Onoe Caponoe – “Tears of the Dragon” review

London, England, United Kingdom emcee/producer Onoe Caponoe continuing summer with his 6th LP. Introducing himself in the early 2010s off his debut mixtape Central Control as well as Willows Midnight Gallery & Holy Mountain, it wasn’t until The Staircase to Nowhere caught the attention of High Focus Records & made his full-length debut for the label with Voices from Planet Cattele during my senior year of high school. Spells from the Cyclops would continue Onoe’s evolution & Surf or Die has become the most celebrated work of his yet as did Concrete Fantasia succeeding Invisible War, returning a year & a half later shedding Tears of the Dragon.

“Jane Flower” featuring Lofty305 begins with this delicate trap instrumental talking about a woman who has both of their minds constantly spinning whereas “Going Sweet” featuring Ledbyher works in this cloudy backdrop & a guitar so both of can describe the strength of this love they have. “Summer of Love” gives off a chipmunk soul vibe creepin’ in parks during the evening on some slayer shit while the trap-flavored “Red Riding Hood” after the “Deadly Nightside” interlude talks about trying to get away from things lately.

We get some 808s & hypnotic sample during “The Wilderness” until a beat switch telling a woman he’s no longer seeing that he hope she never forgets him leading into the boisterous trap heater “Fright Night” ending the first half of Tears of the Dragon letting off flows like a submachine gun. “Peanut Butter” blends hi-hats & a vocal flip flexing that his words can make bones shatter while the Memphis influenced “Vampire Date” gets in his storytelling bag lyrically, vividly describing a dating experience with a female vampire.

“Angel” embraces a bluesier atmosphere talking about having his back against the wall because of a phone call he had received but after Eter & L-Zee Roselli appear for the hollowly produced “Psycho Planet” averagely describing a world fu of lunatics running around it, “Tamagotchi Girl” experiments with a bubbly plugg flare instrumentally for an ode to the women who still happen to enjoy the たまごっち brand of handheld digital pets.

Continuing to push further towards Tears of the Dragon’s final moments, the song “$1M Cat” recaptures the Memphis rap atmosphere asking if his ex still thinks of him regularly while “Fur Rug” incorporates some soulful sampling chops explaining that he’s trying to hold on to this person, but the problem with that being he legitimately can’t. “Funky Butterfly” however finishes the album jumping over a piano-heavy beat talking about being in a state of chrysalis.

The high praise I gave Surf or Die & Concrete Fantasia would already make it pretty clear that I consider Onoe Caponoe to be one of High Focus’ greatest signings in recent memory for his experimentally abstract style. That said: Tears of the Dragon feel like the weakest entry of his entire discography. It has nothing to do with the production taking secondary influences from trap, cloud rap, tread, Memphis rap & plugg aren’t bad either. My thing with it is that he doesn’t sound inspired as the predecessor did when 2023 began.

Score: 4/5

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Mr. Key – “Kez” review

London, England, United Kingdom emcee Mr. Key enlisting local producer Illinformed to handle the beats all over the latter’s sophomore effort. A member of Contact Play, he would eventually sign to High Focus Records as a solo act & drop his solo debut Yesterday’s Futures in the summer of 2015 using the sounds of wonky & glitch hop with the help of Greenwood Sharps to back his abstract pen. Both of them reunited near the end of 2019 for an EP called Green & Gold, returning after nearly 5 whole years for the more conceptual Kez.

“Escape from Bene” sets the tone with a piano-driven boom bap instrumental advising to trust them since there’s more to discover going forward whereas “Wakey Wakey” featuring Smellington Piff finds the 2 over a funkier beat talking about them both being on a high platter killing swarm. “All Right Ok” takes a mellower yet dusty approach to the beat talking about him doing well since Green & Gold leading into “He Say She Say” featuring Dirty Dike after the “What’s this Place?” skit addressing detractors.

As for “John Connor High Lyf”, we have Mr. Key over this jazzy boom bap beat talking about his life not always being the best & him not having it any other way just before “Bury Me in Bene” featuring Leaf Dog carries over the same vibes of the previous cut asking for their wishes to be buried when the time of demise comes. “Why is It?” featuring BVA comes together to ask for the reason there cornballs haven’t done a charitable act while the piano-driven “I Dunno” uses it’s title to answer various questions for 5 minutes.

