Skribbal – “Electric Lungs” review

Los Angeles, California emcee Skribbal teaming up with both his uncle Katfish & the multifaceted SVH for his 4th studio LP. Coming up in 2016 off the strength of his full-length debut Drug Spun Funk, would catch the attention of the rising Wisconsin underground label Force 5 Records & they would put out his sophomore effort Skinwalker a couple years later. Once he dropped his debut EP Quarantine Sessions a month after the pandemic started, he would leave the label to form his own Splatterbrain Records & celebrated this newfound independence by dropping his 3rd album Black Eyed Children distancing himself from horrorcore in favor of a more hardcore hip hop style. Last time I covered him was the winter of 2022 with the Road to Dystopia EP & Electric Lungs is now making a daring shift from underground hip hop to nu metal/

After the intro, the first song “Gaslight” sets the tone of what’s to come with this nu metal opener rapping about the opps’ tactics backfiring on them & losing his own sight whereas “Suffer the Fall” works in some more heavy guitars except he’s singing this time looking to make the world believe. “Forged in Fire” kinda has this industrial hip hop vibe cautioning a violent storm forming since the Devil resurrects when the beat drops leading into “Torn” going full-blown rap metal to talk about being ready for war.

“Iron Sky” after the “Military Industrial Complex” interlude continues being hip hop & metal music together making room for conscious lyricism while “Start All Over (Bad Side)” kinda feels reminiscent to LINKIN PARK’s early 2000s output discussing coming from a broken home & having a broken mind. “This Graveyard Earth” takes the boom bap route instrumentally bringing hardcore lyricism to the table, but then the trap metal-inspired “Breaking Out” promises to never let them take away who he is.

Ashes Like Rain joins Skribbal on the song “Shadow Bleeding” getting back in his nu metal bag with rap verses & guttural screaming on the hook talking all these hoebags nowadays embracing the propaganda while “Run Rabbit!” featuring Myalansky of prior Wu-Syndicate fame & Praise1 just before the outro properly finishes Electric Lungs with more of a hardcore hip hop-driven closer talking about haters being mad over their return from Hell to rob rappers of their chains.

Combining the lyrical depth and underground sensibilities of hip hop with the aggressive instrumentation of metal, the Splatterbrain Records founder takes us on a genre-bending journey tackling subjects from government corruption to dark occult conspiracies in addition to inviting listeners to embrace their own strength and individuality in a world that often seems oppressive through his confidence & bravado.

Score: 4/5

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Krazy Attitude – “Simulation of Death” review

Up-&-coming Syracuse, New York underground emcee Krazy Attitude released his 7th mixtape over here about a couple months ago on Devil’s Night, which is basically the day before Halloween. He’s already built up a full-length debut, his previous 6 tapes & 3 EPs all in the span of 5 years with the last time we heard from him being his 6th mixtape Quey Grizzley last year. And looking at some of the titles here named after classic hip hop cuts from the last 3 decades, I was intrigued going into Simulation of Death.

After the “Welcome to the Simulation of Death” intro, the first song “Serial Killa” freestyles over the classic Snoop Dogg joint of the same name featuring Tha Dogg Pound & RBX whereas “On & On continues to kick it off the dome over one of my favorite Pete Rock & CL Smooth tracks. “Rhymeslayer” seems to have new original production going for a rawer sound slaying rhymes for y’all prior to “BANG!!!” shifting gears into trap territory talking about how this shit easy.

“6 SHOTS!!!” gives me a bit of a Detroit trap vibe instrumentally belittling his opposition just before “Lyrical Assassinator” gets back on his freestyle shit over “Terminator X to the Edge of Panic” by Public Enemy. After the “Reality Check” interlude, “Winter Warz” of course finds him flowing over the timeless cut off Ghostface Killah’s solo debut Ironman, but then “Worthless World” blends these synths with kicks & snares getting in his underground bag.

Meanwhile, “Pencil Illness” continues to spit off top over the the flawless “All Caps” by Madvillain leading into “Harsh Reality” returning to the boom bap getting bringing to you hardcore on the lyrical front. “Here’s Mr. Terrorist” goes for a bit of a futuristic sound introducing his alter-ego of the same name almost like Eminem with Slim Shady & fittingly enough “Scary Movies” featuring Kean Asé joins forces on top of the beat from the immaculate b-side from Bad Meets Ǝvil.

