Crimeapple – “Bulletproof Chicken” review

Hackensack, New Jersey lyricist Crimeapple tapping in with V Don for his 18th studio LP. Becoming a fan of his in the fall of 2017 with his 4th EP Sweet Dreams along with the Big Ghost Ltd. produced full-length debut Aguardiente that following spring, his profile in the underground grew exponentially from there. Discography standouts include the DJ Skizz-produced Wet Dirt, the DJ Muggs-produced Medallo, Cartagena, Breakfast in Hradec, Sin Cortar, the Preservation-produced El León, the official Aguardiente sequel Bazuko, the Mello Music Group-backed This, Is Not That produced by Apollo Brown & more recently Rose Gold. Over 3 months later & Bulletproof Chicken has arrived only a few days into September.

“Scrape the Pot” sets the tone with a drumless piano sample flexing his knack for customer service resulting in fiends coming back for more whereas “Railroad Avenue” goes for a jazzier direction talking about his neck being like an arcade. “Victor Charlie” takes a luxurious boom bap approach getting in his mafioso bag lyrically & “4.99 Special” divides itself into 2 halves with a beat-switch in the middle asking what you have to floss after getting on his dignity.

T.F. & Crime link up on the drumless “Groundhog’s Day” talking about getting money repeatedly leading into “Brazil” featuring Primo Profit returning to the boom bap to show off their strict policy of keeping their potencies high. “Wings” featuring Bruiser Wolf eerily unites the 2 to talk about needing the chicken & needing to make the pay while “Ocean Drive” finds himself hitting the district to show what the wrist do.

The title track begins the final leg of Bulletproof Chicken by stacking bread to the ceiling over an exuberant boom bap instrumental while “Clientele” goes off-the-dome for 105 seconds sampling soul music & spitting mafioso lyrics on top of it. “Fluegame” rawly talks about not being bestowed from his position in the underground & “Scooby Sweaters” caps it all off with a boom bap beat mixed with vocal harmonization in the background getting real serious with it as if he already hasn’t been.

Over 3 months since Rose Gold completed the trilogy that Wet Dirt started & Breakfast in Hradec bridged, what has already been a prolific year for V Don continues since he can now add Crimeapple to the growing list of names he’s produced for after Boldy James & Estee Nack respectively. What the New York producer cooks up here is a healthy mix between boom bap, drumless, jazz rap & chipmunk soul to back Crime’s mafiosi pen-game.

Score: 4.5/5

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Estee Nack – “B.R.A.P. 2 (Big Rifles & Pistols)” review

Pretty sure this has to be the 14th proper full-length studio LP from Lynn, Massachusetts emcee/producer Estee Nack. Emerging as a member of the Tragic Allies, he also branched out on his own my senior year of high school off his Purpose-produced solo debut 14 Forms: The Book of Estee Nack & has since built a lengthy yet impressive discography for himself. Other highlights include the Sadhugold-produced Surfinongold.wav alongside it’s sequel The Order of the Golden Fleece, the Giallo Point-produced Papitas & it’s sequel, his collab efforts with al.divino, the V Don-produced B.R.A.P. (Born Rewards & Penalties), the Griselda Records debut Nacksaw Jim Duggan, the Mike Shabb-produced Live at the Tabernackle & the Futurewave-produced Stone Temple Pyrex. Commemorating the 2-year anniversary of B.R.A.P. (Born Rewards & Penalties) this spring, Nackman & V Don are looking to pull out the Big Rifles & Pistols for a follow-up.

The title track was a jazzily drumless intro talking about haters casually ducking headshots whereas the 2nd & final single “LAKOTA DREAM CATCHER” heads for a soulful boom bap direction speaking on trying to wake up those who prefer to sleep on him. The lead single “CARVEL” finds himself properly executing a plan that cannot fail leading into “EZBRED” featuring Al-Doe links the 2 up to talk about being centuries ahead of the rest.

“OGFIRE” nears the end of the 1st half of the album by telling those who think they know him to cut that shit out just before the atmospheric “HIGHTECHNOLOGY” featuring al.divino, BoriRock & Shaykh Hanif finds the trio talking about running the game in a vice grip. After the “TRUE ESSENCE” interlude, “COLDER” featuring Ty da Dale returns to the boom bap so both of them can talk about their pockets being full of bloods & crips just before we get a treated to a “PAPERCHASIN’” sequel pulling from rap rock.

