Seth MacFarlane – “Lush Life” review

Seth MacFarlane is a 51 year old actor, animator, writer, producer, director, comedian & singer from Kent, Connecticut notable for being the creator of Family Guy on the Fox Corporation’s flagship property & American Dad! set to move back to the network it premiered on in 2026 after a decade on the Discovery Global-owned tbs. He’s also known for his directional debut ted during the end of my freshman year of high school voicing the titular character & airing a prequel series on the Comcast Corporation subsidiary NBCUniversal owned peacock. Couldn’t forget to mention the 7 vocal jazz albums he has put out under Republic Records & getting to perform lost arrangements for his musical idol in Reprise Records founder Frank Sinatra over the course of his 8th LP.

A rendition of “Give Me the Simple Life” introduced from the film Wake Up & Dream almost 8 decades ago next winter really opens up on the Lush Life from there whereas “I Never Felt This Way Before” waits & ponders where the love of his life is over some delicate string sections. The title track essentially serves as a cover of a jazz standard Billy Strayhorn wrote in the early/mid 1930s prior to “Flying Down to Rio” giving a big band vibe for the theme of a nonagenarian pre-code musical.

“How Did She Look?” feels like a counterpart to a song Joan Merrill made in the 40s asking about the well being of his ex-fiancée that he hasn’t seen in over a year or so after someone he knew ran into her while “Who’s in Your Arms Tonight?” wants to know who’s listening to lies coming out of lips divined over a harmonious choir behind. “A Wonderful Day Like Today” fuses big band & vocal jazz defying any dark clouds to hover on top of him just before “When Joanna Loved Me” covers a composition Tony Bennett popularized.

7 Hills of Rome gets its flowers to start the 3rd & final act of Lush Life with Seth’s own version of “Arrivederci Roma” performed in the 1958 musical leading into “Hurry Home” setting the worrisome tone with some woodwinds & chordophones asking tor his partner to return back as quickly as she can because of him feeling all alone. “Ain’tcha Ever Coming Back?” & “No More Shadows” both tie up the full-length with covers honoring the memories of both Peggy Lee & Erroll Garner respectively.

For a collection of arrangements originally written for Come Fly With Me & Only the Lonely that were left on the cutting room floor, the Fuzzy Door Productions founder gears up for The Naked Gun 4 next month starring the likes of Liam Neeson & the previous WWE Champion Cody Rhodes to name a couple with a vocal jazz album surpassing Music’s Better Than Words at the start of my freshman year of high school. Seth MacFarlane’s warm expressive vocals breathe new life into these carefully preserved outtakes like it’s a time capsule opened for the first time ever.

Score: 4/5

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Morgan Wallen – “I’m the Problem” review

Morgan Wallen is a 32 year old singer/songwriter from Sneedville, Tennessee putting out the full-length debut If I Know Me to mixed reception 4 years after starting out. Republic Records would sign him for the 2-disc major label debut Dangerous, moving over to the Mercury Records subsidiary in the spring of 2023 & releasing 1 Thing at a Time to prominently more negative feedback compared to both of it’s predecessor. It’s been almost 2 months since he controversially stormed off the set of the semicentennial Saturday Night Live owned by the NBC division of the Comcast Corporation subsidiary NBCUniversal originally serving as the host of that week’s episode & his 4th LP has arrived.

The title track was a mediocre contemporary country intro bashing his ex for being Ms. Never Do Wrong when Morgan himself was making racially charged comments at the beginning of 2021 whereas “I Got Better” sings about feeling like who he really is again when that hasn’t really changed. “Superman” named after the Warner Bros. subsidiary DC Entertainment-owned franchise ahead of the DC Universe media franchise & shared universe beginning in a couple months was one of the better singles continuing the contemporary country direction dedicated to his son Indigo until Tate McRae appears for the cheesy country pop duet “What I Want”.

“Just in Case” gets back on the contemporary country vibes describing a situationship that later transformed into something far more captivating when I found it anything but & after an interlude, “Falling Apart” tackles the breakup theme once more singing about selling him & his ex out only for him to justifiably pay the price for it. “Skoal, Chevy & Browning” expresses his desire for somebody simple as those 3 separate things leading into “Eyes are Closed” asking his son what he sees when he sleeps at night.

It’s funny that Morgan asks his own mother what he did wrong on “Kick Myself” after asking him to get help when he’s a documented racist, ignored CDC guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic & got arrested last spring for throwing a chair off the roof of Eric Church’s newly-opened Nashville bar Chief’s while “20 Cigarettes” sings about a girl telling him what her hometown is like. Another highlight would be “TN” expressing his love for the state that made him & “Missing” suggests he might miss the woman he wants missin’ him.

“Where’d That Girl Go?” sings about an ex who he feels has a long way from a bad good riddance wanting to know what happened to the old her while “Genesis” makes a corny comparison of how Jack Daniels & Jim Beam didn’t know him from Adam & Eve regardless of the subject matter revolving around temptation. “Revelation” sings about being a hard one to love since it runs in my blood when he acts like a jackass, but then “#3 & #7” featuring Eric Church himself feels like a cautionary tale centered around drinking & driving.

