Tag: Speak of the Devil

Foul Mouth – “Everybody Goes Crazy Once” review

Foul Mouth is a 42 year old producer & MC from Detroit, Michigan coming up as 1/2 of Da Bash Brotherz with the late PHD & 1/3 of JFK with Jake Knew & King Juke. He would also form the duos Bad News Brown & Speak of the Devil with Ketch P & DJ Skyrah respectively after starting his own label Middle Finger Music in 2018, producing albums for the likes of Fatt Father & Isaac Castor to name a couple. His most notable work has been with Bizarre of prior D12 fame, whether it be his work with King Gordy as L.A.R.S. or the He Got a Gun series & the final moments of “Antichrist” off Eminem’s 13th album THE DƎATH OF SLIM SHADY (COUP DE GRÂCE). However, he’s finally to make his full-length studio debut as lyricist.

The intro breaks the door down with a gritty self-produced instrumental advising all the people ripping off Griselda to get lost whereas “Only the Right” jazzily talks about taking a break from rapping for a decade to focus on his successes producing for some of the biggest names in music. “From Above” featuring Isaac Castor & Jalen Frazier dustily boasts that nobody can ever be anything like them while “Code Red” featuring Bizarre & Fatboi Sharif eerily finds the trio staying in their hardcore bags lyrically.

“Louis Tripp” works in a drumless sample admitting that he’s been feeling lonely as of late even though he’s one of the most in-demand beatsmiths throughout the entire state leading into “Lucky Number” featuring Choke Uno, DJ Clay, Isaac Castor, J-Classic, Metasyons & Tru Klassick coming through with a 3 minute posse cut. “Discharge it to the Game” shows off Foul’s ear for sampling referencing former WWE Cruiserweight Champion, WCW World Tag Team Champion & 2-time WCW World Television Champion Disco Inferno just before the crooning “Bah Say” featuring J-Classic & Kain Cole talks about their boss mentalities.

To begin Everybody Goes Crazy Once’s final act, “Bombs Away (4XL Beefcake)” speaks of being the only attraction down river that hasn’t failed while “The Salton Sea” drumlessly talks about music being his only passion & for has-beens to blame themselves for their own downfall. “All Jokes Aside” confesses that all he ever wanted was to be normal until his soul got sucked through a portal & the title track appropriately sends things off losing it over a boom bap beat.

Knowing this guy personally for almost a decade, Foul Mouth’s always told people that he could freestyle better than he could make beats & Everybody Goes Crazy Once certainly proves his point that I had already figured out from the moment I heard his hooks on “Savage Life” by L.A.R.S. when they dropped their debut EP Foul World after Twiztid had signed them to Majik Ninja Entertainment. I feel like there isn’t much that hasn’t been said already regarding his production which is mostly self-produced but lyrically, his pen has sharpened significantly from his days with his late Bash Brother PHD & the guests that he brings on board all maintain their own weight.

Score: 4/5

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Mickey Avalon – “Speak of the Devil” review

Mickey Avalon is a 44 year old rapper from Hollywood, California blowing up on Halloween 2006 with the release of his self-titled debut & then the loose single “What Do You Say?” appearing in The Hangover just 3 years later. This resulted in a deal with Suburban Noize Records, who helped Mickey release his 2012 magnum opus Loaded. Since then, he’s kept himself busy by self-releasing the equally fantastic Teardrops on My Tombstone & a handful of EPs. But with Subnoize’s reforming last year, Mickey has seen fit to link back up with Kevin Zinger & the spade for his 4th full-length album entirely produced by Smoov-E.

The opener “Handyman” is essentially Mickey proclaiming himself as that dude to solve all your problems over a trunk-knocking beat whereas the next song “Ulra-Violence” touches down on how nothing’s free over an instrumental with a jangly guitar hanging during the verses. The track “Shooting Up” obviously about doing drugs over an decent EDM beat while the song “Woke AF” takes a jab at the politically correct over a bombastic instrumental. The track “Johnny Come Lately” sees Mickey comparing himself to that of a pimp over a tuba-inflicted trap beat while the song “Dolly Parton” is a strip-club banger backed by some sirens that really kick up the vibe of it.

The track “Bad Luck Billy” tells the story of a man that’s always doing wrong over a stripped-back acoustic instrumental while the song “Let’s Go” finds Mickey getting into a lot of mischief from robbing a bank with a knife to carjacking over an EDM/trap fusion. The song “Rich Friends” brags about Mickey’s homies on top of an instrumental that sounds like something out of an old video game while the closer “End of My Line” gets right back into the acoustic side of things except the lyrics open up about how it’s difficult to look for a woman the opposite of him. The bonus cut “Dodging Bullets” is a teaser from his upcoming collab EP with reggae artist Landon McNamara entitled Highs & Lows.

If you enjoyed Loaded & Teardrops on My Tombstone as much as I did, then you’re gonna enjoy this album too. The lyricism remains wilder than ever before & Smoov-E continues to be a good match for Mickey because the sounds that he comes through with behind the boards continue to compliment his debauchery well.

Score: 3.5/5