(No More Mr. Nyce Guy)

I can’t believe the year Umbrella has had this year alone. Whether you’re talking about the latest 

Snotty- The Blue Carpet

Big Trip- Cry Baby

Substance810- One Inch Punch

Daniel Son -The Estes Method/Baggage Claims

Or even the upcoming promise of Pro Dillinger with ‘Dirtwave Vol. 3’ this year has been absolutely incredible for the collective and the year isn’t over yet as we have this new album to add to that collective by one of the strongest Umbrella soldiers! Let’s get into it!

This is the latest full-length album by MC MVCK Nyce which includes 18 tracks and the production credits by

-Boom Bam Benny

-Soek

-OddFather 

-Supernice

And features the likes of Vega7 The Ronin on track 16! 

I gotta say, when talking about production although there are a lot of trademark Boom Bap elements that I’ve come to expect from an Umbrella release, a sound that they themselves have evolved and brought to new heights in the last 10 years on this album we also have a lot of experimental and creative sonic takes that I found rather interesting!

I mean whether you want to talk about the Spanish guitar influence on the track ‘The Return’ with those fast-paced strings accompanied with those minimalistic drum patterns that give a strong ‘Spaghetti Western/Country’ movie soundtrack vibe mixed with that Hip-Hop feel!

Or if you want to talk about the track ‘Policies. With that theatrical/classical atmospheric attached to it with those sharp chords, those unpredictable keys and slight and subtle vocal harmonies lingering in the background with those light synth chords that all come together for a real ‘sci-fi thriller movie score experience’ 

Of course you have traditionally raw tracks like ‘F-150’ which has those chilling piano chords combined with those heavy and rugged drum partners that feel gargantuan in nature! The combination of intricate and hard-hitting is classic Boom Bap and more importantly trademark Umbrella!

I love the combination of various sounds and inspirations on this record. There’s a little something for every taste while still maintaining it’s rough around the edges exterior and in your face attitude!

Now, onto the MC side of things. MVCK has always featured that grimy, ruthless aggression in his cadence and today is no different. We see him utilising his most dangerous weapon his pen game and cook up some of the most well written and best executed bars to date!

Across this project his flows are on point, his lyricism is deep and street heavy with an impressive vocabulary to match! 

As I’ve come to enjoy from his previous releases his no nonsense, straightforward delivery style has become infectious and not many can execute it the way he does!

I love how he runs through each track with his own brand of direct, cut throat and cold bars and lyricism that so brilliantly matches the instrumental and production style at play here. He’s an artist who always plays to his strengths sonically and that’s a self awareness I don’t think enough people share.

He’s knows what his flow and rhythm sound best along side and he ain’t out here trying new dumb viral trends or spitting on a pop based record because it will get him more ‘clout’ he’s here rocking with the same energy and intensity that brought him to the position he’s in now and I respect him for that!

I never thought I’d see the day I see a MVCK X Vega7 The Ronin collaboration but now that’s all I want. Those two absolutely go off on that track across that acoustic and skeletal track that helps highlight both men amazingly!

Can I say I’m surprised with how this album turned out? Absolutely not at all. Umbrella seem to have this magic force field that prevents bad albums. No matter which artist or producer is part of it they always drop fire and this one is no exception! Only $10 on Bandcamp make sure you support the artist! 

https://mvcknyce.bandcamp.com/album/no-more-mr-nyce-guy

(Terminal Illness)

Sometimes I’ll be off a certain artist for a while, while covering other shit or waiting for their new albums and forget just how dope their style was or is in comparison to the rest. Today is one of those days; after listening to this record, it all just hit me again as to why this man is considered one of the best in the world! Let’s talk about it!

Today, we are talking about the brand-new album by MC legend Termanology! This time he’s coming with equally legendary beatmaker Myster DL, and together they drop 15 tracks featuring the likes of 

-D-Stroy

-OT The Real

-UFO FEV

-Fuego Base

-Nim K

-Hectic

-Cortez 

-Ea$y Money

-Flee Lord

-Tek

And man, I ain’t exaggerating when I say Myster DL absolutely DESTROYED the production on this thing. With this release, he’s officially raised the bar a few levels up! 

Within these 15 tracks, you have ‘Hip Hop’ executed in its most purest, organic, and fundamental form, and it’s beautiful for the ears to hear.

What makes this record stand out to me is the fact that DL is putting major emphasis on the most bare and necessary instrumentation and samples to use to make sure every sound, snippet, and sample is amplified and given the time of day to shine and imprint on the listener!