Spite reveals itself even more on “Kiss Her in Front of You” taking him at a girl that he used to date for walking out on him & making out in front of his new partner as a “fuck you” to his previous one while the trite “If You Were Mine” sings about wanting to lay her down & take his time giving her the pipe. “Don’t We” reaffirms the small-town values, tradition & simplicity even if that way of life isn’t for everyone prior to “Come Back as a Redneck” featuring HARDY teaming up for a horrible bro-country collab.

“Love Somebody” feels ironic since the topic of wanting to find a genuine connection with a woman in a world full of fleeting, shallow relationships appropriating Latin influences while “Dark ‘Til Daylight” finds him singing about feeling composed during the day & his mindset spiraling during the evening. “The Dealer” featuring ERNEST looks back on the days they could’ve folded & finding 1 more card to play while “Leavin’s the Least I Could Do” unloads more melodramatic breakup bullshit onto the table.

As for “Jack & Jill”, we have Morgan giving his own take on the classic fairytale except they both wind up on 1 in Tennessee while “I Ain’t Comin’ Back” featuring Post Malone gets even more over the top with the heartbreak than I would’ve expected from both of them. “Nothin’ Left” acoustically sings about lonely nights coming his way because of him fucking up another relationship while “Drinking ‘Til It Does” tries drowning in a river full of whiskey.

“Smile” tries & fails at mixing folk with singer/songwriter reflecting on a love that has since grown cold while “Working Man’s Song” tackily sings about how tryin’ to make a livin’ isn’t supposed to feel like dyin’. “Whiskey in Reverse” points out the empty Jack Daniels bottle by his coffee cup doing more damage than it did any good while “Crazy Eyes” admitting that his girl’s eyes have some kinda power over him sleeping for only 10 hours in the span of 3 days.

Finally kicking off the last leg of I’m the Problem, the song “L.A. Night” not to be confused with former 2-time WWE United States Champion, TNA World Champion, TNA World Tag Team Champion, NWA World Tag Team Champion & アイアンマンヘビーメタル級王座 L.A. Knight (Yeah!) talks about being a country boy in the middle of the west coast while “Miami” desecrates “Miami, My Amy” by Keith Whitley shamelessly. “Lies Lies Lies” was an average country pop single singing about still being a fool for the same ol’ fibs he falls for & “I’m a Little Crazy” closes by showing some self-awareness.

I personally find it unfortunate that the only country album that Mercury has put out since being revived in 2022 would be Johnny Cash’s most recent posthumous offering Songwriter & the material on there was 3 decades old. Primarily because I’m the Problem feels a lot like 1 Thing at a Time where it’s completely bloated with more misses & hits. He focuses less on country pop than he did on the predecessor favoring a contemporary sound altogether.

Score: 1.5/5

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Key Glock – “Glockaveli” review

Key Glock is a 27 year old from Memphis, Tennessee whose cousin Young Dolph signed him to Paper Route Empire in 2017 after his debut mixtape Whole Lotta Errthang. He has since released 4 more tapes in addition to an EP & 3 full-lengths, the most notable being his previous LP Glockoma 2 in the spring of 2023 showing considerable improvements in his Memphis gangsta trap style. Republic Records happened to sign him a couple months ago & is ringing it in with his 4th album albeit major label debut.

“Hallelujah” crosses over trap, a gospel sample & Memphis rap talking about the amount of money he’s counting starting to make his head spin whereas the title track shrugs off any notion of slowing down putting that bread up for his baby. “Blue Devil” boastfully shows off the 2 blue diamonds he got on him just before the soulful “Made a Way” talks about fucking up & still finding a path out of the trenches.

Moving on from there, “Watch da Throne” continues the sampling of soul music warning that everyone he considers to be competition should play it safe while “Badu” talks about letting the chopper sing similarly to the neo-soul icon Erykah Badu herself & making his own rules. “She Ready” flips Teri DeSario showing a romantic side to Key Glock breaking down the way this chick be blowing up his phone, but then “No Sweat” talks about never letting anyone see him tripping.

“The Grinch” takes the throne as the finest of South Memphis continuing the legacy of his late cousin who was tragically murdered a few years ago while “Sunny Dayz” blends soul & trap once again talking about only fearing God as well as cutting throats from ear to ear. “Papercutz” goes for a more playful tone altogether simply trying to have fun out here while “Kill My Vibe” asks for these bitches not to fuck up the good mood he’s in at the moment.

As for “I’m Getting It”, we have Glock putting a hoe on pause because of her gettin’ caught up in her feelings & uppin’ the score while “Again” talks about hitting the road again in addition to promising that anyone who plays with him will wind up working on the end. “Cream Soda” returns to a Memphis edge instrumentally riding around with the sticks while “Don Dada” talks about hustling ever since he was only a toddler.

“World is Ourz” reaches the backend of Key Glock’s major label debut blending Memphis rap & plugg a little showing off the power he has while “3am in ToKEYo” was my favorite single that was teased whether it by the DJ Paul & TWhy beat or the self made lyricism talking about never needing any help after coming into this world all by himself on top of thinking his lil’ bro should become a chef with the way he cooking the opps.

WWE Hall of Famer, former 2-time WWE world champion, ECW World Television Champion, 6-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 5-time WWE Tag Team Champion, 4-time & the final WWE Hardcore Champion, TNA World Champion & TNA X Division Champion Rob Van Dam gets referenced on “Money Habits” to start the deluxe run while “Going Hard” talks about killing it from the very day he was born. “All Dogs Go to Heaven” hops over a DY & Tre Pounds instrumental to call out the people who’d do literally anything for a penny while “Set in Stone” suggests to move along if you ain’t conversing with him about money.

