Tag: Redrum

Redrum – “The Messiah Complex” review

Redrum is a duo from Orlando, Florida consisting of consisting of emcees Red Eye & Ranks. Admittedly, they came onto my radar just 6 months ago off the strength of their debut album The Lucifer Effect & I was pretty impressed with how well the 2 emcees complimented each other along with the grimy production. However, it has seems like they’re not slowing down anytime soon & dropped their sophomore album onto our heads.

As much as I love the dusty instrumental on “Da Intro”, they’re just beating a dead horse lyrically by going at “mumble rappers”. The next song “Hunger” has a more gospel-inspired sound as the duo come through with some of their most passionate performances ever whereas “God’s Watching” goes into boom bap territory to talk about their marvelousness. “Raze da Banner” to me reads off a exuberant dedication to the hustlers & scammers before incorporating a late 90s-RZA inspired beat to talk about being America’s nightmare on “Chosen4war”.

The organ loop throughout “6 Feet Under” is perfect given the murderous lyricism, but then “Rum n Coke” is an excellent homage to the iconic Outlawz joint “Hail Mary”. I also love the choir vocals on the battle rap-themed “Gladiator Sport” & even the guitar presented throughout the money hungry “Can’t Refuse”.

The perfectly titled “Grime Rate” is easily the darkest on the entire album on all fronts while the penultimate track “Sinners” is a piano ballad about how something must’ve got into the duo mentally. And what better way to end things off than the heinous “Mark of da Beast”?

If you liked The Lucifer Effect, then you’re probably gonna like The Messiah Complex a lot more because I certainly think Red Eye & Ranks outdid themselves on here. Redrum’s lyricism has only gotten better since last Black Friday & the instrumental choices are more rugged.

Score: 4/5

Redrum – “The Lucifer Effect” review

This is the full-length debut from Orlando hip hop duo Redrum. Consisting of emcees Red Eye & Ranks, the pair have made some noise in the underground throughout the past few years off the strength of a couple singles & are now taking listeners through The Lucifer Effect before 2020 ends.

After the intro, the first song “Adjustment Bureau” is essentially Redrum shit-talking over an spooky instrumental while the track “On Fire” talks about how no one can defeat them over an intimidating beat. The song “Run Come” with Kali Ranks finds the trio talking about being strapped over a dusty boom bap instrumental & after the “That New Shit” skit, the track “New Thangs” with Heist-n-Flow sees the 3 talking about how everyone’s in the same lane over a climatic beat.

The song “Cold Blooded” talks about how it is in the streets over a solemn instrumental while the penultimate track “Palo Mayombe” advises listeners not to take the words they speak lightly over some weepy strings. The closer “Devil Lurks” talks about being weary where you walk over some chipmunked-vocals, but then the hidden cut “Carnival” flexes their lyrical prowesses over a demonic boom bap beat.

I’m pretty impressed with what I’ve heard on The Lucifer Effect & it has me excited to see where Redrum will take things in the future. Couple of the features were just alright, but the duo bounce off each other very well & the grimy production suits them like a glove.

Score: 3.5/5