“No Time” starts Kez’s final moments blending a jazzy woodwind with some kicks & snares talking about himself for 2 & a half minutes living more pleasantly than he was in his previous situation but once “Yellow Tops” hooks up a prominent vibraphone to assure fans it isn’t their fault that he can be a bit of a dickhead, the outro “Isabell Allende” featuring Jam Baxter & Ronnie Bosh wraps things up with the Contact Play brethren soulfully repping their squads.

As much as I’ve enjoyed Greenwood Sharps’ contributions to Yesterday’s Futures and Green & Gold, hearing that Illinformed was handling all of Kez’s production gave me the impression it would surpass both of it’s predecessors. Lo & behold, Mr. Key has done it. He kaleidoscopically describes the rise of a plucky kestrel through an off-grid anarchist commune called Bene comprised of misfits, lost souls, drug dealers, new age healers & would be cult leaders after spending 5 years in Spain.

Score: 4/5

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Renelle 893 – “Art Thief” review

London, England, United Kingdom emcee Renelle 893 making his full-length studio debut. Introducing himself a year & a half earlier off the previous extended play Black Currents, he would eventually catch the attention of High Focus Records not too long afterwards & signed to the label. The historic Hove, East Sussex imprint however has decided for Renelle to end their 2022 having King Kashmere fully produce Cocoa Butter, coming Off the Grid alongside Bay29 to tell the story of an Art Thief.

“Escape Route” starts us off with a mellow boom bap instrumental & a brief verse describing a group of burglars prior to the 2nd half containing a spoken word outro whereas “Gentleman” works in some kicks, snares & pianos so he can caution that this shit isn’t a game to him by any means. “The Stairs” embraces a chipmunk soul vibe reminding those listening that none of us are perfect leading into “Quiet Time” talking about time flying whenever he’s writing songs.

We have Bay29 instrumentally pulling inspiration from lo-fi hip hop additionally blending elements of boom bap on “Spilling My Feels” & Renelle taking a confessional approach lyrically just before “Play Your Role” featuring CLBRKS finds the pair joining forces so they can advise everyone to fulfill their expected duties. The dustily spacious “Hitting L’s” talks about smoking weed in his sleep without any resistance while “Don’t Call Me” begins off the 3rd quarter looking to take no shit from anyone & hoping to have no setbacks.

The title track comes across as this potently cinematic 3 & a half minute heist film on wax including a reference to the Warner Bro.-owned Mortal Kombat franchise after “Slow Down” featuring Illiterate unites both artists jazzily talking about them being antsy as of late praying for demons to get their hands off them, Nelson Dialect saves my personal favorite guest appearance for “The Seed” suggesting they can’t be harmed if they’re already deceased & asking what’ll be left when they escape Hell.

“When the World Don’t Like You” carries over the lo-fi boom bap atmosphere from earlier talking about the difficulty of maintaining the strength needed in order to keep fighting through our struggles due to people in our corner being against seeing us win while “Epi Pen” hooks up an uncanny piano flip shrugging off those dismissing his authenticity, claiming the only reason for that being because they haven’t met him yet & getting injected with epinephrine. “Hunger Kills” somberly finishes the LP tackling the relatable feeling of being burdens to others & continuing to fuck up.

Aspiring to transcend the UK hip hop movement, Art Thief makes Renelle 893’s best attempt at achieving that goal so far with an album I’d say surpasses Off the Grid in becoming my new 2nd favorite entry of his discography displaying artistic potential I have no doubts will becoming fully realized sooner rather than later. Bay29’s jazzy boom bap production pretty much takes the role of the glue binding the deeply personal themes around love, family, addiction, loyalty, pleasure & pain with a flurry of samples & signature breaks.

Score: 3.5/5

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King Kashmere – “Sounds Like Home” review

This is the 4th EP from London, England, United Kingdom emcee/producer King Kashmere. Notable for being a part of several groups or duos over the last few decades ranging from Kingdom of Fear & Invisible Inc. to Gawd Status as well as Old Children & Strange U, he also has 7 full-length solo albums & a couple of extended plays under his belt. Making his debut for High Focus Records in 2016 off his 3rd album Woof, he returned to the label with TR3B & has brought Cuth in to fully produce Sounds Like Home coming off The Album to End All Alien Abductions.

“Change Your Energy” soulfully starts off talking about everyone having their own universe within ourselves whereas “Thick Bag of Slime” featuring Alecs DeLarge goes for a psychedelic boom bap vibe to speak of striving & getting little in return. The title track soulfully while talks about keeping it real when others pretend while “Door of Truth” grittily asks if one can afford losing the game of life. After the compositional “Places” intermission, the final song “Valhalla” wraps up Sounds Like Home crushingly remembering his brother Tom.