“South Memphis Patriot” reflects upon himself for 140 seconds likening himself to the greatest QB of all-time & 7-time Super Bowl Champion Tom Brady while “Fashion Killa” talks about smoking the loudest of loud. “Bottega Bag” shows off the $300 he has tucked away in a bag from the Italian luxury fashion house Bottega Veneta while “Daddy’s Little Girl” links up with ATL Jacob for an ode to his daughter Rian.

Toom of Vanguard Music Group mixes a guitar & some hi-hats together for “Can’t Feel My Face” getting high until his face becomes numb while “Fabo” talks about turning your whole block into halos. “Trust Myself” confesses that he feels like he can’t even trust himself at times while “Red Shirt” talks about his pockets falling in love with the cake. The final bonus track “Fell in Luv” samples “Swangin’ & Bangin’” by E.S.G. for him to run it onto the top.

Not gonna beat around the bush & admit that it took me a while to get into Key Glock since I was more of a Dolph fan up until Glockcoma 2 began to earn the respect of many including myself. Glockaveli as far as a major label debut goes speaks volumes about Glock’s dominance & staying power in the rap game carrying on the solid reputation for carrying entire projects on his own with no features needed enhancing the gritty street-centric bars & handpicked production that made him blow.

Score: 4/5

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ΠΔV – “On My Way 2 Rexdale” review

This is the 5th full-length album from Toronto, Ontario, Canada rapper, singer/songwriter & producer ΠΔV. Breaking out in 2016 after signing to The Weeknd’s very own Republic Records imprint X♥O Records & his verse/production on “beibs in the trap” off of Travis Scott’s sophomore effort Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight, I think that it’s been made pretty clear that I personally haven’t been the biggest fan of ΠΔV’s music up to this point. Primarily because of his robotic delivery, insipid lyrics & generic production choices (especially on Reckless & Bad Habits). However I did find the Wheezy-produced Emergency Tsunami to be ΠΔV’s best work to date, albeit not by much. Demons Protected by Angels wasn’t really much better & the singles building up On My Way 2 Rexdale made me want to give it a chance.

“Sinking” finds him opening up about his loneliness & inner emotions over a drumless guitar instrumental that he make himself whereas “You” feels more of a Don Toliver cut since ΠΔV has little to no presence on it whatsoever. “Stay Up” co-produced by Internet Money Records in-house producer Synthetic talks about being awake when no one else is while “Burbs” reunites with Wheezy behind the boards talking about making it out the hood.

Playboi Carti joins ΠΔV on “Unlimited” so both of them can rock out together for 3 & a half minutes just before “Back 2 Business” talks about having a lot of problems he deals with as it is getting back in his bag after 2 & a half years. “U.N.I.” goes for a sample-heavy trap direction showing a romantic side to him leading into “1 of None” asking a shawty if she’d be willing to hide out with him.

“Nxxd You” admits to his love that he gets excited around her for no reason comparing her presence to taking ecstasy while “Real Me” takes a cloudier route thanks to Metro Boomin’ showing his romantic interest his genuine self. “Red” brings a moody trap beat to the table drowning in his double cup only seeing the aptly mentioned color, but then “Keep Going” gives a finger to the money & fame continuing his music career in spite of doubters.

The song “Get 2 U” has interestingly chilled out trap flare instrumentally that really caught my attention right out the gate talking about the drugs runnin’ through his body & the closer “Pain Away” asks for his partner to relieve him of all pain he’s been feeling. “Get U Back” starts the deluxe run with a moody 2-parter wanting this woman back in his life while “1 Fan” talks about a hoe who says she dated ΠΔV & he begs to differ since he ain’t ever claimed her to begin with.

“Globe” switches it up by showing a plugg influence talking about being known all around the world while the woozy “Potholes” finds him actively dodging thots in the streets. “Lift Service” tells a chick to back it up & drop it low for him telling her he loves it when she shakes 1 leg while the extended version of the single “Rexdale” sincerely talks about staying strong & powering through during difficult times.

Was surprised regarding the original version of “Rari” called “Now It’s Over” seeing the light of day officially looking back on when he was broke & those days being done with while “Bag” from the Brown Boy 2 mixtape reappears for whatever reason. Lil Uzi Vert pops up for the remix of “Habits” off ΠΔV’s sophomore effort Bad Habits that I enjoy more than the original while the “Go to Hell” intro off his debut EP Brown Boy sampling “Enormous” by Gucci Mane gives his homie some Bathing Ape to celebrate his prison release.

“Highway” originally recorded in late 2016-early 2017 speaks of the lavish lifestyle he’s been living for the past decade living every day as if it’s gonna be his last while “She Worth It” featuring co-production from London on da Track talks about the woman he currently has on his mind. “Paranoid” cavernously tackles the problems brought about by his new-found fame while “Fast Life” questions loyalties whilst flexing his new-found wealth & success over a vocal sample & hi-hats. The final bonus track “Take a Seat” thanks God for him being wealthy now & suggesting to hop in the foreign whip pulled up driving in.

If you told me the same guy who made some of the worst trap albums of 2010s like Reckless & Bad Habits would make his best full-length nearly 5 years after the most consistent mixtape in his discography, I don’t think I would’ve believed you. He’s always been an enjoyable producer & to hear him primarily self-producing his music again is what he needed, taking it back to his origins by returning to his Toronto home town.

