Vince Staples' ability to continue to innovate again and again is truly admirable, especially considering that some may have considered his return to making music from an extended hiatus after the release of 2018's "FM!" a stagnation of sorts. His subsequent projects, including his self-titled album "Vince Staples" in 2021, and "RAMONA PARK BROKE MY HEART" in 2022, were well-received critically, but not as culturally resonant or groundbreaking as ... read more
JPEGMAFIA's brash new album "EXPERIMENTAL RAP" and the discourse around it claims more than just it's existence as an LP. It's a bold statement from Peggy himself-- that he is the pinnacle of cutting edge hip hop. And while JPEGMAFIA is definitely a leader when it comes to pushing the genre forward, to say that he is indisputably THE best is not just confidence-- it's utterly audacious and dismissive of his peers. Therefore, the expectations of this project to ... read more
An emotionally-supercharged, too-much-to-say, artistically-eclosing redveil finds himself setting the stage for a neo-soul-touching, acoustically-cinematic, near-ethereal piece of music in "sankofa".
The level of polish here warrants that this LP be referred to as more than just a "project"-- not just in regards to the sonics, but also with the masterful lyrics and deeply explored themes of multifaceted growth. redveil has frequently demonstrated his range and talent as a ... read more
This is like the 2019-20 OKC Thunder. The most random group of artists stuffed into an 8 track mixtape, and somehow it just works. Spearheaded by Denzel Curry, "Strictly 4 The Scythe" offers a promising glimpse into the future of The Scythe. I can't say I'm not excited for what's next, but as for this one right here, it's a solid collection of heavy hitting bangers, with more interesting moments sprinkled in between that allows the group to show off their range ... read more
8 years in the making, and we got an À la carte-esque offering from A$AP Rocky. After so much time, it only makes sense that the follow-up to "TESTING" would cover as much ground as possible. "Don't Be Dumb" does that while simultaneously validating the ahead-of-its-time concepts and sounds from its predecessor. The album's lack of a thematic focus drags down the listening experience as a whole in addition to a number of more-than-questionable artistic ... read more