I’d have to put The Album to End All Alien Abductions & TR3B above Sounds Like Home, but I’m nevertheless grateful King Kashmere was able to give us a 6 track EP containing some of the most emotive material in a career spanning over 2 decades. Cuth’s production here leans towards a boom bap direction as opposed to Alecs’ experimentation during The Album to End All Alien Abductions providing a good soundtrack for The Iguana Man to back at simpler times, long lost friends & a new perspective regarding the beauty & brutality of the human condition.

Score: 3.5/5

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Verb T – “The Tower Where the Phantom Lives” review

Verb T is a 42 year old MC from London, England, United Kingdom starting out by signing to Low Life Records prior to becoming a part of The 4 Owls. However, he’s also been carving a path of his own since 2006 putting out a dozen LPs & 5 EPs throughout that span of time. But when I found out that Vic Grimes was being brought in to produce T’s lucky 13th full-length album under High Focus Records, it significantly raised my expectations to the point where The Tower Where the Phantom Lives could become my favorite solo effort of his.

“The Phantom Appeared” starts the LP fittingly by introducing us to the titular Phantom character over a dusty boom bap instrumental whereas “Tower With a View” ruggedly talks about the residential tower that this ghost resides in. “Inner Child” works in a dirty bass-line as well as kicks & snares detailing that you can’t believe in something that you pretend to be, but then “Very Superstitious” talks about this mythical feeling that T’s getting keeping it in boom bap turf.

On the other hand, “Fireworks & Flowers” hooks up these kicks & snares with vibraphones explaining the way he started & will end his career while “Forget Feelings” remains raw talking about walking with purpose. “I Guess?” is a piano/boom bap hybrid reminding everyone that you can’t make moves when you’re hands are tied while “The Invisible Fortress” describes the titular compound that happens to be unseen.

“New View” gives off a cloudy, boom bap edge to the beat visualizing a future that more secure continuing with a new story in his life while “4 Oh!” admitting that 4 decades of his life are on the horizon as he’s not ready over vibraphones, kicks & snares. “Your Heart Deserves” as a closer ties it all up by performing from a profound perspective.

As someone who’s been following this guy since my senior year of high school 8-9 years ago, The Tower Where the Phantom Lives certainly lived up to my expectations because I can firmly say that it’s the best that Verb T has sounded by himself. The conceptually has cohesively well-told & Vic Grimes couldn’t have been a better person to do the musical backings helping bring T’s story to life.

Score: 4/5

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Alecs DeLarge – “Alecs in Wonderland” review

Bristol, England, United Kingdom emcee/producer Alecs DeLarge signing to High Focus Records for a brand new extended play of solo material. Somebody who’s spent the last several years dropping a plethora of beat tapes from Earth Seeds to S950 Bumps as well as Astro Livin’ & Bubble Goose Loops. He recently got with King Kashmere producing The Album to End All Alien Abductions in its entirety over the summer, stepping up to the mic for Alecs in Wonderland getting a chance to shine in the spotlight lyrically.

After the “$50M” intro, the first song “Scooby Snax” begins with a psychedelic self-produced opener talking about being more iconic than Cam’ron in the pink mink coat whereas & still being broke whereas “Green Goblin” takes the boom bap route instrumentally crumblin’ planets into spliffs. “Attaman!” goes for a drumless vibe talking about sending wack MCs out in space while the jazzy single “AM to AM” speaks of getting lifted 24 hours a day.

“Wonderland” continues to strip the drums talking about others suggesting he’s living the dream when he’s doing shows for drinks & some food leading into the funky “Megabus Dreams” featuring King Kashmere marking my favorite collaboration of the 2 looking at both sides of fame. “Empty Pocket Posse” featuring HPBLK hypnotically talks about both of them being poor & after the “Magic Scones” skit, “Muscle Head” drumlessly denies the possibility of slipping on an open trap ever happening.

The soulfully funky “Girl Joint” single starts Alecs in Wonderland’s final moments talking about the MPC 2000 while “Timbos x Pathfinders” jazzily finds himself seeing nothing’s changed around the block of flats that made him who he is since all the same people are there. “Far Out, Far Man” after the “Mushroom Hill” skit ends the EP taking a more melodic approach in terms of delivery singing for this woman to join him for the ride they’re gonna embark on right beside each other.