Every beat features a small handful of different instruments, whether that be heavy drums or chilling piano keys, synth keys, plucked strings, or subtle vocal harmonies. Each aspect is carefully chosen, mixed to absolute perfection, and creates an incredible atmosphere of cinematic brilliance using the ‘Less is more’ method. 

Nothing is fucking worse than when a producer, in an effort to be ‘different’ or to ‘stand out,’ floods the tracks with thousands of different things into each song to where it sounds messy and crowded. This album is an example of how to execute hip hop correctly!

Utilise a few at a time, master them, and make them the vocal point of each track until the song itself is burned into the listener’s brain! That’s how you get proper replay value and fans coming back remembering how dope the record was/is!

Every producer this year should use this album as a study point to see how to do it because I’m on my third listen in a row, and I’m blown away the more I listen!

Now, onto the other legend on this record. The man with the legacy most can only dream about! He’s back and better than I’ve ever heard him.

On this record, he really sounds like he’s on his boss-level shit. He’s done being humble; here’s here to cash in on his KING status, and who’s gonna stop him?

This time around, his pen game is somehow even sharper than before! His flow is surreal and fluent, and his lyricism is the definition of NEXT LEVEL! There are so many verses on this album that left my jaw dropping! For me, a song that stood out the most was the song 

‘Project Bench’ 

In which Term explained a true story of how he was a young kid and actually kidnapped in a car only to be returned hours later! Just to have that experience is nuts, but to hear the depth and detail in which a MC mastermind like him describes and tells it is insane to say the least! I felt like I was there in person! 

Another song I LOVED was the second-last track ‘Like Me’ that features OG Flee Lord, and together they rap on this mainstream 2000’s 50 Cent Era beat, and the verses they spit are just pure magma! The whole time I was listening to this track, I had my face all scrunched up and mean-mugging my room; it was just so fucking ruthless! 

I can’t even explain this album justice without you hearing it yourself! It’s only $10 on Bandcamp! Come on, man, if you can’t even support your favourite artists for $10? Then are you really a fan? Go cop that shit NOW!

https://termanologyst.bandcamp.com/album/terminal-illness

(Mr Automatic)

Looks like we are taking a trip back to 2021! It’s always exciting to see where an artist you fuck with came from and how they have evolved or progressed since! It’s double exciting when it’s a man you fuck with on a daily! So let’s talk about it!

This is an album by MC Weapon E.S.P., a man who blew me away last year with his album ‘Kensei’, which was before I started this website back when I was still writing for the legendary ‘Raw Side Hip Hop’. 

But regardless, we got this one, 14 tracks and 35 minutes with the likes of 

-Lo Gun

-DJ Grazzhoppa

-Ghost Of The Machine

-Estee Nack

-Jamil Honesty on the mic AND

-Johnny Press (On Guitar)

-William Wallace

-Reese Tanaka

-Cee Gee

-DJ Proof

-Hobgoblin

-Hanzo Bladez

-Reckonize Real on the production side of things!

With this combined roster of beat makers and MC’s, you know this is bound to be a banger and that’s exactly what happened! This thing is NEXT LEVEL!

I guess I’ll start with Weapon. The man who’s always stood out for his precise flows, his introspective and lyrical superiority, and storytelling abilities that always make you sit and wait for every time he speaks because he has that special power to concentrate his mind, heart, and soul into all his bars that makes it sound like you’re listening to a Hip Hop spokesman or preacher! Someone important who has a message to share!

This album is no exception. Across this album, we hear his confident, high-energy, and enthusiastic dope bars that not only sync with the beat perfectly but are sharp, well thought out, and powerful in execution.

He has an incredible vocabulary and a certain level of street poetry that gives his wordplay that extra level of gravitas and aura that most don’t have!

Of course, at times he taps into his more braggadocio side, but that’s just the art of rap at this point; nothing out of the ordinary with that. With the extensive features on deck, he’s able to not only manage the superstars on the album but also prove he can hang with the best of them and provide just as good of a verse as they did! A sign of a true MC! 

The production on this thing is raw, rugged, and captivating! I’d describe it as ‘Fancy Boom Bap’ because there are a lot of cinematic and lush instrumentation at work here with intricate keys, deep chords, and orchestral vocal loops to give this project a more ‘prestige & high-end’ feel to it.