After the “How High” interlude, “Smile More” goes for a suspenseful atmosphere instrumentally trying to show y’all the right way while “The Night Stalker” flows over “Blow” off of Tyler, The Creator’s only mixtape Bastard already fuckin’ celebrating it’s 14-year anniversary in a few days. “Unhinged” this time freestyles “Luper” by Earl Sweatshirt while the bell-heavy “DTF” admits that he’s crazy.

“Hellraiser” begins the encore of the tape by weaving these ominous synth patterns into the fold talking about being a murderer & “Kill Them All” closes out the tape with 1 last freestyle. Choice of song being “Skrunt Owt” by Fam-Lay or Tyler, The Creator’s “Splatter” freestyle at the beginning of Odd Future’s 2nd & final mixtape Radical that turned 13 about 7 months ago.

If you want mix between early 2010s & old school 90s hip hop with multisyllabic & internal rhyme schemes along with hardcore/horrorcore lyrics & braggadocio rhymes, then you’re gonna want to give this mixtape here a shot. You get a look at some of his influences throughout the whole duration of the project & feels reminiscent to Lil Wayne’s historic Dedication series

Score: 3.5/5

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Skribbal – “Road to Dystopia” review

Skribbal is a 30 year old MC from Los Angeles, California who came up in 2016 off the strength of his full-length debut Drug Spun Funk. This would catch the attention of the rising Wisconsin underground label Force 5 Records & they would put out his sophomore effort Skinwalker a couple years later. But once Skribbal dropped his debut EP Quarantine Sessions a month after the pandemic started, he would leave the label to form his own Sony Music imprint Hell Patrol Records & celebrated this newfound independence by dropping his 3rd album Black Eyed Children last spring distancing himself from horrorcore in favor of a more hardcore hip hop style. We’ve already gotten 2 EPs from him in 2022 with In Their Blood…& from the Gutterand Man with the Screaming Brain, but is finishing the year with a 4th EP.

“Son of Paleface” is a twangy boom bap opener dropping some battle bars whereas “Dorothy Lamour” works in a crooning vocal loop talking about searching for his soulmate. “Ralph & Alice” has some dejecting piano chords throughout as he & Brittany Dominguez compare one another to the titular couple from The Honeymooners while “Thanks for the Memory” reminiscing on how gorgeous this chick that he saw was over a vintage sample. The closer “Jackie Gleason” with Mopes is a horn-boom bap combination continuing to bring the hardcore prior to the bonus cut “Mambo Italiano truly ending the EP with an Italian flip explaining how crazy he is.

All 3 of the EPs that this dude has dropped throughout the year are solid in their own rights, but I think that Road to Dystopia is my 2nd favorite of the trilogy behind In Their Blood…& from the Gutter. The heavy 40s/50s influence throughout is pulled off in an interesting fashion & you can tell Skribbal has a genuine appreciation for that specific time in history. Whatever’s next in 2023, I’m interesting in hearing where it goes from here.

Score: 3.5/5

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Skribbal – “Man with the Screaming Brain” review

This is the 3rd EP from Los Angeles, California emcee Skribbal. Coming up in 2016 off the strength of his full-length debut Drug Spun Funk, this would catch the attention of the rising Wisconsin underground label Force 5 Records & they would put out his sophomore effort Skinwalker a couple years later. But once Skribbal dropped his debut EP Quarantine Sessions a month after the pandemic started, he would leave the label to form his own Sony Music imprint Hell Patrol Records & celebrated this newfound independence by dropping his 3rd album Black Eyed Children last spring distancing himself from horrorcore in favor of a more hardcore hip hop style. However after dropping In Their Blood…& from the Gutter a couple months back, Skribbal is already following it up by dropping Man with the Screaming Bad on his Bandcamp out of nowhere.

“Child of the State” kicks off the whole EP on some jazzy boom bap shit talking about what he’s learned throughout the course of his life whereas the Joe Blak-assisted “At War with the Enemy” works in some dusty drums & somber piano chords to spit some battle raps. The title track has a cloudy trap vibe taking about smoking motherfuckers while the penultimate song “Biz Markie” incorporates some organs to pay homage to the late Juice Crew member of the same name. Kaze Jones then comes into the picture for the closer “Shogun Assassins”, which fuses an operatic vocal sample with some pianos declaring themselves as the dynamic duo.