To start the final leg of B.R.A.P. 2 (Big Rifles & Pistols) the song “OFFTHEPLANE” takes it back to the basement looking at taking his competition down rather quickly while “RINGWALK” talks about being in tip top shape for the purchase. “ELEGANTDELINQUENT” featuring al.divino reunites the duo 1 last time over pianos providing something flavorful for their customers while “ILDUCE” caps it all off with a hardcore hip hop closer talking about being victorious without violence.

V Don’s been staying busy all year whether it be his 2nd EP albeit Black Soprano Family Records/Roc Nation Records debut Sent For at the end of January or producing Boldy James’ 14th album Alphabet Highway over 2 months later, but his production during B.R.A.P. 2 (Big Rifles & Pistols) feels a little jazzier than the original B.R.A.P. (Born Rewards & Penalties) not to mention the guest list being a step down from the predecessor.

Score: 4/5

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Boldy James – “Alphabet Highway” review

The hardest working Detroit artist today Boldy James enlisting V Don to produce his 14th full-length LP. Breaking out in the fall of 2013 off his Alchemist produced debut M.1.C.S. (My 1st Chemistry Set), he would later go on to land a contract with Nas’ independent label Mass Appeal Records for a little while before getting locked up. Once coming home, Uncle Al would help get his name back out there once getting out by dropping the Boldface EP around Christmas 2019 & then the sophomore album The Price of Tea in China. This was followed up with the Sterling Toles-produced Manger on McNichols which was as equally fantastic, but the Griselda Records-backed Versace Tape EP was a tad bit disappointing given how rushed it was. Bo Jackson though would become his most critically acclaimed work to date & Super Tecmo Bo was almost as great for an EP. Fair Exchange No Robbery produced by Nicholas Craven, Penalty of Leadership, Mr. 10-08 produced by Futurewave, the Conductor Williams-produced Across the Tracks, the Harry Fraud-produced The Bricktionary & the Carlo Anthony-produced Hidden in Plain Sight were all welcomed to warm reception additionally. Token of Appreciation produced by Chuck Strangers was much better than both Murder During Drug Traffic & Permanent Ink, coming off the Antt Beatz produced Hommage from last weekend to go on the Alphabet Highway.

“Finishing Touches” starts by talking about his resume not having any blemishes or smudges when he has only a few projects in his discography that stand out being mid at best whereas “R.S.N.S. (Real Street N***a Shit)” needs no further explanation regarding the subject matter. “Split the Bill” was an outstanding boom bap single explaining trigger happy & they ain’t even smiling while “Mrs. Porter” dabbles with trap going off to the horse races

Moving on from there, “No Guessing Games” assures his girl to chill out since all wounds will be healed in due time just before “Dr. Demento” talks about people being able to tell he’s up simply by looking at his chains & being in a standoff with the opps. “Entrapment” heads for an atmospheric direction asking if he’s speaking to an undercover fed & worried of setting himself up if he is, but then “Lemon Head Light” soulfully walks people down like he’s on papers they’re tryna take from him.

“Day Light Savings” goes drumless to talk about bottling up his pain in a pint & people tryna seal his fate while the piano-driven “Without Mention” explains that the streets turned his soul cold. “Smacking Foreigns” jazzily advises to never switch up on your members while “Quaker Oats” gets on the rap rock tip again tryna stack his chips until they touch the sky. “Bobert Horry” finishes Alphabet Highway with this killer tribute to current Los Angeles Lakers commentator & former player Robert Horry.

Some felt that Hommage was on the same level of mediocrity as Murder During Drug Traffic & Permanent Ink, which I disagree with because I’d have to put it behind Hidden in Plain Sight as the finest examples of him pulling off that Detroit trap sound. Alphabet Highway if you’re familiar with V Don’s production style, most will find themselves enjoy as much if not more than Token of Appreciation over a month ago. The production that V Don cooks up here is more rawer & Boldy lyrically goes harder with the pen.

Score: 4.5/5

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V Don – “Sent For” review

New York producer V Don curating his 3rd EP after signing to Black Soprano Family Records & Roc Nation Records. In the past 15 years, he has become one of the most in-demand producers that the underground has seen working with the likes of Willie the Kid to Ransom & Estee Nack in addition to his small handful of solo efforts including the debut album The Opiate & his last EP Better Than Money. The latter celebrated its 3-year anniversary earlier this month & is returning with Sent For.