But at the same time, it also feels gritty, relentless, grimy, and muddy. It doesn’t feel polished at all but rather kept in its original rough form to maintain the true dominant nature of the sounds and textures surrounding the album.

This album is truly the best of both worlds, and the various producers help maintain that momentum and carefully crafted tightrope of the two atmospheres coming together as one to create an album that’s equal parts lavishing and badass! 

If you listen to no other album this year (even though technically this is four years old), but make sure you listen to this! I’m sure it will satisfy any and all hip-hop fans! 

https://open.spotify.com/album/0CsIMLgJkE6dYDGp5wGKhb?si=qHgJFS6oQKSqyKb1acut2A

(#UncivilRights)

It seems no matter how many MC’s/Groups/Acts I cover, I’ll always find myself discovering more. Such is the case today with this duo that has evidently been making waves in the underground for years now, and with their April 2025 release, we have a banger that can’t be ignored! Let’s talk about it!

This is the collaboration effort between MC ‘Ill Tone’ and Producer ‘Shade Cobain’, and together they are ‘Blacktivity’, and on this one, they drop 15 tracks with a rare album length of 50 minutes for a long and defined listen that I guarantee you, you won’t forget!

While I was listening to this record, I have to say, this reminded me of a combination of Public Enemy and Gang Starr. You have the politically and emotionally charged lyricism reminded me of ‘Chuck D’ and yet the same bombastic, heavy, and Golden Era instrumentation and production of DJ Premier from his time with ‘Gang Starr’, and when combined, you get a memorable sonic experience!

I love how the music itself (done by Shade) has so many different influences to it from: 

– Rock

– Old School Hip Hop

– Funk

– Soul

– Jazz

– RnB

– Classical

– Ambient

And every song has its own flavour and personality. Depending on the song, you’ll have different tempo, characteristics, styles, and feel to them!

For example, the track ‘Are You With Us’ which features that predominantly ‘Rock’ vibe with those electric guitar string patterns on loop with that robust and heavy drum pattern to match! Feels like something you’d hear off ‘It Takes A Million’ very in your face and strong audio statement!

But then you have tracks like ‘Scared as Hell’ which probably features the most melodic tune of the whole album. Very dreamy and subtle. Those light notes on loop with that warm and inviting drum pattern that help emphasise on those Ambient/Lo-Fi/Jazz influenced instrumental. 

Although the actual lyrics of the song are deep and personal, the beat itself is so moving and breathtaking that it’s an exact opposite of the track I mentioned above! 

These two examples are to illustrate the variety, ability and versatility of Shade Cobain. A man who including this has already released 3 bangers this year and it’s because of stuff like this!

Whether you want to mention his master craftsmanship behind the beats, or his attention to detail or his artistic flare or his diverse sonic pallete one thing is for certain when it comes to top underground producers he’s definitely upper class!

Now, onto the MC Ill Tone. The man who turns every breathe into bars of gold (in weight and volume) he’s not just a wordsmith he’s a Messanger for his people, his society and for the state of things as we know them today.

Again, with the comparisons to Chuck. He’s a man who acts to inspire and educate first, fame and success second. You can hear it in the way he talks, the way he crafts his bars and the way his soul is embedded with each and every word that comes out of his mouth.

Every track on this album is a different scenario, experience or fable. With the intro track for example setting the scene for what to expect and with Ill making sure the whole 50 minutes was an opportunity to open the worlds eyes to the events, historic errors and tragedies and the state of things today.

As someone who isn’t apart of this race of people I can’t imagine the situations that are forced to be dealt with on a day to day basis for some of these people but listening to records like this and others similar make me appreciate that we have artists who are willing to make music to share and spread such a message!

As far as style goes, Ill his sharp, intelligent, deadly with his pen game with immaculate precision and strong powerful flow and wordplay that makes his verses impossible to deny and ignore.

I can’t believe this is my first time hearing this duo but believe you me it won’t be the last. This is one of those albums that will stick with you for weeks afterwards and make you really think about the state of the world. 

If you haven’t already, don’t sleep on this any longer and check this one out! 

https://open.spotify.com/album/6TENfRtwxQ8NRGZfvXBWWR?si=3xDCehfJQpyQTw0k42dztA

(Da Darkside Of The Moon)

Today, we get to cover the latest offering by an absolute legend in this business. One who has been consistent since day one and a man who has redefined the genre in more ways than most, and with this new project, he’s back to do it again! Let’s talk about it!

