Sherri Martel over a sinister beat from none other than The Alchemist while the track “Bautista” named after the 6-time WWE world champion & 4-time WWE Tag Team Champion Dave Bautista gets confrontational over a piano-inflicted boom bap beat. The song “Lunchin’” gets mafioso over a luscious beat & while the song “Ferragamo Funeral” gets murderous over a soulful beat, it’s way too short. The song “1,000 Shot Mac” with Conway the Machine, Hologram & Meyhem Lauren sees the 2 talking about hustling over a classy sample & while I do like the chilled out beat on “Birkin”, Westside’s delivery does nothing for me.

The song “Pete Sake” has little to no Westside Gunn appearance at all, but Conway & Benny make it work as they deliver a raw prelude to their upcoming collab album referencing WWE Hall of Famer & inaugural ECW World Heavyweight Champion Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka. The track “Amherst Station 3” is a somber conclusion to the titular trilogy while the Evidence-produced “Dance Floor Love” is a soulful love tune that works better than I had expected. The penultimate track “Gunnlib” while brief makes me hope that Westside & Madlib do a whole album together in the future because their chemistry on here is flawless & then the album finishes off with “Lakers vs. Rockets”, where the FLYGOD brags over a gritty rap rock beat. However, the Sauce Walka feature is kinda vapid.

While I personally prefer the original FLYGOD, this sequel is definitely worth checking out. A few joints could’ve been stretched out a bit longer & a couple features I could’ve done without, but Westside’s vivid street bars remain & grimy production most definitely remain intact throughout it’s 32 minute runtime.

Score: 3.5/5

Conway the Machine – “Everybody is F.O.O.D. 3” review

Conway the Machine is a 37 year old MC from Buffalo, New York who has been hustling mad hard with his brother Westside Gunn & their label Griselda Records throughout the past couple years. He just dropped his 9th mixtape Everybody is F.O.O.D. last summer with a sequel this past winter & now with his Shady Records debut coming in June, he’s decided to drop a 3rd installment out of nowhere.

The EP kicks off with “Everbody is F.O.O.D.”, where the Machine spits battle bars keeping elbows flying like the late WWE Hall of Famer, 6-time world champion & Intercontinental Champion Randy Savage over an eerie boom bap beat. “The Basement” challenges his competition over a prominent guitar while the song “Country Mike” continues the confrontational themes over some somber keys. The track “Richest in the City” talks about that over a a nocturnal boom bap beat & while I do like the fitting sample as well as the drug dealing story being told on “Egyptian Cloth”, it sounds unfinished. The song “London Pound” with Berner gets boastful over a mediocre trap beat from Cookin’ Soul & then after the “Survival” interlude, the closer “Don’t Judge Me…” picks up as Conway talks about how he speaks his mind over a gloomy boom bap beat.

All & all, this definitely has me looking forward to The Machine’s upcoming Shady Records debut even more. Conway sticks to his guns lyrically & he returns to his boom bap roots for the most part on this one in comparison to the previous installment being more diverse, but it works out fantastically. However, my big complaint is that he could’ve fleshed out a couple tracks & add about 2 more songs in the mix. Nonetheless, great EP.

Score: 4/5

Conway the Machine – “Everybody’s F.O.O.D. 2: Eat What U Kill” review

Conway the Machine is an MC from Buffalo, New York who with his brother Westside Gunn & their label Griselda Records have been taking over the underground over the course of this decade. He just dropped his 9th mixtape Everybody is F.O.O.D. over the summer & now with the end of the year approaching, he’s decided to drop a sequel out of the blue.

The tape begins with “Fentanyl”, where Conway gets boastful over a chaotic Graymatter beat. The next song “224 May Block” talks about having murder on his mind over a dark beat from The Alchemist while the track “Painkillers” is filled with battle bars over a dreary boom bap beat. The song “Hide the Body” with Benny the Butcher pretty much speaks for itself over an eerie beat & after the “Corners” interlude, we go into the track “Cocaine Paid”. Here, Conway talks about the drug game over a surprising trap beat.