Score: 3.5/5

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Drake & PARTYNEXTDOOR – “$ome $exy $ongs 4 U” review

Toronto, Ontario, Canada rapper, singer/songwriter, actor, producer & entrepreneur Drake taking a break from his ongoing lawsuit against Republic Records’ parent company Universal Music Group for the 5-time Grammy winning Kendrick Lamar single “Not Like Us” spreading a “false & malicious narrative” when he was actually getting destroyed in a rap beef to do a collaborative LP with local singer/songwriter, rapper & producer PARTYNEXTDOOR in time for Valentine’s Day. One of whom is a pop rap star getting his start as an actor before becoming a Lil Wayne protégé signing to Young Money Entertainment/Cash Money Records over 15 years ago & the other was the very first artist OVO Sound ever signed. Take Care & If You’re Reading This, It’s Too Late will always stand as Drake’s best full-length studio album & mixtape respectively with PND’s strongest material to me being his eponymous debut EP & the sequel debut album PARTYNEXTDOOR 2. The idea of $ome $exy $ongs 4 U doesn’t sound too far off since we’ve heard these 2 together on plenty of songs in the past like “Over Here” & “Preach”, it’s that Sony Music will notably be putting it out since I want to clarify for those confused that OVO as a label signed a new distribution deal with Sony last year & Drake has been on Republic as a solo artist since his YMCMB days seemingly trying to get out of his deal with everything going on.

“CN Tower” produced by Noel Cadastre expresses their feelings for their significant others through the colors of Toronto’s most popular tourist attraction over a moody instrumental shares concerns about their lovers’ thoughts whereas “Moth Balls” feels more like a Drake song with PND on the hook talking about being unable to get the smell outta their clothes. “$omething About You” psychedelically finds the 2 thinkin’ of lovin’ their partners all the way like nothin’ is holdin’ them back that is until the 2-parter “Crying in Chanel” stands as first of 6 Drake solo cuts feeling like an Honestly, Nevermind outtake.

PARTYNEXTDOOR links up with his mentor again on “$pider-Man $uperman” telling the women in their lives to admit that they wish both artists could save them over some guitar like while the only PND solo joint “Deeper” tells his girl to chill because he feels like he hasn’t been loving her properly rather get it right than wrong tonight. Drake pops back in for the woozy “Small Town Fame” talking about his girl having a brat summer & “Pimmie’s Dilemma” by Pim serves more as an acoustic interlude.

“Brian Steel” by Drake takes the trap route instrumentally publicly thanking YSL Records founder Young Thug’s lawyer of the same name for helping Big Slime come home last Halloween after the ridiculous R.I.C.O. case just before “Gimme a Hug” is another Drake solo cut reuniting with Gordo behind the boards responding to Ye or the Nazi formerly known as Kanye West saying that Kendrick eliminated in him in their beef when he really did & the questionable line “Fuck all rap beef, I’m trying to get the party lit. Trying to get the party lit for the bitches”. He even references the inaugural IWGPヘビー級王座, former 12-time WWE world champion, WWE tag team champion, 2-time WWE Hall of Famer & Real American Beer founder Hulk Hogan.

The penultimate & 3rd consecutive Drake solo joint “Raining in Houston” gets on the 2-parter vibes once more a bit talking about chilling with the guys on a Friday evening & arguing on a rainy day in H-Town itself while “Lasers” marks the return of PARTYNEXTDOOR singing about staring at their lovers’ tattoos during intercourse. “Meet Your Padre” horrifically shows a bit of a Latin influence drinking like it’s Friday on a Sunday & the final Drake solo cut “Nokia” easily sticks out as the most hideous of the 6, later becoming the official theme song of the WWE’s inaugural ESPN pay-per-view Wrestlepalooza V.

Jordan Ullman of Majid Jordan saves one of the more interesting beats for “Die Trying” has even if it feels like another Drake song with PND on the hook unable to decide if he should stay or leave with the woman he has in mind specifically while “Somebody Loves Me” featuring Cash Cobain on the remix sings about turning up in Miami knowing their special someone is out there. “Celibacy” is pretty much an R&B equivalent to “Life is Good” by Future which Drake is featured on while “OMW” works in synths & hi-hats getting calls from the condo to pick their partners up.

The song “Glorious” again feels like another Drake track featuring PARTYNEXTDOOR on the hook to kick off the encore of $ome $exy $ongs 4 U telling this woman to fuck him like she really means it while “When He’s Gone” that Internet Money Records in-house producer Niketaz laced finds the 2 hitting on women who’ve recently broken up with their previous boyfriends wanting them to call them once their exes leave. “Greedy” rounds out the collab project we should’ve gotten a decade ago with them talking about being gluttonous for love.

Don’t wanna come off as biased here because I still tend to enjoy Drake’s music from 2007-2015 & even For All the Dogs although “First Person Shooter” hasn’t really aged well. Point is: “euphoria” as an attack on Drake’s authenticity & personal image even naming itself after the Warner Bros. owned HBO show that Drake is the executive producer of currently preparing for their 3rd & final season has been proven to be the case considering John River claiming that the artwork concept was stolen from him & Bootleg Kev confirming the $ome $exy $ongs 4 U title was taken from Freddie Gibbs’ final Warner Records album $oul $old $eparately not to say that’s why I’m not a fan of the music on here. Feels dated.