So, this is the brand-new album by notorious MC Juxx Diamondz! It consists of 12 tracks with the following on the production: 

– Murda Megz

– SnowGoons

– Juxx Diamondz

– Sauly O Beats

– Dead Poetz Society

– Tone Spliff

– DJ Dister

And vocal performances by:

– Ledger

– Ladi Diamondz

– Jake Palumbo 

– Hazernomical

– Maph

– King Harv

– Haze Hustle

Now, I gave this album a couple of solid back-to-back listens before writing this, and the one key thing that kept jumping out at me when talking about the production is just how ‘classic’ and ‘nostalgic’ it felt while at the same time providing us with a fresh, new, bold taste of Hip Hop that we rarely get to see in the Underground! Let me explain!

On this album, you have that crisp and hard-hitting East Coast in your face sonic flavour that you’d come to expect from the 90’s era cats like: 

– Mobb Deep

– Gang Starr

– Jay-Z 

That deep, rich, and head-bumping production that we’ve all grown up on and come to love, and Juxx has not only found a way to capture that essence but also made sure to add a ‘modern twist’ on the sounds and deliver a finished product that is equal parts a homage to the golden era and an inspiration for something original, unique, and refreshing!

I love how grand and cinematic the instrumentation is on this record, from those powerful vocal lines, those orchestral strings and notes. Those infectious drum patterns, thick bass lines, and luscious keys; it all comes together to create something you would have expected a live band to create right in the studio with Juxx and company!

The various producers and Tone help not only innovate but elevate this sonic admiration to the past by using the blueprints left by the originators to create an experience that will gain the respect and love by the culture today with a record that is made for the times with a message that simply reads ‘Thank you for the memories, but today it’s my time’

Onto the man himself, this album wouldn’t be what it is without him. Juxx the living legend who has spent years sharpening, developing and growing his pen gam and style to become the absolute pinnacle of what ‘MC’ means in this day and age.

In this record he’s the best he’s ever been! He sounds tougher, more powerful and surreal all in one! When he speaks the room listens and his bars and verses spit like magma all over the track as he spits his street poetry with his extraordinary vocabulary and fluent flow to create aesthetically pleasing paragraphs that hit unlike any other!

You can hear the confidence and emotion in his voice with every breathe, he understands he ain’t no amateur in this game and he’s done playing ‘Mr Nice Guy’ and instead come looking for blood and he’s taking no prisoners!

I love how across these tracks he sounds like a MC Preacher, his words aren’t just put there for the fuck of them! Every letter and line has a purpose, message or story to be told and he uses each song on here to convey his thoughts and opinions and being one not to mince his words or censor himself we get his unfiltered sermons and they are a gift to hear!

Overall, as expected this is a phenomenal album to say the least! From that flawless production to those bars even more so! The features, the verses the roster on this combined to make one of the dopest records I’ve heard all year! This is one you CAN’T SLEEP ON! 

(Monster Factory)

Of course, who else to drop a banger on literally the 1st of July than these two! Regular collaborators who have helped flip the Hip Hop Game on its head more than once, and with one of the most iconic producers back to seal the deal, we have an unstoppable force on this latest record. Let’s fucking talk about it!

This is the latest collaboration project between MC’s Sankofa and G Fam Black, two men who have a rich history together and whose paths only result in sonic gems! 

On this project, we have the legendary Crack Sizzlack on the beats and with only one feature 

-Tali Rodriguez. This one is nothing but a natural, trio effort that proves ‘you don’t need a crowd of guests to make an album pop!’

Let’s start with the production here because whenever you have Crack in that studio pipe and light that shit, trust me, everyone in the studio is feeling it, and you won’t come down for days after hearing the smoke! 

Across this dose, you get a combination of robust, minimalistic, and raw offerings that will turn your dog into a wolf, your cat into a jaguar, and make your fake-ass homies turn bitch and hide from hearing the heat. 

Take track 2 for example, ‘Frosted Cadavers’, with that diabolically tough track with that melodic vocal loop and boom-bap flavour that turns this whole track into a sonic murder scene!

The same can’t be said for track 3, ‘Broken Ledgers’, that utilises those gorgeous jazz instrumentation featuring those groovy horns, bass lines, and what sounds like a subtle use of maracas going off ever so lightly in the background. This track sounds like an adventure on acid! It’s smooth, interpretive, and immersive!