The track “G Money on the Roof” talks about people switching on him over a spacious boom bap beat while the song “Overdose” gets introspective over a minimalist instrumental. The penultimate track “Proud of Me” talks about people who expect something from him now that he’s famous over an upbeat instrumental & the closer “Piece of My Heart” is an ode to Benny’s brother Machine Gun Black over another soulful beat.

Overall, this is a fantastic sequel to one of the Machine’s best projects yet. It’s almost as raw lyrically & sonically but like the predecessor, I just wish it was a little longer. Can’t wait to see what Griselda is gonna do in 2019.

Score: 4/5

Westside Gunn – “Hitler Wears Hermes VI” review

Westside Gunn is a 36 year old rapper from Buffalo, New York who started with his brother Conway the Machine in the early 2000’s. However it wouldn’t be until this decade that the 2 would see success, eventually forming their own label Griselda Records & signed with Eminem’s Interscope Records imprint Shady Records. They’ve continued to put out a number of modern classics since, including Conway’s G.O.A.T. (Grimiest Of All-Time) & even Westside’s latest album Supreme Blientele. But now to celebrate Halloween, Westside has delivering the 6th installment of his infamous Hitler Wears Hermes series.

After the “Black Hitler” intro, the first song “GiGi” sees Westside Gunn linking up with Benny the Butcher to vividly talk about drug the dealing game over an orchestral Alchemist instrumental. The track “Versace Will Never Be the Same” continues the themes of “GiGi” over an eerie boom bap beat from Daringer & while the song “Niagara Cafe” gets boastful over a soulful instrumental, it’s way too short. The track “Ready Made” talks about how he’s already been successful over a punchy Marco Polo instrumental. As for Keisha Plum’s poetry at the end, it’s just as insightful as always. The track “SLY (Slide Wit It)” talks about capping someone over a settle yet alluring beat while the “Big Luther Freestyle” with Benny sees the 2 returning to the drug dealer life over a clever Luther Vandross sample.

The track “Niggas in Puerto Rico” has some clever beat switches from The Alchemist throughout & while I do enjoy Westside Gunn’s verse as well as Benny’s, Flee Lord to me personally comes off as a Dollar Tree version of Westside Gunn. After the “Chyno Nyno Speaks” interlude, the song “Amherst Station 2” serves as a fantastically soulful sequel to one of my favorite cuts off of Supreme Blientele. The track “My First Drako” with Nick Grant sees the 2 spitting battle bars over a luscious boom bap beat while the song “Evidence Joint” is essentially Westside advising his competition not to fuck with him over a dreamy yet punchy instrumental from Evidence. The closer “John Bena” named after 16-time WWE world champion John Cena gets murderous over a dark instrumental from none other than DJ Muggs, but the Lil Eto verse at the start is kinda boring to me.

It’s obviously not superior to Supreme Blientele or even the last 2 installments of the Hitler Wears Hermes series, this was still a solid tape. Westside Gunn’s street tales are as intriguing as ever, but some of these songs could’ve been more fully fleshed out. Also, some of the production could’ve been better & the same goes to a couple of the features as well. But still if you’re a big fan of Griselda, you’re gonna enjoy a good chunk of what’s being presented on here.