Score: 2/5

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The Weeknd – “Hurry Up Tomorrow” review

Toronto, Ontario, Canada singer/songwriter The Weeknd ending a 5 year trilogy with his 6th studio LP. Rising to stardom in the early 2010s with a trilogy of highly acclaimed mixtapes, he then made his full-length debut in 2013 with Kiss Land which was a decent attempt at symbolizing tour life forming his own Republic Records imprint X❤️O Records after nearly signing to Drake’s label OVO Sound. The sophomore effort Beauty Behind the Madness proved to be even better as it started to incorporate elements of pop, although Starboy ended up being another mixed bag much like Kiss Land except he embraced a more electropop sound. Abel’s debut EP My Dear Melancholy, though was a solid return to his alternative R&B roots & let’s not forget After Hoursgoing on to becoming the best album of his career thus far in my opinion. Dawn FM picked up right where it left off & the final chapter Hurry Up Tomorrow is finally upon us.

“Wake Me Up” produced with Oneohtrix Point Never & Mike Dean is this epic 2-part intro to begin the end balancing synthwave & synth-funk started singing about his legacy being the only thing he has & it feels as if he’s dying whereas “Cry for Me” works in more synthesizers & hi-hats thanks to Metro Boomin’ interpolating “Within” by Daft Punk hoping that a woman I presume to be his ex Bella Hadid still cries for him. After the “I Can’t Fucking Sing” skit which I highly disagree with it’s title, “São Paulo” featuring Anitta was the weakest single of the 3 although I appreciate the fusion of funk mandelão, alternative R&B, synthwave, funk automotivo, mega funk & Brazilian phonk.

After the “Until We’re Skin & Bones” skit, the 3rd single “Baptized in Fear” dives into the feeling of being overwhelmed by guilt & regret going for more of a general alternative R&B vibe while “Open Hearts” explores themes of healing from heartbreak & learning to love again treats his love interest as an angel in disguise. The criminally short “Opening Night” sings over a futuristic instrumental to give him what I want & the show will start just before “Reflections Laughing” featuring a verse & drumless production from honorary WWE Hardcore Champion Travis Scott fresh off appearing with former WWE Intercontinental Champion & 10-time WWE tag team champion Jey Uso at the Netflix premiere of Monday Night RAW made possible by TKO board of directors members WWE President Nick Khan alongside TKO President & COO Mark Shapiro brings the 2 together to talk about vulnerability, self-reflection & the pressures of fame.

“Enjoy the Show” featuring Future has a clever interpolation of “Can’t Feel My Face” making way for both of them coming together for a light R&B-inspired duet revolving around the concept of heartbreak leading into the 2-parter “Given Up on Me” asking God for his company preferring the final half more personally. “I Can’t Wait to Get There” brings a synth-funk flare to the table singing about the darkness keeping his romantic interest shining ahead of the official WrestleMania XLI theme song “Timeless” featuring Playboi Carti with Doechii on the remix uniting over a Pharrell beat uniquely molding trap, pop rap, alternative R&B, synthwave, cloud rap, trap soul, wave music & plugg.

Meanwhile on “Niagara Falls”, we have another 2-part track portraying The Weeknd looking back on a woman he used to love & got to hold until the sun used to come up while “Take Me Back to LA” comes across as a official sequel to the After Hours highlight “Escape from LA” wanting to return to the very city that he wanted to escape from nearly 5 years ago. “Big Sleep” hooks up some prominent synths telling his lover that she knows she loves it when she’s angry while the synth-funk driven “Give Me Mercy” sings about wanting God to grant him leniency.

“Drive” starts the final leg of Hurry Up Tomorrow confessing fame being a disease & not wanting to waste others’ time while “The Abyss” describes the fleetingness of love between him & his partner in the midst of the world erupting into despair. “Red Terror” goes for an electro-pop direction showcasing a distanced relationship that never loses its primary spark while the synth-based “Without a Warning” hopes his fans will love him until his final day.

The title track officially concludes The Weeknd’s swan song hoping he finds what he’s looking for being done with the lies & the loss genuinely hopping his confession of wanting to change is enough transitioning into “High for This” while “Dancing in the Flames” starts the deluxe run with a decent teaser of what was to come synthpop, dance-pop, synthwave, freestyle & Hi-NRG encapsulating the idea of a passionate love that endures through risks & chaos. “Runaway” acoustically assures all are safe in the afterlife while “Society” is a dance-pop number wanting to show his lover how it feels. The final bonus track “Closing Night” that the Swedish House Mafia & Wheezy laced together ends with a “Opening Night” sequel that’s more fleshed out than the predecessor.

Whatever’s next for Abel this point forward, the new trilogy of albums that he’s put out during the first half of this current decade shows how much he’s grown since House of Balloons, Thursday & Echoes of Silence all put him in the forefront of alternative R&B & now pop music in general. The production culminates in alternative R&B, synthpop, synthwave, trap, progressive electronic, dance-pop, synth-funk, drumless, funk mandelão, funk automotivo, mega funk, Brazilian phonk, pop rap, cloud rap, trap soul, wave, plugg, synthpop, freestyle & Hi-NRG music reaching a point in his life where he wants to to shed skin & be reborn.