These are just two of 14 examples of how much variety Crack packs into this album. When he’s on his vibe shit, he can make 14 different sounds across a whole record just because he can. I wouldn’t say every song is completely different than the next, but what is clear is that he can take such elements as 

–

-Jazz

– Boom-Bap

-East Coast 90’s

-Ambient

And more and make tracks that sound distinctive and not a repeat of the track before or after it! That’s the spirit of Crack, as well as his technical prowess and his notorious ear for quality, and you have a man who will provide the listener with the utmost care and badass sounds you could hope for!

Now, onto the two men, the literal definition of ‘Dynamic Duo’. These two never play when they collab, and it’s no different here!

What you have is the combination of ‘Monotone, Cold Blooded Street Poetry’ with ‘Monstrous Stature, Terrifying Energy, and Gutter Aura’. When you mix these two across 14 tracks, you have a unique record to say the absolute least.

I love how across this record, both men use their obviously different styles and characteristics, speak for themselves, and give the album that ‘diverse’ sound. Just by rhythm alone, you’re bound to feel two separate verses since neither shares the same energy as the other but instead projects their own! 

Sankofa sounds like the eerie storm to come, the haunting warning that smells of violence and earth, and G Fam sounds like the calamity. They both feed off each other while being two different entities that have the same goal in mind!

 You just don’t get this level of attention to detail, chemistry, or synchronicity anymore. These three feel like family on the tracks. I loved every G-Fam album so far, but this one feels like his best so far! You can’t miss this one out! 

https://sankofa.bandcamp.com/album/monster-factory

(Library Of Sound)

You know sometimes an album names itself so perfectly that I don’t even need to add anything to it. This project does indeed sound like 

‘A Library of Sound’

This is the latest album by MC M-Dot and Producer Confidence. Together this duo drops 13 tracks featuring the likes of 

– Alexander Padei

– Kore

– Big Shug

– Royal Flush

– EMS

– G-Dot 

Now, after my first few listens when talking about the production, I noticed that the producer Confidence, in keeping true to his name, dropped a heavy variation of hard-hitting, grand, and classical interpretations of Hip Hop that is sure to be having real Hip Hop Heads bumping all night long!

That intro track, for example, ‘No Bail Out’, sets the tone perfectly with the mixture of those jaw-dropping vocal samples mixed in with those classical instrumentation and old-school boom-bap feel to create the idle interlude for the album!

From there, the album only gets more creative, interesting, and dynamic with tracks like ‘Rollercoaster’ which features that short snap pattern of those robust drum loops combined with those vocal snippets in rotation to create what feels like an old-school prime ‘Common’ beat made by Kanye!

Throughout this whole album, this man finds 13 different ways to articulate, evolve, and adapt the current wave of Hip Hop sound and make it his own! I guarantee you, you won’t find sounds the way he’s making them!

Obviously, we can’t talk about this album without mentioning ‘M-Dot’, the man of the hour! This man brings that classy and dynamic production to a different universe with his rhyme patterns! He’s like a man uncaged, a man who has finally been able to let loose and a man who is most dangerous when he’s in his zone! 

I loved his verbal arrangements over this album, everything from his sharpened wordplay to his extensive vocabulary to his swagger over the beats. He’s in a class of his own and he knows it!

To me, he came across as a man who has a strong introspective mindset with a heart of fire and a will forged of steel and lyricism for days! He’s the kind of guy to have the whole room

go quiet to listen to his every word, bar and verse because of his immense articulation, artistry, and ability on the mic!

Overall, this album was the definition of DOPE, two men and company coming together for a solid, no-nonsense Hip Hop album that is sure to impress everyone who listens to it!

https://m-dotboston.bandcamp.com/album/library-of-sound

(Kill Writers Block)

Ironically, this album actually killed mine. I was stuck for the last 24 hours, no inspiration to write anything, then I had two separate people recommend this album, so after giving it a chance today, I can safely say, it blew me away! Let’s talk about it!

This is the blockbuster new drop by two of the dopest MC’s in the game, period. We have MC’s Artisin and REKS. Both men who have helped shape the underground as we know it today, and when they come together, they are on a mission to reshape the industry once again!

They come accompanied by producers 

-Artisin

-ShortFyuz 

-TapeGhost

And features such as

-Estee Nack

-Ea$y Money

-Hectic

-Termanology 

-Superstah Snuk

-DJ Deadeye

-Queen Philosophical

 

I just love how right from the start with the opening title track, we have the example of what they mean by ‘Kill Writers Block’ with a track featuring nothing but four minutes of straight back-and-forth verses, bars, and some of the most incredible wordplay you’ve heard all year!

