(Planted Seeds)

We have officially landed in 2019 with the Estee Nack discography, and just when I thought his collaboration with Recognize Ali was surprising, this one is taken to a whole new level! 

This latest collaboration features Estee Nack with fellow rapper Nowaah The Flood and producer EL Maryacho, who was featured on the last album with Ali but now is running shit on this one, and he does an absolutely fantastic job dealing with these two Goliaths in the industry.

Across this 10-track record, we see EL use more theatrical and classical elements with long harmonic chords, ambient-inspired strings and beats, as well as cinematic production value that has every instrumental feel like it was mixed with Dolby Atmos as it just passes throughout your body and soul with every chord struck.

I love how this production incorporated styles like 

-Lo Fi

-Soul

-East Coast

-Boom Bap

And sure, there are still elements of Grimy, muddy hard bears, but for the make part, this is a more sensual and laid-back listening experience than past or future drops from Estee. Although he is more familiar with crazier elements, it’s still worth noting that if he feels like it, he can pull off just as well this level of atmosphere, and it makes for a more introspective listening when the production is as mellow as this one!

Estee and Nowaah make for such an interesting combination. A pairing I never would have guessed, but they complement each other with their level of intensity, charisma, and energy they deliver on each and every bar.

When they go back and forth, it seems seamless and effortless. As if they have been working on this for decades and are finally just releasing it in 2019. 

Two powerful voices with fluent flows and sharpened lyricism and pen game the level most wish they had. 

Across this project, they do have features such as 

-Recognize Ali

-The Real Ice Lord

-Al Divino

A deadly trio to work alongside, and any lesser men would seize up even attempting to keep up with these three, but Estee and Nowaah are established beasts in the industry who can stand toe to toe with anyone in the game, including these men!

Overall, another win by Estee and company. The production was a delightful change of pace that still suited the duo perfectly! 

https://open.spotify.com/album/5vT0kAGtFX7UC4M1bQ1LXZ?si=7aCpG9v7QuSl9_l6VoMMRg

(Post Tenebras Lux)

Man, talk about a collaboration I never would have expected until I found it myself. Two powerhouses in the industry, and even back in the day, were turning heads with their respective lanes and albums, but now they share a record, and it’s a thing to behold!

So, this is a 2018 collaboration album between rappers Estee Nack and Recognize Ali, and it brings nine tracks with 25 minutes of content, produced by the likes of: 

-Mr Rose

-El Mary Acho

-Vago

-K. Sluggah 

-Frank Grimes

-NCL-TM

And right off the bat, the production sounds absolutely angelic. I can’t say I was expecting this from the pairing on our hands, and of course, there are tough, absurd boom bap monster tracks, but there are so many tracks that are soulful, harmonic, beautiful, and surreal in nature. A lot of this album has a cinematic nature to it with its incredibly masterful aspects and theatrical sonic visuals that make you feel like you’re in a fever dream! 

On the other end of the album, we have, as mentioned above, some of the toughest beats that punch you in the face and know you down if you ain’t solid enough to handle the pressure. With these producers, they provide a nice, varied listen, with half of the album being beautifully crafted and the other half dark and grimy, with no room for weak shit. 

This kind of variety does fit Estee’s more current style of unpredictable beats, experimental, and out-there production choices, but to hear it this far back, especially with who he’s working alongside, is crazy!

Speaking of that man, Recognize Ali! The beast that’s become infamous for his ‘Guerrilla Dynasty’ Trilogy with Stu Bangas and has put his work in the game has decided to destroy the game by pairing with Estee, and together they easily out-rap everyone in the game in 2018, no question! 

Their chemistry is undoubtedly some of the best you’ll ever hear, and they feed off each other’s murderous studio energy and go back and forth trying to outdo each other in a literal ‘clash of the titans’ taking place across the project.

As expected, Estee is starting to inherit his more wildcard side, which is always a treat to listen to him just off frantically on a beat, and his rap verses evolved even more so!