“Mafia” by Eto is this gritty boom bap opener talking about never sitting in a spot if he could never landlord it whereas “Fortunate” by Hobx & WhoisBravy hooks up some strings along with kicks & snares to discuss staying putting in orders in order to maintain the baller mentality of theirs. “The Same Day” by Benny the Butcher & Conway the Machine finds the pair talking about goals coming together doing something to your soul leading into “Episode” by Lloyd Banks boasting that his life’s complete.

The song “Too Much” by Al-Doe & Willie the Kid reaches the backend of Sent For by going drumless suggesting you should take it if you like what you see from them while “Old Kemba” by BabyMaine & Ty da Dale returns to the boom bap talking about staying hands on with the work. “Know Me” by Elcamino & Sule closes V Don’s debut with B$F/Roc Nation with both MCs giving headshots as if they’re photographers & that you better act as if you know what the deal really is.

Whether it be the Deutsche Marks saga or B.R.A.P. (Born Rewards & Penalties) & the Chaos is My Ladder duology, V Don’s case in being one of underground hip hop’s most in-demand producers has already been made clear as day in the past 15 years & his Black Soprano Family/Roc Nation debut takes it a step further introducing himself to a wider audience. His signature hardcore boom bap sound remains the same & he recruits a mostly high tier list of performers to kill his beats.

Score: 4/5

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Conway the Machine & Ransom – “Chaos is My Ladder 2” review

This is a brand new collaborative LP between Buffalo, New York emcee/entrepreneur Conway the Machine alongside Jersey City wordsmith Ransom. One of whom came up with his Hall ‘N Nash cohort Westside Gunn as well as Benny the Butcher as Griselda Records’ core 3 artists & the other started as 1/2 of the A-Team except he much like Benny saw renewed interest in their careers when 38 Spesh signed them to TCF Music Group for a period of time. Both of these guys have collaborated with each other previously on “Stab Out” off Conway’s 3rd album Won’t He Do It & are teaming up for a sequel to Ransom’s 5th solo album Chaos is My Ladder produced by V Don, who’s staying behind the boards on the follow-up.

“A New Day” gets the ball rollin’ by hopping over a guitar & organs bringing the chaos together for roughly 3 & a half minutes whereas “Limitless” aggressively talking about making sure everything they do is past the point of having any limitations. “Photo Bomb” works in pianos to discuss everyone over the age of 40 making party anthems calling those lil gangbangers Childish Gambinos just before the boom bap-laced “Shell Fish” wanting to know who else brings the chaos like they do.

Meanwhile on “Mid Life Crisis”, we’re treated to the first of 2 Ransom solo joints soulfully talking about not stopping the party & continuing to celebrate for him just before “Commandments” eerily declares that they can’t fuck with them since they got too much hustle. After the “Anarchy” interlude, “Born Again” brings a soulful trap flare to the table stressing out thinking of their homies who ain’t here while “Higher Killer” featuring Lloyd Banks was a murderous choice of a single. “Nefarious” by Ransom ends Chaos is My Ladder 2 basing it on Outwitting the Devil by Napoleon Hill.

Chaos is My Ladder almost 2 years later has to be one of my favorites in Ransom’s entire discography, so the sequel here had me anticipating it as much & him linking up with Conway the Machine makes it a step above Pain Provided Profit with Jae Skeese & on par with Coup de Grâce with Rome Streetz as one of the best collab efforts from either one of them. V Don’s production remains consistent as it was on the predecessor, allowing the 2 east coast artists to elevate their chemistry.

Score: 4.5/5

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Estee Nack – “B.R.A.P. (Born Rewards & Penalties)” review

This is the 6th full-length album from Boston emcee Estee Nack. Coming up as a member of the Tragic Allies, he also branched out on his own my junior year of high school of his Purpose-produced solo debut 14 Forms: The Book of Estee Nack & has since built a lengthy yet impressive discography for himself. Other highlights include the Sadhugold-produced Surfinongold.wav alongside it’s sequel The Order of the Golden Fleece, the Giallo Point-produced Papitas, his collab efforts with al.divinowith the #MiniMansionDust series. But as Estee makes up for his Griselda Records debut Nacksaw Jim Duggan being delayed, he’s enlisting V Don to fully produce B.R.A.P. (Born Rewards & Penalties).