These two ain’t playing. Throughout the whole album, that’s all they concern themselves with. While the production is incredible (and we will discuss that further down), it really feels like they are purposely prioritising lyricism and spitting over the quality of production. 

This album is very no-nonsense, it’s built to be a showcase of bars between two legends, to show the rest of the industry how it’s meant to be done. REKS and Artisin don’t take any shortcuts, don’t do any trend shit or fake shit. It’s literally just them and their god-tier flow, vocabulary, storytelling, incredible writing, and wordplay.

I also loved how they decided to make track two the song ft someone who is quite possibly the new king of the underground right now. Estee Nack and this trio absolutely destroyed the beat and further pushed the agenda of superior pen game.

I knew when it was these two on the field that it would be a landslide, but I never expected this. These performances just prove if you’re in the hip-hop game, you don’t have to bother with all that ‘extra’ shit if you want to make a dope record. If you can show the culture and your contemporaries that you’re one of the dopest on the mic and that you’re natural, organic, and authentic, you will gain respect, and that’s exactly what the world has done after listening to this one. Show nothing but RESPECT!

Although I do feel the production wasn’t as important as the bars, it doesn’t mean the sounds don’t go hard as fuck! What you’ll experience here are a combination of grand old school Boom Bap and skeletal and raw instrumentation that helps emphasise the verses of the MC’s on the album!

For example, we have the track ‘Super Powers’ which has that incredible intro featuring the original DBZ Broly movie (the superior one, by the way, fuck Super Broly), but regardless, after that badass intro, we have these orchestral strings that sound like a live band is in the studio with them! Accompanied by a real minimal drum pattern to let those strings take centre stage and turn this track into a cinematic offering!

We can even talk about the track ‘Young Homies’ which has a very different sonic texture than the one previous. Which starts off with this interlude that’s almost ‘folk’ inspired with those gorgeous chords. 

After that, spoken word snippets, we have a beat switch into this fast-paced track with melodic synth chords, that phase in and out in a more hypnotic pattern followed by a more in-your-face drum loop than the previous track! It’s very stripped back but at the same time, a more intense and atmospheric track than any other on the album!

I love how although most tracks are bare-boned, the producers make sure to have every song crisp, memorable, and above all, quality-checked! 

This is truly a record for the ages! From the creative and aesthetically pleasing production to the flawless verses by the duo and company! This is an MC’s favourite MC’s favourite record! 

https://open.spotify.com/album/4T4fouxLCUuzAX6YK2zdeQ?si=07_A7jWfQdyqA8gFpPw3Dw

(Alive & Free)

Man, I’ll tell you what I’ve done. Almost 500 reviews this year, and I’ve seen it all. I’ve seen artists who have ridiculously consistent and somehow hit with every project, and I’ve seen artists who take their time to make new albums and do the waiting game. And I’ll let you know, there is nothing quite like waiting for an anticipated drop and having it hit on all cylinders! That’s what happens with this one, so let’s talk about it!

This is the latest EP by MC Borden and Producer 80Rock, who earlier this year killed it with their last album ‘Dead Prime Ministers’, which helped put these guys on the map for me in the first place! Now they are back, and trust me, they’ve somehow managed to hit even harder than before!

Let’s start with the production side of things. 80Rock. This man is a true gem in the industry, as his style is one that I would describe as ‘Grand Minimalism’, and let me explain why.

In this 5-track EP, we have some of the most bare-boned, skeletal rendition of Boom Bap that lends itself to the 90’s East Coast era with a modern-day twist.

You have those harrowing notes, those devastatingly heavy drums, and those delicate keys that remind me of something Nas would drop during his (Illmatic-It Was Written) era, those unforgiving synth chords, and those haunting vocal samples (such as on track 3) that loop around, combined with those piano keys that make for a truly eerie listening experience.

But in its ’simplicity’, there’s a strong atmosphere and detail in the sonic stylistic choices in this production. It’s not just that the music itself is raw; it’s the fact that by using the ‘less is more’ theory, 80Rock is able to add emphasis, build up, and elevate each instrument and loop until it sounds as cinematic as possible! 

Some people come across as inexperienced with the lack of instrumentation, but it’s not the case here. What we see here is genius restraint, the understanding of not wanting any filler or waste in this five-track EP and deciding to utilise those beats to its most theatrical and high-end conclusion!