Ali, with his dominating presence, looms over every instrumental with this tyrannical force, where the listener is forced to absorb every word and sentence out of fear of him maybe listening in through the headphones and jumping out to stomp you out.

Across this project, we have Al Divino as the one and only feature on here, and of course, as usual, whenever he’s on the case, the beat gets more hectic and insane. And then, comparing the fact all three were on the same track, it got chaotic quickly, and I loved every second of it.

Estee’s streak continues. I still haven’t heard a bad record from him yet, and I doubt I ever will, especially when you add a legend like Ali to the mix! 

https://open.spotify.com/album/2YSUiAIL8MhWTloaMAXRg7?si=Hx7Fhtt5Q4ybqcaP3PO1Pg

(Minimansiondust Vol 3)

It’s insane going back and looking at the career Estee had in 2018. 

-Minimansiondust Vol. 2-3

-Post Tenebras Lux

Plus more on Bandcamp, he was really putting the work in (well, really since 2015), but especially as the years go back, his consistency and release rate up until fairly recently has been insane, and with the release of this Vol. 3, you start to feel the present-day Estee forming, with all of his grandiose adlibs and monstrous personality coming out more with this release than the others, and his collaboration with Mr. Rose proving more fruitful than it ever has!

Across this protect, we hear Mr. Rose tap into his more ferocious side. The grimy, surreal sonic atmosphere is heavy in the air with drops, and with a more established 10 tracks and a slightly longer run time, we can see Mr. Rose, Estee, and his common features such as Al Divino and new faces as 

-Paranom

-Purpose

-Kassino Akosta

-Primo Profit 

-Royal One

Work wonders together, fleshing out each other’s best sides in the studio, revving up the intensity levels, and making sure no second is wasted in producing the perfect listening experience for the true hip-hop heads.

Although there are still cuts of smooth and soulful loops and samples, it feels as if Mr. Rose has visited ‘The Dark Side’ and blended the two together to create a specific aura and dreamlike performance, as if to say ‘You’ve heard me on my blissful shit, now prepare for my raw shit,’ and I love it!

I mentioned above that Estee has started to establish his signature wild side and unpredictable cadence in the studio with this Volume, and I’m not lying. Although his rapping ability was still top-tier across the other volumes, he still sounded as if he was in the process of figuring himself out and what he wants to achieve and make of himself outside of the rapping, and now on here we hear it all.

The loud and frequent adlibs, his bilingual voice snippets across the tracks, his signature ‘Oh yeah’ in his iconic long pronouncement of it, and his overall energy is just next level.

Sharing that newfound charisma, his lyrics just hit 10x harder than ever did before; they have that extra flair and excitement. The type of rapping you get today where he sounds like he’s a human freight train running through the production at light speed, giving listeners an adrenaline rush just hearing him spit bars.

His witty and tough verses land like no other can do, and when you combine the newly developed, more grime production mixed with Estee’s evolution and the absurdity of how good those features are, then you get a recipe for one of his most memorable tapes!

If you ain’t on these tapes, you gotta be! Especially for this one, and if this one is so good, I can’t imagine how the rest will sound going forward! 

https://open.spotify.com/album/6HioJLH1TECF5lXslEzyxy?si=Db9zH4FXRbCNfGAfQ1AfuQ

(Minimansiondust Vol 2)

Time for another edition to the Minimansion Dust series. Can’t believe we get to hear Estee all the way back from 2018. The more you go back, the more you realise his discography is underrated and should be studied!

So, this is the latest collaboration project between Estee Nack and producer Mr Rose. This tape has seven tracks and 24 minutes of content while featuring only: 

-Al Divino

-JuneLyfe

And it’s always amazing and mind-blowing to hear an era of Estee where he wasn’t on the most intense, experimental, and muddy grime you’ve heard in your life like he is now.

Instead, to hear him rap on mostly smooth and harmonic instrumentation over some angelic chords and strings that give off a rather peaceful feel rather than a chaotic one.