Score: 3.5/5

Westside Gunn – “Supreme Blientele” review

Just a couple months after his FLYGOD is Good…All the Time EP, Buffalo MC Westside Gunn is delivering his highly anticipated sophomore album. After a spoken word intro from WWE Hall of Famer & 7-time tag team champion Arn Anderson, we go into the first song “GOD$ Don’t Bleed”. Here, the FLYGOD hooks up with Benny the Butcher & Jadakiss get confrontational towards their competition over a haunting soul sample from Daringer. The next track “Dean Malenko” named after the former アイアンマンヘビーメタル級王座, ECW World Television Champion, ECW World Tag Team Champion, 4-time WWE Cruiserweight Champion, WWE United States Champion & WCW World Tag Team Champion is about drug dealing over a boom bap beat with some beautiful piano chords while the song “Brutus” is a bloody Griselda Records posse cut over an epic Pete Rock instrumental named after former WWE Tag Team Champion Brutus Beefcake. The track “Amherst Station” vividly tells the story of the hustler life over a soulful beat while the song “RVD” named after the former 2-time WWE champion, ECW World Television Champion, 6-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 5-time WWE Tag Team Champion, the 4-time & final WWE Hardcore Champion, TNA World Champion & TNA X Division Champion Rob Van Dam gets braggadocious over a boom bap beat with some somber keys. I also like the spoken word passage from Keisha Plum during the second half.

Then we get into my favorite song on the album “Elizabeth” named after the late WWE/WCW manager Ms. Elizabeth where he talks about his street knowledge over a jazzy Alchemist beat. Then it transitions into “Mean Gene” perfectly, where he spits his signature “flyshit” paying homage to WWE Hall of Famer Gene Okerlund over a soulful beat. However, the next 2 tracks “Stefflon Don & “Sabu” are easily the weakest on the entire album. Even if the latter is named after former 2-time ECW World Heavyweight Champion, FTW Champion, ECW World Television Champion, 3-time ECW World Tag Team Champion, JCW World Juggalo Heavyweight Champion, NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion, IWGPジュニアヘビー級王座 & the longest reigning XPW World Heavyweight Champion Sabu. They’re not bad, but they definitely sounded unfinished to me. If he added another verse on both tracks, that would’ve been perfect. The song “Brossface Brippler” with Benny & Busta Rhymes sees the 3 getting murderous over an eerie soul sample from Alchemist that fits the vibe perfectly while the track “Spanish Jesus” with Crimeapple sees the 2 returning to the drug dealer themes over a rap rock beat from Harry Fraud.

“The Steiners” with eLZhi is filled with battle bars named after the 10-time WWE Tag Team Champions, 2-time TNA World Tag Team Champions & 2-time IWGPタッグ王座 The Steiner Brothers Rick & Scott over a joyous boom bap beat from Pete Rock & then “Ric Martiel” with Roc Marciano go back to the drug dealer days over a soulful Roc beat. The track “WESTSIDE” gets braggadocious once again over a sinister Statik Selektah beat & before a spoken word outro from A.A. Rashid, it ends with the epic “WrestleMania 20”. Here, Westside tells us that he’s not playing games over a 9th Wonder instrumental with a prominent acoustic guitar & a smooth Anderson .Paak hook.

As expected, this is Westside’s best work yet. There are a couple tracks that could’ve been fully fleshed out but other than that, the hardcore boom bap production & Westside’s signature street bars is a lot more refined than it was on his 2016 debut FLYGOD

Score: 4.5/5

Conway the Machine – “G.O.A.T. (Grimiest Of All-Time)” review

Conway the Machine is an MC from Buffalo, New York who has been making a name with himself alongside his brother Westside Gunn & their label Griselda Records. They even signed to Eminem’s Interscope imprint Shady Records back in March of this year & after a long wait, he’s releasing his 8th mixtape (which is an abbreviation for Grimiest Of All-Time) & he has enlisted Griselda’s in-house producer Daringer to produce all but 1 track.

The album starts off with the title track, where he’s bragging about his rapping prowess over a killer guitar. The next song “Trump” gets murderous & the production from The Alchemist fits the vibe perfectly. The track “TH3RD F” gets mafioso over a prominent soul sample & the Raekwon verse fits like a glove. The song “Die on X-Mas” with Benny the Butcher sees the 2 getting confrontational over a super eerie instrumental & the track “Rodney Little” with Prodigy sees the 2 getting braggadocious over a haunting boom bap beat.