Score: 4.5/5

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Jelly Roll – “Beautifully Broken” review

Jelly Roll is a 39 year old rapper & singer/songwriter from Antioch, Tennesse who’s been hustling within the underground for over 2 decades already building up a discography of 21 mixtapes as well as 8 full-lengths & 3 EPs. His rise to international stardom began in 2020 when he signed a 2-album deal with the Strange Music subsidiary It Goes Up Entertainment, releasing A Beautiful Disaster & Self Medicated to critical acclaim. Whitsitt Chapel marked his country debut & “Need a Favor” proved to be his biggest hit, eventually signing with Republic Records for his 9th LP after making appearances for both Endeavor-owned TKO Group Holdings divisions UFC & WWE.

“Winning Streak” begins his Republic debut in the form of this powerful piano ballad singing about standin’ in the rain just trying to stay dry whereas “Burning” gives off more of a traditional country sound instrumentally asking God to show him another way. “Heart of Stone” in need of a different kind of drug carrying over the sounds of the previous cut onto here, but then the lead single “I’m Not Ok” fuses pop rock & country pop tackling the theme of mental health.

Meanwhile on “When the Drugs Don’t Work”, we have Jelly Roll asking who’s gonna drive you home once the drugs start to wear off putting a bigger emphasis on country pop just before “Higher Than Heaven” featuring Wiz Khalifa finds the 2 talking about smoking weed being their way out of the darkness. The official WWE SummerSlam XXXVII theme song “Liar” heads towards a pop rock direction calling out someone tryna be his friend for cappin’ leading into “Everyone Bleeds” explains that you can only fly so close to Heaven.

“Get By” pulls inspiration from the stomp & holler scene showin’ up Sunday morning lookin’ the same way he did the previous evening while “Unpretty” sings about resenting the man that he used to be radiating a calmer vibe to the beat. “Grace” brings back the country pop influences finding love in the heart of the darkness & hope when the times are the hardest while “What It Takes” sings about a 40 Oz. only numbing the pain.

To get Beautifully Broken’s other half going, “Hey Mama” serve as his passionate country tribute to Jelly Roll’s mother Donna DeFord & the guitar-driven “Time of Day” feels more like an MGK song since he handles pretty much all the verses & not as well as the primary artist himself. “Born Again” clarifies that you can’t kill a man that was born to be born again while “Guilty” maintains the country feeling expressing the love he has for his wife Alyssa.

“Little Light” is this country rock/country pop hybrid encouraging to leave some light since this person is on the close to the edge of letting go while “Hear Me Out” wanting y’all to tell him how he’s always feeling like something’s missin’ & we don’t know all the pain he’s felt. “Woman” gives his flowers to Alyssa once again detailing he won’t understand why she still calls him her’s while “Smile So Much” singing about one understanding why he’s been smiling a lot if you’ve seen him cry.

The penultimate track “My Cross” pushes towards the conclusion of the LP referring to hurt & trauma as a sickness, explaining that he’d rather die than to pass it to either of his 2 children since it’s his pain to bear rather than theirs hoping the apple falls far from the tree & the sins of the father stop with him while “What’s Wrong with Me” ends by singing about being fine with all his flaws. “Take a Bow” featuring Halsey starts the deluxe run promising one another the highest of highs over pianos while “Don’t Want To” featuring Keith Urban is a country duet clarifying just because they aren’t tempting that temptation or lighting up that fuse doesn’t mean they don’t want to.

“Devil Down” featuring Ernest finds the 2 sticking with a traditional country flare asking for God to help them overcome their addictions since it isn’t a strongpoint for them while the acoustic “Really Gone” featuring Russ talks about hearing the special people in their lives who’ve passed through the night sky. The stripped-back “Past Yesterday” with Skylar Grey on the hook asks not to judge him if he gets too high & the final bonus track “Lonely Road” featuring MGK fresh off being in Logan Paul’s corner when L.A. Knight finally dethroned him as WWE United States Champion at SummerSlam XXXVII couple months ago has to be one of the worst singles of the year mutating country pop & emo pop whining about feeling alone.

I’ve always found it ignorant when people say that Jelly Roll is a sellout or a culture vulture or inauthentic because the dude was grinding nonstop for the longest time working with those from Tech N9ne to more recently the closing track of Eminem’s highly conceptual THE DƎATH OF SLIM SHADY (COUP DE GRÂCE) & his Republic debut here stands as the best offering of his ever since he forayed deeper towards country. He’s grappling with his newfound fame during the 83 minute runtime bouncing between country, pop rock & country pop.

Score: 3.5/5

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Lil Tecca – “Plan A” review

New York rapper, singer/songwriter, producer & Galactic Records founder Lil Tecca back with his 3rd LP. Blowing up in 2018 after signing a distribution deal with Republic Records & the viral single “Ran$om”, it would later be included on his debut mixtape We Love You Tecca that same year & would receive lukewarm reception although it’s truthfully grown on me a tad bit over the course of time. His debut LP Virgo World was released during the pandemic & is widely considered to be the weakest entry in his discography. The last time we heard from Tecca was a couple summers ago when Internet Money Records founder Taz Taylor executive produced a worthy sequel to We Love You Tecca & Tec from last fall showed maturity to the point where I recanted calling him a 1-hit wonder when Virgo World came out. Nearly a year to the day, Tecca’s commemorating by dropping Plan A.