Now in comparison to In Their Blood…& from the Gutter being inspired by Dave Berkowitz, he takes it back to the hardcore style of Black Eyed Childrenon Man with the Screaming Brain. The features are bit underwhelming, but Skribbal manages to deliver some impressive performances on top of production of the traditional boom bap style.

Score: 3.5/5

Skribbal – “In Their Blood…& from the Gutter” review

Skribbal is a 30 year old MC from Los Angeles, California who came up in 2016 off the strength of his full-length debut Drug Spun Funk. This would catch the attention of the rising Wisconsin underground label Force 5 Records & they would put out his sophomore effort Skinwalker a couple years later. But once Skribbal dropped his debut EP Quarantine Sessions a month after the pandemic started, he would leave the label to form his own Sony Music imprint Hell Patrol Records & celebrated this newfound independence by dropping his 3rd album Black Eyed Children last spring distancing himself from horrorcore in favor of a more hardcore hip hop style. However in light of his born day coming & going last month though, he’s keeping things rolling with his 2nd EP.

“Holocaust Winds” kicks the whole thing off with a portentous instrumental talking about how no one can hold him back whereas the grimy “Tim Allen Coke” with Lord Goat finds the 2 clapping back at everyone. “Master of the Moon” gets in his wicked shit bag with an occult boom bap beat while the penultimate song “The Black Sleep” goes into trap territory working in an infectious vocal sample talking about living in between 2 worlds. The title track then enlists Praiseone taking a dustier route in terms of sound declaring themselves as soul reapers.

If this dude has something bigger coming down the pipe later on in the year, then I think In Their Blood…& from the Gutter serves as a solid appetizer for the main course. It picks up right where the last album left off continuing to embrace a more traditional hardcore hip hop style except he’s throwing his horrorcore roots back into the mix.

Score: 3.5/5

Skribbal – “Black Eyed Children” review

This is the 3rd album from Los Angeles, California emcee Skribbal. Coming up in 2016 off the strength of his full-length debut Drug Spun Funk, the man would catch the attention of the rising Wisconsin underground label Force 5 Records & put out his sophomore effort Skinwalker a couple years later. But once Skribbal dropped his debut EP Quarantine Sessions last 4/20, he would leave the label to form his own Sony Music imprint Hell Patrol Records & the newfound independence by coming together with the highly anticipated Black Eyed Children.

After the “Retribution” intro performed by death metal icon Chris Barnes, the first actual song on the album “Born All Over” is a Napalm Drop cut where Skribbal & Big Left get together to talk about how hip hop gets them through the day on top of a sample of the O.V. Wright joint of the same name whereas “Find My Way” is a somber boom bap cut about being afraid of change.

For “Bring the Pain”, we have Skribbal on top of a quasi-funky instrumental to declare music as his therapy before declaring that he’ll never sell his soul on the dysphoric “Vampire Tactics”. We have RedCloud accompanying the mic for the heinous “Dreams in the Witch House” & the Iyze Lowe takes his spot to rap about how “can’t nobody do it like we do” on “Keep It Movin’”.

Meanwhile on “The Man Who Fell from the Sky”, Skribbal vividly details a story about a man trying to escape the US while he & Emycst declare themselves stronger than ever on the enchantingly-produced “Stronger Than Ever”. The song “We Are Not Alone” with Aether Haze is a cool dedication to all the struggling foster kids in the world on top of a beat with some grimly bells, but Celph Titled & Damian Krypt come together to get on the horrorcore tip for “Halloween Apples”.

Even though “Beyond the Black Rainbow” has a dark sound to it, I do enjoy the motivational lyrics about finding the light. The penultimate track “Wreck the System” with The R.O.C. is a dusty battle rap cut & to finish it all off, Dopehead Dan & the DG@F general himself Chucky Chuck hop on for the weed-themed “Pass the Green”.

The first of 4 bonus songs “Man with the Screaming Brain” goes into a more trap direction as Skribbal challenges all competition to bring the smoke before returning to a more boom bap sound to detail everything he’s learned on “Child of the State”. Dude brings in an organ & vocal harmonizing for the self-deprecating “Slave to the Pain & then we get some ominous keyboards as he details a regular day in the ghetto on “No Good: A Hood Story”.

In comparison to Skribbal’s last 2 albums, Black Eyed Children is a completely different vibe but in a good way. He focuses a lot less on the horrorcore aspect of things lyrically to focus on displaying his overall skills a lot more & is prominently boom bappy than before.

Score: 3.5/5