Of course, on cuts with Al Divino, the atmosphere ramps up to a more familiar and grimy loop-based boom Bap extravaganza, but outside of those, one of his regular pairings with Mr Rose provides an insight into a rather interesting and humbled beginning while he was still making his way through the business and before he became a household name that he is now.

As far as the rapping is concerned. Although he came from a different background in sound, his original and unique rap style that he’s so notorious for was the same even back then. He still has that talking, barely sounds rehearsed at all, just like he’s walked into the booth and started talking whatever was on his brain, and it’s that exact style that I love about him so much, it’s unlike anything I’ve heard before or since.

Of course, he has perfect chemistry with Al Divino, and June; the trio don’t miss when they are together, and the rest of the album, he’s working alone, providing the narrative (one that is still active today) that he doesn’t need features to make an album popping; he’s the main attraction, and that’s what people pay to hear! 

Another excellent volume from Estee and Mr Rose. It’s clear that he had that ‘IT’ factor even back then, and to go through and hear him evolve into what he is now is a worthwhile adventure! 

https://open.spotify.com/album/34JDzwgA1wonZgiPsbwyuL?si=sfCPjnUITGGHMGED5N40Eg

(The Art Of Reanimation)

We are taking a time machine back to 2022. The heart of COVID, and little did anyone know it would also become the debut of one of the illest collaborative projects the culture has seen yet! Let’s talk about it!

So, this is the collaboration of Producer DEAD PERRY, whose reputation beyond exceeds him, and rapper and lyrical powerhouse Casual. Together, they dropped 18 songs with a whopping hour of run time and features from the likes of: 

-DJ TMB

-L Nasty

-GhostFace Killah

-Killer Priest

-MC Wicks

-Phesto

-Planet Asia 

-Tristate

-Izrell

-DJ Jason D

-CRIMEAPPLE

-ETO

-P-Dirt

-Rass Kass

-Tajai

-Rockness Monsta

-Celp Titled

-Daniel Son

-J-Spliff

-Sally Green

 

And without any real surprise, DEAD PERRY is pulling off another exquisite performance. While

maintaining his usual grime atmosphere, I feel on this one he’s combining elements of hardcore east coast, experimental, and with 90’s style scratching and cuts. You combine all these, and you get a cinematic listening experience that feels surreal and gritty at the same time.

With the long list of artists on this one, he’s making sure each song has its own heartbeat and soul attached to it.

You click on any of the songs, and they will all sound different in their own way, providing the specific platform for the artist to go off on! Nothing worse than listening to a large-scale project with tons of rappers, and the producer doesn’t even bother taking the time to design the instrumentals based on who’s on them, having the whole album sound exactly the same.

I hate that shit.

But thankfully, with the masterful techniques and years grinding in this game, he’s more than capable of pulling off a diverse and substantial album that draws you in and leaves you with a memorable experience long after the album is done!

As far as the rappers are concerned, just like my other DEAD PERRY album, this album is equally banging and performing on the highest level of the art of the MC.

Each man has impeccable skill, untouchable aura, lethal wordplay, and devastatingly smooth lyricism and pen game. All individuals on this list bring their best selves and match the aura of the production! 

Each man on this list has gone on to create modern-day classics in this game, so when they are all on the list for one project, you’re sure to get nothing but ridiculous bars from everyone involved!

Plus, some of these song match-ups are insane:

‘The Gift Of Science’ Ghostface Killah X Killah Priest’

Or ‘Nothin To Toy With’ CRIMEAPPLE X Eto X P-Dirt, even ‘Run For Cover’ Celph Titled X Daniel Son X J-Spliff, and these are just three of 18 tracks to choose from, and all feature their own dope chemistry pairings! 

This is the kind of album you can play anywhere; it’s full of quality match-ups, production is flawless, and the overall vibe is crisp and gritty in the best way possible! 

https://open.spotify.com/album/3RMpnoNTG8EhsFHyS6X6Kg?si=5YcHfwYCRDGPvDWrCoy-ow

(High Art Vol 1)

We are back with a familiar face and one not so familiar. What a great position to be in, being able to revisit an artist while discovering another; in my line of work, that’s the jackpot! Let’s get into it!

