record is essentially a hype builder and nothing more, just something to grab peoples attention. Leaves it with a lot of inconsistencies in quality, some tracks are absolutely nothing worth mentioning, some tracks are amongst some of the worst i've heard all decade with that eminem cut that follows a track paying homage to him and the fucking BLINK 182 I MISS YOU INTERPOLATION on "hello there" that is so bad it's laughable. those are just the ones of note however, as most of this ... read more

I dont think theres anything i can say about this record that would be interesting or add to the decade long conversation regarding this record and how influential it is, but what I can say that despite how early it is, despite it being one of the earliest double albums i've heard this far, despite it being older than my parents, this record from the opening dusty "rainy day women #12 & 35" to the gorgeously arranged "Sad-Eyed lady of the Lowlands" stands on its own; ... read more

This record wouldve panned out much much MUCH better if the core sound at the center of everything was something to write home about, but instead it's reminiscent of like 2009-2014 era nickelodeon sitcoms. It sucks because in all of these songs minus a couple really really bad tracks that I don't think could've been saved theres atleast 2 or 3 key details about them that I actually think are really cool! but it's hardly enough to distract me from the fact that I'm listening to a very dime a ... read more

Brand new waters for them, even in terms of the smile's output thus far. These songs are lush, densely put together, and meticulously crafted down to every last note. I think sometimes the compositions can fall on the boring side of things as thom yorkes melodies aren't the most engaging thing in the world and the style they're going for is a little mind-numbing between the lengths of the tracks and the variation sometimes not really being interesting enough, but that's only on some cuts, ... read more

Bruiser Wolf is probably the most entertaining person on the come up right now with his verse on Danny Brown's "YBP" turning off as many as it's catching by surprise. It makes a lot of sense considering the way he brings back Slick Rick levels of animation in his delivery, which isn't so much rhythmic as it is just rapid fire punchlines on after another. I personally absolutely adore this style and think Bruiser Wolf has both the personality and the pen game to pull it off. I was a ... read more

This could most definitely just be a case of me growing tired of the british voiced post punk scene that seems to be more booming than ever nowadays, but this one kind of struck me as very vanilla for this type of thing. It's got it's great moments, the vocals when they actually have energy bring a really good engaging ferocity that I like, the guitar work is done well and i really like the entirety of "strange neighbour" as the bongo led rhythms create a really infectious groove, but ... read more

The audio equivalent of someone telling a joke laughing at it and then explaining to you personally why exactly that joke was funny except thats the whole album and its an hour long and there's an 9 minute song and its an hour long and never ends and also theres an 9 minute song who let him make a 9 minute narrative song

When it works (which most of them do, main glaring off kilter one is the gunna acapella) I think every song remix here breathes new life in a jazz rap context and does so with the same amount of flare as they did on their original instrumentals. It's a nice remix album sure but it doesn't make it's rappers feel out of place. It's still extremely put together despite it structurally being a game of mixing and matching popular songs. Even if it's not all of them, 6/8 for something that is ... read more

Excellently articulated genre blend that kind of pushed the boundaries of what I thought "metal" music could even make me feel, seriously I cannot express enough how tight these instrumentals are. Long story short this is so fucking Doomerwave

This record isnt the most engaging thing under the sun and that definitely doesn't really make it stick out in a sea of other vaporwave projects but It's far from bad. I think the aesthetic is paid homage to quite well, the ps2 graphics album cover really spells this whole record out aesthetically and I have to admit im very much a sucker for that sort of sound. And in execution, its actually really nice. You get exactly whats shown to you and maybe a little extra. The songs are never bombastic ... read more

A very very very consistent outing from boldy james. Who, at this point isn't necessarily blowing my mind with his projects but that doesnt mean im any less of a sucker for his style of cold mellow delivery over equally cold beats. The thing that made this one stand out still, is just how live the production is. We've heard that before on his projects but even those don't really match the energy at it's peak. The main example of this is the phenomenal yet unfortunately unmatched opener ... read more

God shoutout to lua for showing me such a genuinely incredible find this early in the year, this project absolutely blew me away with it's quality. every track is a beautifully sung dreamy power pop jam that's already sunk its toxins into my brain after one measly listen. Every song on here sounds like a live gig by some legendary soft rock band, you feel very immersed. I could visualize the stage, the audience, and the presence of everything so vividly it was almost a substitute to actually ... read more

While i definitely am excited to see the film that this record is released alongside, I think as a standalone record this is too inconsistent and lacking in a lot of aspects to really be a fulfilling return. It's not without it's highlights, we get classic violent understated 21 in full form on tracks like "redrum" and "sneaky", some killer features on "nee-nah" and "dangerous," and proof that 21 can be extremely heady given the circumstances on the ... read more

I think I would've came out of this project more confused if i hadn't initially read the bandcamp description beforehand, but after doing so I kind of understand the purpose of this record at least through the artists' eyes. It mentions heavy OPN inspiration down there, and I can completely attest to that and even elaborate. This project takes the most extreme elements from a record like Replica, in it's lucidness and it's surrealist elements and cranks them up to 11 for the entire duration. it ... read more

Not a very long project or looks to be something that's really a "mainline release" in this artists' catalogue, but if that is TRULY the case I need to start doing my homework ASAP. sure it's not long and it's practically just harp with effect pedals for 12ish minutes, but it's actually kind of insane how full and how enveloping of a sound emily achieves here with just bare essentials. It's so minimalist but not at the cost of not being rich, it's tones still soak into your brain ... read more

as opposed to the hexD ambient work they released in early 2023 (which mind you was still quality) 5thwrld goes more atmospheric drum n bass on this project, and they do it to the same proficiency although for an actual project length this time around, showcasing not only skill but their consistency and versatility. The way samples are woven into these shimmery electronic passages works seamlessly and creatively, and despite the signature veils of compression holding the mix it never sounds ... read more

@gunglemynuts I got the album for you

I can see what this one is going for, and I do wanna say the production embracing ambient soundscapes rather than your typical plugg is very much an interesting direction. To pull this off however, you need to have some sort of character to your subdued-ness. Some sort of X factor in your delivery that certifies that sleepy hazy vibe, without putting your listeners to sleep along with you. That's kind of where this record falls really flat in my opinion. The production is oozing with so much ... read more

In all the hard bop i've heard none quite strikes with the elegance that wes montgomery and his crew do here. There's still that up-tempo feel im familiar with, but there's also so much grace. It's incredibly gentle, relaxing, and sometimes even something I would consider serene. Everyone at play here melds together that gentleness too, it's not just wes' watery guitar that does it. It's the subtle piano touches, the thick velvety bass, the crisp shimmery drums. They all match each others ... read more

Definitely not adventurous enough in the genre of dungeon synth or any strand of ambient for that matter to really blow my mind, but dear god if I were to sit down for a second and stop being as cynical as I can be sometimes these compositions are just straight up gorgeous. The twinkly sharp synths mixed with the wintery swells of strings kind of pierces through you. It's cold, but the beauty feels like the warmth to the cold. Like extreme comfort in a dire situation. really really pretty