Week 18

30/01/23

A mix of old and new in this edition - been a slow month for new releases.

Rome Streetz - KISS THE RING

Griselda just do not miss. My latest discovery from the underground hip-hop label comes by way of Rome Streetz. This album feels like the 1999 (Joey Badass) of coke rap. Not in regards to its significance, but for the flows, rhyming, and bars. The dude just reminds me of old Joey, and the quality of this project reminds me of what Joey was doing on 1999. Rome just delivers punchline after punchline for most of these tracks, especially the first few where he hits you straight out of the gate. The first few tracks set the tone of the album with multisyllabic rhymes intertwined with bars to knock you off your feet. The production is actually fairly accessible in the boom-bap sense. It's not too dark and grimy, with Conductor Williams demonstrating a masterclass in sample chopping and looping. Even with 17 songs, all the beats sound distinct and different in their own right, each with their own redeeming qualities. Whether this be a deep bassline that penetrates your core, or a lighter piano melody that cleverly juxtaposes the harsh and grim lyrics. Rome mixes lyrics of pure bars and punchlines with storytelling tracks where you can clearly picture the scene that he is describing. Everything is coherent and image-heavy. He even kills the track about love, featuring Armani Caesar, which may seem out of place for this album, but provided a nice break from the onslaught of bars that preceded this track. The features do not stray too far from the usual Griselda gang, but they unsurprisingly fit the album perfectly. Best guest verse goes to Benny The Butcher, pretty comfortably. For an introduction project (for me, anyway), this was a perfect album to choose. 17 tracks was probably too many for this project as they were not all standouts, but I don't hold this against him too much. I would like to see what range Rome has in his locker and what he can do over a variety of production. One to watch. 

Favourite songs: Big Steppa, In Too Deep, Soulja Boy, Blow 4 Blow, Ugly Balenciaga's, 1000 Ecstasy, Armed & Dangerous, Non Factor, Serving, Fashion Rebel

Score: 9/10

Lil Yachty - Let's Start Here.

I have listened to this album multiple times in the last few days and I still don't feel fully equipped to review it. No one was expecting the guy who took the Wok to Poland to come out with this as his next album. A Pink Floyd and Tame Impale inspired psychedelic, prog-rock album by Yachty was not on my 2023 bingo card. He establishes the Pink Floyd influence early with the second half of 'the BLACK seminole.' pretty much paralleling the first part of 'Great Gig in the Sky' by Pink Floyd. This intro song, by the way, is fantastic. A fitting ode to this genre of music and one of the best intro tracks that I can remember. Over the course of the album, Yachty switches between the prog-rock and psychedelic Tame Impala-esque tracks. The rock tracks typically employ distorted guitar riffs, with the psychedelia being exposed through soaring synth lines. The production on this album is really something to behold. It's refreshing. Refreshing to hear this kind of music still being made in 2023 and refreshing to hear a hip hop artist execute it so well. Some songs operate with a high tempo which hit immediately, and others employ slower and drowsier melodies that really sit with you on future listens. This is a key point. This album will shock you in to confusion on first and, maybe, second listen. It gets better the more you listen and the more familiar you become with it. The lyrics are filled with introspection and imagery, but I would be lying if I said that they were the focal point of the album. Yachty's creative vision for this album is the most impressive thing, and the fact that he, largely, successfully executes it to a high standard. It also cannot be underestimated what this album will do for the culture. This will encourage so many young trap and hip-hop fans to venture in to the world of rock music and really open up their taste. This was a bridge that needed to be built, so shoutout to Yachty. My main gripe with this album is, unfortunately, the way that Yachty's voice fits within it. When the features from Foushee or Diana Gordon come in, I find myself thinking that they fit so much better with the crispness and range of their vocals, compared to Yachty's. His fairly flat and, somewhat, nasally delivery does not really fit with the grandiose production. A powerful singer is so important in this genre as they need to, unfortunately, try and go toe-to-toe with the production. Yachty's vocals do not live up to this standard, so do end up holding this album back. I cannot fault Yachty's creative vision here, nor the production, I just feel like he should have adopted a more directorial or background vocals role and let better singers take the spotlight. But, if this is the start on a new direction for Yachty and other rappers, I am all for it. 

Favourite songs: the BLACK seminole., pRETTy, THE zone~, drive ME crazy!, sHouLd i B?, The Alchemist.

Score: 7.5/10

Anderson .Paak & Cordae - Two Tens

RNP was a banger, let's not get it twisted. Hence, my expectations were high for this tune. And even though the quality is not quite to the level of RNP, we get similar vibes with an increased focus on fun and calmness. The chorus is catchy from Anderson, as expected. The main thing I wanted from the verse was more of the back-to-back energy we got on RNP...and they delivered! As mentioned, the flow is more relaxed and smooth, but it still sounds as cool as it ever did. Packed full of quotables and slick bars, I just wish the song was longer. I needed that third verse. Or fourth. They could have gone on for ten minutes and I would not have been bored, to be honest. Also, shoutout to J Cole for the smoooooth production. Picture walking through the park on a sunny day with your best mate, that's what this song feels like. Very fun; too short.

Bas - Diamonds

I was slightly worried about the direction Bas was taking his music after a few attempts at a commercial-trap hit. But do not worry! Bas is back in his lyrical lo-fi hip-hop lane. If you like his song 'Risk' (which is one of my favourites of his), then you will most likely enjoy this tune. Bas does a bit more singing than usual on this record. His usual half-rap, half-singing flow is in full stead here. It's smooth as hell. It's unfortunate that we only get one verse as there definitely could have been a second, instead of the almost minute-long instrumental outro. The beat sounds like what you would get if you typed 'Bas type beat' in to youtube. That being said, I do like the feeling that is conjured from the plucked guitar beat. I also love the addition of the faint vocals in the background that are included around half-way in to the track. This is no stunner, but a very encouraging taster of what is to come from Bas. 

Mike dimes & JID - HOME - Remix

I don't know why I didn't listen to this when it came out. This track is unbelievably hard. Starting with Mike Dimes, he employs this Memphis sounding beat and flow that just personifies the stank face. The strings in the beat with the plunging bassline emphasise Mike's staccato flow in the chorus. His flow speeds up in the verse which is laced with a few clever bars and punchlines. JID hears this, already hard, track (which is the original version) and decides to drop a whole ass nuclear bomb on it. This honestly may be one of the best JID verses of all time. His flow is, as usual, quick yet clear, and changes every three seconds, it seems like. But the bars...the barssssss. A masterclass in writing a feature verse. He's just talking his shit whilst intertwining it with some extremely clever metaphors, imagery, and wordplay. The Loki/low-key bar, the Olsen twins/twin clips, tone deaf/deftones. I mean, there is so much to decipher here it's insane. And it sounds easy. He's barely breaking the sweat. The beat literally changes for him to emphasise how hard he is going. A top-quality pure hip hop tune.