So, this is the latest collaboration album by producer Skinny Bonez Tha Godfatha and rapper LJ Lewis, and together they release five new tracks with cuts on track five by -Cuts Supreme. 

Now, onto the production first. I feel like Skinny has decided to utilise a combination of raw and skeletal loops, a larger-than-life atmosphere, and surreal energy and passion. Although it’s only five tracks, I can feel that spirit and soul coming out of my boy. He’s letting his creative and pure love for the game take over on this one, and we are getting equally some of his best work and his most stripped down.

I’ve been on some sonic rides with Skinny, hell, even reviewed a jazz album he did, but I feel this is the best version of him. When he’s tunnel-visioned on a certain idea and execution. This is also a Vol 1 (of three), so I’m sure he wants to make sure the vibes and sounds on this series are as iconic and heartfelt as they can be, and I feel he absolutely nailed that part.

Now onto my formerly unfamiliar friend, LJ Lewis. As the Bandcamp description described, he is down-to-earth and features a level of straightforward, to-the-point, and in-your-face storytelling that is refreshing to hear in this day and age.

He has crisp and lethal lyricism with direct and personal wordplay and witty lines and bars that help push that exquisite sound and production.

I love how he takes his time on this album, no rushing or fast rap when it’s not necessary. He’s here to just tell stories and spit bars, and he does both tremendously.

His deep tones with his serious intentions and dope delivery of all his verses are the perfect combination for this skeletal instrumentation, and even though he’s been presented in such a short project, it was enough to convince me that he’s someone whose worth remembering and keeping an eye out!

Overall, this short five-track EP is another DOPE offering by Skinny. He found yet another well-crafted collaboration to work with, and they release a gem that I hope more people can check out! 

https://skinnybonezthagodfatha.bandcamp.com/album/high-art-vol-1

(Zoumi World)

It’s that time again to review another submission request! This time I get the blessing and privilege of reviewing an artist from Africa! So without any more time on it, let’s talk about it!

This is the 2024 album by African rapper Noble MC and it features 16 tracks with close to an hour in content! The guests on this are as follows: 

-UG Cella Dwellas 

-DJ CEEZ

-JISE1

And producers such as

-Kon Sci of Mindstone Crew

-Noble MC

-Kiofnc

-UG of Cella Dwellas

-Weedout

And these men help create the energy and charisma to create one of the more ‘traditional’ offerings of hip hop I’ve heard in a while!

So starting with production, we have (at least to me) a very clear-cut direction they were going for on this album, which was a 90’s mainstream Hip Hop atmosphere with a variety of West Coast and East Coast-inspired beats and samples to create a nostalgic and still original album with lots of flavour and colour attached to it.

Across this hour-long album, we get to see the various producers shine from that powerhouse opening track, and every cut onward sounds fresh, crisp, raw, and masterfully done! I personally love the soul cuts on this album; songs like ‘Get Ready’ are the perfect example. With smooth vocal loops and easygoing beats, they create an infectious and stunning rap song that just goes off!

Even the song right after ‘Andy’ has this acoustic vibe with those light guitar strings and skeletal beat in the background, combined with those tasteful cuts in the background, and this is another song that blows up! 

Every song on this album features a similar groovy vibe to it, the kind of beat that you’ll want to walk your dog listening to! Or while you’re driving hell, one of the songs on this album was already featured on SHADE45 and deservingly so! 

Onto the rapping itself. I can’t lie, I love the spirit and energy this man brings to the table. He has a strong cadence with a big heart, and you can hear the passion in his voice, and his presence on the album is undeniably inspiring!

I love how, depending on the track, he’ll customise his flow and his style to best suit the song he’s on, which means he does care how the song sounds and not just rapping the same on each track! That’s the sign of a great artist!