“XXXTRAS” vividly reflects on his days as a hustler over some horns & militant drums while the track “Bishop Shot Steel” takes a shot at the snakes over a gloomy beat. The track “Mandatory” with Royce da 5’9” sees the 2 taking a jab at their haters over a somber yet menacing beat while the penultimate track “Arabian Sam’s” with Styles P gets murderous over a grimy boom bap beat. “Bullet Klub” featuring Benny the Butcher & Lloyd Banks takes it’s name after the popular 新日本プロレス unit バレットクラブ to tell the studio gangsters what life’s really like in the streets over an ominous instrumental.

Personally, this is Conway’s magnum opus. His lyricism is grittier than ever as is the production & the features are all on point. Griselda is one of my favorite labels right now & this is yet another example of why that is

Score: 4.5/5

Westside Gunn – “FLYGOD” review

Westside Gunn is a 34 year emcee, songwriter, entrepreneur, curator from Buffalo, New York known for his controversial Hitler Wears Hermes mixtape series followed by a couple EPs & founding one of the quickest rising labels I’ve seen in recent memory Griselda Records. Some of the singles building towards his official full-length debut studio album have been universally lauded by the hip hop community in the last several months, making the sky the only limit imaginable.

“Dunks” by Hall ‘N Nash samples “Omen” by Keith Mansfield thanks to Daringer so they can discuss being about that action whereas “Gustavo” references former 2-time CWA Heavyweight Champion, 2-time CWA World Tag Team Champion, 2-time SMW Heavyweight Champion & WWE Hall of Famer Jerry Lawler. “Shower Shoe Lords” featuring Benny the Butcher flips “Baddy” by John Fiddy refusing to give a fuck like they always haven’t while “Vivian at the Art Basel” featuring Your Old Droog finds Camoflauge Monk sampling “Roberta” by Les McCann to assure the hardships of life.

Former アイアンマンヘビーメタル級王座, TNA World Tag Team Champion, WWE Hall of Famer, WCW World Television Champion, WWE United States Champion, 7-time WCW World Tag Team Champions & 4-time WWE Intercontinental Champion Scott Hall gets his flowers on the Roc Marciano-laced “Hall” prior to “Free Chapo” by Hall ‘N Nash displaying the back-&-forth chemistry between the duo while “Over Gold” featuring Meyhem Lauren throws in a bar referring to WWE Hall of Famer, 6-time WWE tag team champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion & 4-time WCW World Television Champion Greg Valentine.

“Bodies on Fairfax” featuring Danny Brown samples “Rainbow Music” by SoLaRiS so they can address everyone who’s been asking for that fly shit from them while “Chine Gun” gives flowers to West’s late cousin who was tragically almost a decade. “King City” featuring Mach-Hommy finds the 2 talking about nobody fucking with them over a boom bap instrumental from Tha God Fahim leading into “Omar’s Coming” by Hall ‘N Nash featuring Roc Marciano uniting the trio to homage the protagonist of The Wire.

The soulful “Mr. T” produced by Apollo Brown changed my life since it was what sparked my loyalty for Griselda only needing 1 brick while “50 In. Zenith” featuring Skyzoo maintains a chipmunk soul vibe courtesy of Statik Selektah talking about a war going on outside. “Albright Knox” featuring Billie Essco returns to the boom bap & the final song excluding the outro “Dudley Boyz” featuring Action Bronson likening themselves to the former 2-time IWGPタッグ王座, NWA World Tag Team Champions, the inaugural 2-time TNA World Tag Team Champions & 18-time WWE tag team champions over an Alchemist beat.

FLYGOD marks Griselda’s official takeover & has quickly become a modern day underground hip hop landmark setting a balance between the vanity, the grimy & occasionally thoughtful. The production primarily handled by GxFR’s in-house producer Daringer except for 7 cuts tends to be either jazzy or lo-fi & themes of griminess, self reflection, wealth, flossing, who West is as a person, his own experiences, what he lives through currently, what he’s had to live through in the past & how he can floss really well.

Score: 4.5/5