Heavily inspired by the Quasimoto alter-ego of one of my top 10 producers of all-time Madlib, the inaugural solo project in Alecs DeLarge’s career excluding all of his compositional tapes creates his own utopia to escape the one outside his council flat window idyllic living in Lynchian reality when he was exiled to a forgotten mining village. His production during Alecs in Wonderland’s course feels a lot stronger than that earlier instrumental output & he gets a couple of guests to join him in dissecting a lonely man’s soul.

Score: 3.5/5

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Nelson Dialect & Verbz – “Sight Beyond Sight” review

This is the collaborative LP between Adelaide, Australia emcee Nelson Dialect alongside Croydon, South London, England, United Kingdom emcee Verbz. The latter of whom made his High Focus Records debut in November 2020 off his sophomore effort Radio Waves & the other introducing himself to the Hove, East Sussex imprint’s roster 15 months ago with his 5th album Ever Since. And what to both of those as well as Where It Started all have in common? Mr. Slipz fully produced all of those projects, so it makes perfect sense for him to get both Nelson & Verbz together so they can elevate their chemistry with Sight Beyond Sight.

These guys make their “Arrival” with an atmospheric boom bap instrumental guaranteeing that shit won’t ever be the same after this whereas the lead single “Strike Back” incorporates some pianos mixed with kicks & snares talking about how it’s either do or die with them. The 3rd single “Beside Me” ghostly suggests for people to stay by them because that’s what all the real ones do just before “Movements” talks about neither of the 2 wanting to hit a dead end.

“Not My Nature” goes for a mellower, somewhat jazzier boom bap vibe assuring they’re still breathing life into those tainted lungs of theirs achieving to escape a place they see whenever they feel glum while the title track marked the 4th & final single teased talking about how the sky isn’t the limit for them anymore, keeping their minds elevated. “Cause & Effect” takes a more conscious approach to their songwriting over a lo-fi boom bap beat while “Regardless” prioritizes progress over paychecks.

Continuing the 2nd half, “Don’t Cry” talks about them writing their longevities down in addition to providing positive energy & death being a certainty. “Set Sail” embraces a funkier sound confessing they’ve lost the plot & haven’t found it since, further advising that listening to the Don should be rule #1 while “Homecoming” soulfully gets too serious for it to be played in the clubs, declaring they’re heading back to the their respective homes after traveling this long road they’ve been going down

“Infinite Avenues” gets back on the jazzy boom bap tip talking about times being hard & watching the way you live because of the high stakes that come with the territory while “Edge of Oblivion” eerily explains that both MCs have been trying to live & learn from past versions of themselves. “Starting 5” featuring King Kashmere, Nuphzed & Renelle 893 concludes Sight Beyond Sight comparing themselves to the starting lineup of a basketball team, with Chuck Enzo & Renelle having my favorite guest verses here.

Considering the fact we’ve heard Nelson Dialect & Verbz cross paths with each other a couple times with tracks like “Hope” or “Oxford Scholars”, I completely understand why they locked in to give us Sight Beyond Sight since I’d tell you I enjoyed it as much as both projects Verbz has done under High Focus within the past few years & more than Ever Since. The jazzy boom bap production Slipz has become known for compliments the introspective themes Nelson & Verbz tackle using the full-length’s title as a metaphor for both escapism & meditation.

Score: 4/5

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Renelle 893 – “Off the Grid” review

Here we have the 3rd EP from London, England, United Kingdom emcee Renelle 893. Introducing himself a year & a half earlier off the previous extended play Black Currents, he would eventually catch the attention of High Focus Records not too long afterwards & signed to the label. The historic Hove, East Sussex imprint however has decided for Renelle to end their 2022 having King Kashmere fully produce Cocoa Butter & has gone Off the Grid alongside Bay29 to warm everyone up for Renelle’s full-length debut Art Thief.

“Spaghetti” featuring Vitamin G begins with a electro-tinged boom bap instrumental talking about fleeting youth whereas “Swamp Monster” jazzily speaks of climbing out the mud. “Recognize” talks about wanting to inspire brains over a psychedelic boom bap beat hoping people acknowledge his talents while “8Ball” addresses his upbringings. The title track featuring Cutta Chase references WWE Hall of Famer Mike Tyson near the backend of it & the piano-driven “Deadline” going worldwide thoroughly.

Offering an escape route from the monotony of every day life, Renelle 893’s 2nd extended play under High Focus Records albeit 3rd overall marks the first in a brand new series of collaborations to come with Bay29 & I’d still put it above Black Currents although it’s certainly behind Cocoa Butter. Bay29’s prediction comes across more ethereal than Chuck Enzo’s during Renelle’s predecessor almost a year earlier, cohesively telling a story divided in 6 tracks themed around figuring out what kind of adult he’s looking to be & navigating a world filled with distractions that’ll do everything to numb the pain as life carries forward.