He has a smooth flow, great lyricism, and a dope pen game. With every new track that comes through, his motivation gets bigger and stronger, and by the end of the album, you’ll feel chills on your body, and it will stick with you days after listening to the album!

The one and only complaint I have with this album is very small, just that the songs at the very end (some of them) are just silence and don’t end right away. But that’s a very small thing and it doesn’t affect the quality of the album, so all I can say is great work by Noble MC.

Overall, a fantastic album that is near perfect. Great production and great rapping! Definitely worth checking out!

https://open.spotify.com/album/0hpc3tXreW1GHYqIRm3NVX?si=QqqLYqJ6Qf-yJw3gXCVwfg

(Jazzy Fatu)

Man, this one got me excited from the concept alone. See, I used to be a big WWE fan back in the day, but since the modern era, I’ve switched completely to NJPW and AEW, but one name that is impossible to ignore within WWE is JACOB FATU, and now we have a rap album theme about him? We gotta get into this one! 

So, this is the latest album produced by Jazzy Lion Man, and he brings with him a strong roster to work with, such as: 

-Skip The Kid

– Twogeebs 

-Davila

-Saahilio

-THE REBEL SKY

-Jules Clay

-Heartbreak Julio

-SIQ KLIQ 

-Lil Derik Les

-Reed Starks

-AUNTIE MUK

-Gustavo Louis

A collection of who’s who in the underground, and all come together to help maintain the energy and aura of the record. It sounds like each man has a role to play, a certain piece of the puzzle, and when combined, they create one of the most infectious and powerful wrestling-themed albums we’ve got in the last few years!

Each man comes with intense bars, charismatic personalities, and witty, personalised bars that add layers to this, reinforcing the ‘wrestling spirit’ of the album.

When you focus on a person like Jacob Fatu, you know you gotta come correct. You can’t be smudging his name with weak bars and low energy, nah, fuck that, you need absolutely bombastic devotion, and they definitely fill all that and more!

Now onto the production. As I just mentioned above, when you decide to centre around a cult of personality like Fatu? The best Polynesian wrestler to come to WWE since Roman Reigns, then the production has to be OUT OF THIS WORLD.

And I can safely say, I didn’t have to tell Jazzy that because from track 1, he gets the hype, energy, atmosphere, thrills, everything down pat to create one of the illest themed albums, period! 

Right off the bat, hearing that ring introduction and then promo of Fatu gets your blood going, and throughout the record, you just hear more stimulated promos by the man that can’t help but give you caffeine-level energy, and I love that!

As the sound goes, this thing features crisp, muddy, and purely grimy production and instrumentation that features cold loop samples to heavy-handed theatrical strings and horns that sound like you’re going through a Boom Bap cinematic experience. 

Each beat sounds rough around the edges and ferocious in execution. I couldn’t think of a better sound palette to tribute the ‘The Samoan Werewolf’ than these.

I had a lot of fun listening to one; this album catered to the only WWE wrestler I love right now, and they pulled it off perfectly!

https://open.spotify.com/album/1UdU9TAwU6HZHnY88aYTzW?si=FB_88UavSvuoBcv4Q_kmhg

(The Film)

Fucking hell. You ever see a collaboration so shocking and fitting that you could never think of coming true that suddenly does? Well, this is one of those times! We gotta talk about it!

This is the surprising collaboration between post-metal supergroup ‘SUMAC’, featuring American poet, musician, and activist ‘MOOR MOTHER’, who in the past few years has released some of the most powerful music to ever come out. So when I heard these two were collaborating, I had to check it out, and fuck me, what an experience.

Starting with the instrumentation. This thing has strong elements of: 

– Post-Hardcore

-Sludge

-Noise

-Punk

-Ambient 

And the way they utilise these sounds is beyond unreal. You can feel every instrument as if you’re sitting live in a concert at the very front and just hearing the vibrations of the music itself take over your body from head to toe.