“Opening Statements” is a grand drumless opener with Estee talking about going from riding a train to a truck & those trying to reach for his charm whereas “Penny Pinchin’” goes right into sinister boom bap attacking the type of motherfucker to play games with you. “Paperchasing” takes a more soulful route with some bass guitar to go after the bread, but then The Hidden Character tags along for the rugged “Gatpackin’” talking about guns of course.

As for “Devils Can’t Fool God”, we have Mr. Rose over a bare string instrumental to address those who still be trying to get on his good side even after the fact that a bunch of weak shit about them was confirmed leading into Primo Profit tagging along for “The Uncanny” accompanied by a blaring yet raw ass beat advising to check your own posture. “Who to Trust” has a bluesy, drumless approach to it with the Nackman talking about being unsure as to who he can genuinely trust leading into “Sang Tsung” is a attaches these synthesizers to some more kicks & snares to talk about those who ain’t got cake to blow waiting ‘til you’re famous.

The song “Vivir triumfar y morir Pt. 2” comes through with a bare orchestral loop to deliver a sequel to a joint off Joan Manuel Serrap expand on the themes of living, succeeding & eventually death while the penultimate track “Rules & Regulations” has one of the stronger feature performances from Rigz from Da Cloth as they hop on a beat with a rich boom bap quality to it talking about how it be where they come from. The closer “Exodus” has another great guest verse from Eto this time with both them sending off the album with a hypnotically psychedelic instrumental addressing being from the streets & trying to make it with their feet pressed against the sand.

Although it’s certainly disappointing that Nacksaw Jim Duggan got pushed back, that’s just how it goes sometimes. As for the album before the album right here, it’s quickly becoming amongst my favorites in Estee’s discography & reassures me that his Griselda debut will be on par if not superior to what B.R.A.P. (Born Rewards & Penalties) brought to the table. He’s always been my favorite Tragic Allies member & I’m truthfully 50/50 on the 4 features, but V Don continues to further reveal himself as an in-demand producer in the underground with his production here being the most consistent we’ve heard the Nackman spit over in a while.

Score: 4.5/5

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Ransom – “Chaos is My Ladder” review

Ransom is a 44 year old MC from Jersey City who came up as 1/2 of the short-lived duo A-Team alongside Hitchcock. After their disbandment, he branched out on his own in 2008 beginning with his full-length debut Street Cinema & the Statik Selektah-produced sophomore effort The Proposal. But it’s been safe to say these last couple years have been his biggest so far whether it be the 5 EPs that he put out produced by Nicholas Craven, 7 based around the 7 deadly sins, the Big Ghost Ltd.-produced Heavy’s the Head, the Rome Streetz collab album Coup de Grâce, his previous full-length No Rest for the Wicked earlier this spring & his latest EP This Life Made Me in the fall. But to ring in the winter, Ran’s enlisting V Don to fully produce his 5th album.

“Hit List” featuring 38 Spesh starts things off with a menacing boom bap of opener as the pair go back & forth with one another getting ready to go to war whereas “All In” with Eto works in some lavish piano chords with the 2 talking about how tigers don’t dance in the desert. Both J. Arrr & Mad Squablz tag along for the chipmunk soul infused “Blissful Agony” to drop some battle bars just before the orchestral boom bap ballad “Lone Wolf” declares himself as such.

After the “Calm Before the Storm” interlude, we have Ransom coming together with “A Most Dreadful Symphony” calling out those who glance over the scripts & never knowing the plots over some string sections leading into the angelically produced “Toxic Love” with the title speaking for itself as far as subject matter goes, but then “Burning Bridges” goes drumless with it’s bare piano instrumental continue to be more introspective with the lyrics.

The song “Chaotic Ceremony” has a more luxurious groove to it talking about liking action & making shit happen while the penultimate track “Short Notice” with Lloyd Banks finds the 2 wordsmiths talking about how it’s time to even the score over a jazzy beat. “Late Nights Early Mournings” however closes out the album on a symphonic note proclaiming only the strong survive so the weak ends.

Between this as well as No Rest for the Wicked & This Life Made Me, there’s not a single doubt in my mind that Chaos is My Ladder is the best of the 3 projects that Ransom has dropped throughout 2022. The production that V Don cooks up is a tad bit more consistent than what we heard on the last EP with no disrespect intended towards Mayor whatsoever as the lyricism continues to remind everyone that there aren’t many who’re on Ran’s level.

Score: 4.5/5

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