Score: 3.5/5

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King Kashmere – “The Album to End All Alien Abductions” review

Here we have the 7th studio LP from London, England, United Kingdom emcee King Kashmere. Notable for being a part of several groups or duos over the last few decades ranging from Kingdom of Fear & Invisible Inc. to Gawd Status as well as Old Children & Strange U, he also has 6 full-lengths & a few extended plays under his belt with the most recent being TR3B under High Focus Records. However, he’s enlisting lo-fi producer Alecs DeLarge to fully produce The Album to End All Alien Abductions.

After the “Worldwide” intro, the first song “Angel Strike” opens up with a boom bap beat taking further cues from funk & jazz music talking about wanting to be left alone having nothing to stress over whereas “Damien Darhk” works in a saxophone & some Memphis-influenced 808s asking where the fun went. “Limbo / Genki Dama” featuring King Kakarot teams up for a 2-parter talking about being the kind to not run from a fight leading into the soulful boom bap crossover “Old Earth” shouting out his mother.

“Intergalaktus” turns up the funk boasting his ultramagnetic aura while “Fonk Abyss” brings a more mellow vibe to the table for those who want to smoke some weed & chill out whilst keeping his eyes on the crown. “4000 AD” featuring Renelle 893 finds the 2 teaming up on the mic for a drumless hardcore hip hop track attacking the naysayers celebrating their perceived defeat & after the “Inside” skit, “Dustman” featuring Alecs DeLarge & Jerré dustily talks about levitating weight to keep their brains strong.

After the “£££ for Beats!” skit, “The Essence” preceding the compositional “Blue” interlude maintains a vintage boom bap feeling to it speaking of his desire to take hip hop back to it’s ethos while the jazzy “House of Cards” talks about struggling with mental health issues. After the “Hollywood” skit, “Soul Caliber” meshes some vibraphones with kicks & snares addressing the people tryna take control of him while “Most Blunted” featuring Alecs DeLarge finds the 2 sharing the mic together for an 115 second ode to weed.

“Solar Flare” featuring Moka Only & Verb T succeeding the “Virus World” instrumental jazzily boasting they’d blackball roughly 1/2 these other MCs while “Infinitizm” talks about this being the sounds of those who’ll live eternally making their tides rise. “Astro Children” featuring Alecs DeLarge, Ash the Author, Booda French & HPBLK unites 5 unlikely competitors for a vintage hardcore hip hop/boom bap song while the final song “North Star” ahead of the “Deepspace Slime” outro soulfully talks about searching for brighter days.

Making up for Motherbox’s divisive reception, The Album to End All Alien Abductions comfortably positions itself amongst my personal favorites throughout King Kashmere’s solo discography right in the same category as In the Hour of Chaos or his High Focus Records debut Woof. Alecs DeLarge whips up the most experimental production of his career, which appropriately suits The Iguana Man’s lyrics heavily themed around science fiction other than a couple glimpses of his personal life.

Score: 4.5/5

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Sparkz – “Overload” review

Manchester, England, United Kingdom emcee/producer Sparkz dropping his 4th extended play under High Focus Records. A member of the LEVELZ collective & co-fronting The Mouse Outfit, he would later make appearances on projects like Verb T’s 8th album Good Evening & Pitch 92’s debut EP Lost in Space until Fliptrix signed Sparkz to his historic Hove, East Sussex underground imprint dropping Overload following the Angle trilogy of EPs in preparation of his own debut album.

“Buzzin’” kicks it all off with self-produced boom bap intro reminiscent of Yasiin Bey or A Tribe Called Quest talking about doing his thing whereas the 2nd & final single “Mean It” doesn’t shy away of keeping it sincere with his words. The title track & lead single blends boom bap with grime putting his lyrical proficiency in the limelight & after “Kidda” goes a little hardcore pulling shit out the basement to show audiences what the deal is, “Quit” blends wonky & boom bap to end the EP suggesting people to give up whatever they’re trying for.

Testifying to the years Sparkz has spent honing his wide range of talents from the mic to behind the boards, his inaugural solo release brings the heat with this 5-pack of unforgettable bangers that’re guaranteed to brighten up even the dreariest of places. High Focus brings him on board the label’s roster giving him a new sense of creative freedom, exemplified by his production sounding a bit wonkier unlike everything he’s done previously matched with the buoyant flows & sharp penmanship.

Score: 4/5

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