This album is methodically placed; they ain’t rushing to go nowhere; they spend their time building and conceptualising this world of despair and pain that is perceived by the audience, and it’s done with the utmost patience and dedication to the craft.

But they don’t stay completely silent. On some tracks, you do hear SUMAC deliver their signature vocals, which definitely adds a level of intensity and heaviness to the record, which I love! It’s almost like an album with two sides of the coin as far as the production goes; you get to experience both sides or both ‘Scenes’ as this record would refer to it, and it further establishes the perfect connection between the two artists!

Now onto MOOR MOTHER. The woman who has captivated me the most in the music scene for the past few years now. Her level of detail and expression is unparalleled. The way she uses her vocals to convey dark matters of pain, suffering, anguish, confusion, and anger is like listening to some twisted poetry by a madman who’s lost it all.

With her, it’s never about making a ‘radio song’ or ‘hit single’. She’s all about her concepts, her art, her reality, and she always reveals all three in her records. Even going back to the album with Billy Woods, ‘Brass’ in 2020, when she was on a slightly more ‘Hip Hop’ venture, she still carried that incredible tone and aura of power and change, the underappreciated ‘voice for the voiceless’, and she’s been on that level since back then. 

Her songs always feel like spoken word narratives, never a pattern or groove to attach to, just her and her extraordinary performances that stay with you weeks after the album is done. Her uncensored thoughts and opinions lashed out on her songs are what make her stand out the most in the industry and also why she’s always someone I’m down to listen to immediately after a new release.

Once again, another captivating album by Moor Mother and a fantastic showing by SUMAC, a band that never disappoints! I never would have guessed these two combined, but now I only want more! 

Shoutout to Candice Hoyes, Kyle Kidd and Sovie for their respective parts on the album!

https://open.spotify.com/album/3YGJIQF9nzJaehEcOTTDC8?si=PzNXkBM6T9COJMZZnaXiTA

(Stolen Goodz)

I love being given the opportunity to check out new artists based on recommendations. It’s one thing if I stumble across new talent myself, but when I get sent someone that’s cool as fuck to me because it means my opinion is respected in the game, and so let’s talk about it!

So, this is the December 2024 release by rapper Ant Kelly and producer DJ Krooked, and together they drop nine songs with just over 20 minutes of content.

Right off the bat, the production by Krooked provides what reminds me of the early 2010s Australian rap scene pre-360. Very rough and rugged, raw around the edges, and has a real independent quality sound to it. You can tell he didn’t worry about polishing or editing the muddy areas of the album and just leaving it harsh as an overall experience, which I think benefits the listening process as a whole! 

There are certain beats that sound ambient in nature with trippy, spacey sound loops and experimental noises and inspirations that give off a real ‘outta this world’ atmosphere to the whole thing.

There aren’t too many albums out there that remain to give off a record this sonically bitter and sharp because they are too focused on audience reaction (ironic), but when you do get the rare artists like these that are just worried about making the most grim production possible, then in this day and age, it’s truly a magical experience!

Now, onto Ant. Just like the real thing, this Ant can also carry 20x his own weight in puns, lines, bars, and verses. He ain’t worried about serving no bitch as queen but call him ‘Bull-Ant’ because if you try to climb his hill, he’ll sting you and deliver unimaginable pain you’ll avoid any sign of him again.

Across this short album, he does the most showing off his brutal and dangerous mentality and personality. The first track shows that off in spades, and that sets the tone for the rest of the record.

He has a powerful and poisonous flow and a witty wordplay with smooth lyricism that, just like ants, keeps three legs on the ground at all times while he runs circles around the game, but it ain’t due to no disruption but exhaustion from carrying the game in spite of the lazy competition.

Definitely a dope album! Fantastic chemistry and great vibe all around! Definitely check this one out!

Shoutout to Papdirty for the dope feature!

https://open.spotify.com/album/098RFo3pCQYXR8knJsGmon?si=Kzk4cvn4QmiSZv4utfXZMQ