“Taste” produced by Taz Taylor, Rio Leyva & Vendr showcases Tecca’s extensive selection of women over a cloudy trap instrumental to get the ball rollin’ whereas “Bad Time” works in some hi-hats & horns noting his dissatisfaction with the way some women in particular treat him. “120” goes for a futuristic atmosphere to beat reminding us that he’s not new & he’s been here, but then the rage-inducing “I Can’t Let Go” featuring Don Toliver locks in with Bugz Ronin to talk about still trappin’ out private projects.

The rattling trap vibes of “Vogue” are pretty fun admittedly boasting that life’s a bitch & he thought it was extortion further advising to send him your location while “24HRS” instrumentally feels skeletal despite him tryna keep his significant other on his mind. “2” cloudily brushes off Tecca’s side bitch tryna run the show & reposition herself as his main just before the atmospheric “Never Last” co-produced by venny discloses to his previous partners that they were easy to replace.

“Homebody” ends the first half of the LP on the cavernous trap tip gettin’ straight to business keeping the confidence instead of talking while the moody “Self2Self” explains everything dying soon as money gets involved & being rich longer than getting that Lawrence graduates degree. The cloudy “Separate Ways” asks if one took a different path if he’s M.I.A. switching with the technology leading into the synth-driven “Time & a Place” talking about having no time to waste whatsoever.

As for “4U”, we have Tecca dreamily telling this woman she’s lucky he even made the time for her & droppin’ dimes on her while the acoustic trap hybrid “Flowers” that BryceUnknwn cooked up confesses he didn’t know the hoe was gonna set his ass up. “Cold Girls” hooks up more at synths & hi-hats cutting off a lying bitch while the spacious “Mama” explains how risky shit got when he almost moved out west. “D1” playfully balls out telling the fakes running from life to face it & “All the Time” cloudily ends things talking about not overstepping.

Rather than making Plan A into this culmination of his career thus far, Lil Tecca instead takes the chance to reflect on the journey up to this point. Internet Money Records’ production evolves the sound that he’s spent the last few years cultivating & the general theme of his music career being all that he wants to do in life without a backup is truly motivating since you always got people talking about having a plan B.

Score: 3.5/5

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SosMula – “Sleez Religion” review

Manhattan, New York rapper SosMula returning for the 3rd LP in his discography. Coming up as 1/3 of the now defunct City Morgue alongside fellow emcee ZillaKami & producer Thraxx, they’ve released 2 full-length albums & an EP together up before branching out on their own for a little bit. Sos was the first to step up to the plate by dropping 13 Songs 2 Die 2, which was a bit of a disappointment in my opinion due to the features & production. ZillaKami followed it up a month later with HIS solo debut Dogboy & the duo reunited to drop Bottom of the Barrel the month after that, both of those I found much more tolerable. 2 High 2 Die was better than it’s predecessor & the Sleez Machine EP that fall was the worst solo effort of his yet, which resulted in me hoping Sleez Religion would bounce back from it especially since City Morgue’s final album My Bloody America finally dropped nearly a year to the day as this.

After the titular intro, the first song “Confessionary” is this eerie trap opener talking about breaking all your bones whereas “Sleezy Bastard (Slasher)” brings hardcore hip hop, trap metal & gangsta rap together referring to himself as a toe tagger. “Candy Man” featuring Kim Dracula works in pianos & hi-hats referencing the titular horror film while “Death Dealer” morbidly talks about takin’ souls.

“Shark Teeth (Death Dealer 2)” has this devilish trap flare to the beat likening the Klean Up Krew to being sharks in the water leading into the energetic “Sgt. Slaughter” named after the WWE Hall of Famer, former WWE Champion & 2-time WWE United States Champion flexing that his mafia style is similar to that of one of my top 3 shows The Sopranos. “Fred Flinstonez” grimly lets everyone know the type of shit he’s been on since City Morgue’s disbandment, but then “Patched Jeans” goes some emo rap over heavy guitars.

After the “Thy Kommandmentz” interlude, “Dead Presidentz” shoots for a more psychedelic trap approach instrumentally calling himself the Mickey to her Mallory just before the rap rock-driven “Sex Pistol” opening up about being on adderrall lately & smashing every single IG model. “Cydeborg” keeps the guitars in tact boasting that he’s in Hell being hella bored while “Passport to Magonia” cavernously expresses his desire of running to the stars & after the “Kommit Ur Life” interlude, “Santorini in Spain” menacingly gets in his gangsta bag.

“Boogie Man” hooks up some horrorcore undertones burning houses down like fireplaces as dumb as that sounds while “Slasher 2” pulls inspiration from the trap metal scene he helped pioneer once again further quenching for blood. “Sprain-Ankle” hops over a rage beat reminding everyone of the type of people he hangs with while “Supa-Savage” wickedly calling himself a knight in shining armor.

As for “Assault Rifle Facial”, we have Sos chaotically talking about clapping all your corny ass friends with the stick while “Sonic” featuring G Herbo sees the pair sharing their homicidal thoughts towards their opponents over a synth-based beat with Detroit trap bass. After the “Strangers in Barcelona” interlude, “Red Gutz” coldly discusses his ghetto mindset while “Burning Flags” warning that the .30 hitting your chest will devour you.