These songs may sound skeletal, but trust me, trained ears can tell just how extraordinary these production choices are! Absolutely love it!

Where would this album be without the right-hand man in Borden? The more I navigate the underground landscape, the more I feel that MC’s who remain solid but don’t do any wild shit or do dumb shit to get attention get overlooked, which is such an annoying thing to witness when you have so many solid down to earth MC’s such as Borden who work and perfect the art he’s best at, and just because he isn’t doing viral trends or going with the flow of things, he’s not as big as some of the other names.

It’s a true shame because what he accomplished on this EP in the short eight-minute time span is more authentic, genuine, and meaningful than 90% of the rap game can say for themselves!

I love his style because it’s the definition of ‘organic.’ It’s no nonsense, just pure & unfiltered bars over dope hip-hop beats as the game was meant to be.

I love his monotone and cold exterior on the instrumentals. He sounds and acts ruthless on the tracks but at the same time, he spits in-depth street poetry with the vocabulary to match! 

He’s equally intense and introspective. He’s smart and calculated while also maintaining his cold-blooded pen game, lyricism, and sharp tongue across the tracks!

As expected, another fantastic project by this pair. A duo who just focused on making a dope record and nothing else. Nothing over the top or complicated and not following any stupid trends, just salt of the earth, amazing hip-hop, and that should be celebrated! 

https://open.spotify.com/album/5b5Wyoc6nm3HBEehIa0uXK?si=YsHeWa2pS5O28Pvl6wNzEA

(The Obsidian Tapes)

So, according to the intro track Emerg Da MC claims ‘There’s no woman spitting it the way she’s spitting it’ and with that exciting standard set to live up to, I’m hoping it provides me with something original, unique, and more! Let’s get to it!

So, this is the 11 June release by MC Black Silq and is produced by Lo Katana, which features 16 tracks and 35 minutes of content. 

I’ll tell you right off the bat, this thing definitely is different and in all the best ways possible. What Black has done is create a whole mini universe for herself within this record where she is the ruler and anything she says goes, and she definitely utilises that control! Because this thing is a wild roller coaster ride that is filled with personality, colourful imagery, imagination beyond compare, and characteristics so wild and off-cuff that she could lend her aura to 50 other artists and still flood the system with her overwhelming energy and charisma!

This is definitely not your average Hip Hop album as you’ve got a lot of skits and spoken word elements, a lot of self-reflective and dramatic moments in this quirky, free-form vocal style that Silq has managed to capture and create for herself that I haven’t heard done to this extent yet!

Imagine Doechi but 100x more frantic, mixed in with those Jean Grae books about her life and childhood in that fun, animated voice she does, and then sprinkle in some prime-era Missy Elliott nuances, and you can kind of picture what she was going for, but even then that doesn’t do it justice! 

This is really the type of sonic experience you have to try personally to understand its magic, but trust me, it’s definitely a lot to absorb and take. There are so many unpredictable moments of pure, unadulterated emotions and thoughts, personality, and fixtures that it feels like you’re walking into her brain firsthand and getting a front-row cinematic seat to her madness, and it’s absolutely incredible!

If your one, for pushing the boundaries and trying something new then this definitely qualifies as that! It’s intense, interesting, original and unique. I can guarantee you with some certainty that you won’t hear an album like this anywhere else all year! 

As far as the production goes to match this incredible cadence and charm we have Lo who has done an incredible job at providing these low key, skeletal and minimalistic sonic offerings in what I can only assume are attempts to provide contrast to the brash and in your face vocal performance by Black Silq and offer up a more refined, smooth and delicate production style!

I love the fusion of Lo Fi, Ambient, RnB and Jazz elements on this project. Each track feels like an instrumental equivalent of getting into bed when your seconds awake from passing out and you know once your eyelids close that’s it for the night. 

That level of mellow energy, the relaxation and peace of mind mixed in with some experimental influences and you have a recipe for a bare yet ASMR lane production that perfectly contrasts the overwhelming and memorable vocal performances by Black Silq!

I am so happy that more people are taking turns like this in their careers and being bold enough to pave a new wave, sound and lane for themselves that’s outside the normal. We need more people like this and I encourage everyone to give this a try! 

https://open.spotify.com/album/6N9wHP3KxWKA4KAjQhZk9b?si=w8PXPGIPTmm90lHd-LVo2Q