After the “Lost in Magonia” interlude, the penultimate song “Grimy-Hoez” featuring Sematary nears the end of the LP with this piano-trap crossover hanging with the slimiest homies they know & the shrilling “Berzerk-O” ahead of the “Immortal” outro happens to be a proper closer talking taking his own soul in kamikaze style being traumatized.

2 & a half years since Sos bounced back from his debut on 2 High 2 Die & unfortunately, I ended up liking Sleez Religion less than the predecessor. Maybe even less so 13 Songs 2 Die 2, joining Sleez Machine in being another subpar entry in his solo catalog. I’ll give him credit for the production mixing the sounds that he’s dabbled with up to this point all into 1 except it absolutely didn’t need to be almost 30 tracks.

Score: 2/5

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Post Malone – “F-1,000,000,000,000” review

Here we have the 6th full-length LP from Grapevine, Texas rapper, singer/songwriter & producer Post Malone. Rising to stardom in 2015 with the single “White Iverson”, this resulted in him signing to Republic Records quickly makjng himself home ever since by dropping his last 5 albums & a mixtape. Now even though I’ve never really been the biggest fan of Posty’s work, there’s no denying that he has a decent amount of tracks that I genuinely enjoy like “Congratulations” as well as “rockstar” & who could forget “Sunflower”? Hell I even liked his sophomore effort beerbongs & bentleys, which I maintain is the crown jewel of his discography. Hollywood’s Bleeding rode the emo rap coattails, his Mercury Records debut under it’s revival as a Republic subsidiary 12kt Toothace felt like 1-long song & Austin was mid to the point where Posty finally succumbed to Lil B’s tweet about him going country in 2017 on F-1,000,000,000,000.

“Wrong Ones” featuring Tim McGraw starts by bringing the 2 together over a guitar advising to keep the cold ones coming whereas “Finer Things” featuring Hank Williams Jr. talks enjoying all the finer stuff in life. “I Had Some Help” featuring Morgan Wallen was a patience testing lead single mutating country pop, pop rock & country rock tackling the theme of relationship struggles just before “Pour Me a Drink” featuring Blake Shelton works in some bro-country undertones looking for a buzz.

Dolly Parton saves one of the album’s best features for “Have the Heart” talking about not having it in either one of them to break each others’ hearts leading into the country pop flavored “What Don’t Belong to Me” telling his partner he can’t give her what doesn’t belong to him. “Goes Without Saying” featuring Brad Paisley is a country rock breakup ballad coming to terms with their ex-girlfriends not rekindling the flame, but then “Guy for That” featuring Luke Combs continues the country & rock hybrids talking about being good at breaking hearts.

“Nosedive” featuring Lainey Wilson is this acoustic duet reminding that every thorn has it’s rose while “Losers” featuring Jelly Roll starts the 2nd half of the LP for a legitimately enjoyable tribute to all the outcasts. “Devil I’ve Been” featuring Ernest delivers a contemporary country vibe being fed up with living a life of sin while the southern “Never Love You Again” featuring Sierra Ferrell talks the road not being their friends & the long, lost highway ahead of them.

Luke Combs joins Posty yet again on the stripped-back “Missin’ You Like This” so they can both cry over exes they still dream of all these years later while “California Sober” featuring Chris Stapleton turns the country pop influences back up telling the story of a woman on the run after stealing some sucker’s money. The contemporary country-inspired “Hide My Gun” featuring Hardy asks their lovers if they would conceal their weapons while “Right About You” goes country rock once more asking if she’d still love him if we were down bad & at home.

“M-E-X-I-C-O” nears the conclusion of F-1,000,000,000,000 pulling from traditional country hangin’ ’round & broken down with a settled downtown girl prior to her diplomatic father giving him a significant amount of money for him to leave the country heading to the continent of South America while “Yours” serves as an acoustic closer paying tribute to his own daughter telling her that she’ll always be his little girl knowing one day a special man will come in her life & they’ll get married.

Starting the Long Bed deluxe run, “Fallin’ in Love” is this tacky country rock cut talking about him falling in love becoming inevitable while “Dead at the Honky Tonk” continues the aesthetics from previously singing about a hole in his heart. “Killed a Man” tries to get in his outlaw bag falling flat on his face while “Ain’t How It Ends” keeps it traditionally country whining to a woman that this can’t be the way their relationship ends.

“Hey Mercedes” throws the rock influences in the picture again asking the titular character what she has planned for tonight while the contemporary country joint “Go to Hell” sings about a love interest making him feel right & being unable to figure out exactly what makes him feel that way about her. “2 Hearts” strips things back telling us what happens when 2 hearts split in 2 while the peppy “Who Needs You?” shrugging off a bitch since he can break himself into 2. The final bonus track “Back to Texas” goes contemporary again for a tribute to the titular state.

7 years after The Based God predicted it, Post Malone has finally gone full-blown Kid Rock making his official country debut like the WWE Hall of Famer himself did resulting in one of the worst albums of this decade just like the new Falling in Reverse album Popular Monster. His takes on contemporary country, country pop, pop rock, country rock & bro-country feels more of a cash-grab as opposed to passionate although some of the guests’ performances either outshine him or match his level of awful. You’re much better off listening to Slumerican Records artist Tony Martinez’ new debut album Everywhere West, Johnny Cash’s latest posthumous effort Songwriter, Beyoncé’s 2nd act of her ongoing trilogy Cowboy Carter or even Willie Nelson’s best late career album The Border instead.

Score: 0.5/5

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