Reviews
Siamese Dissolution Review: Pop Hooks Pick a Fight With Metalcore
An opinionated Siamese dissolution review of a band rebuilding mid-flight—darker, louder, and slightly unhinged in a way that mostly works. Siamese don’t sound like they’re... more »
Life Is Fleeting Review: Lync Lone Raps Like Time’s Evicting Him
Life Is Fleeting turns Lync Lone’s hustle into a countdown—Rochester streets, drug clarity, movie quotes, and survival bars that refuse to sit still. Some rappers measure their careers... more »
Dry Clean Only Album Review: NYC Rap That Treats Pride Like a Receipt
Dry Clean Only turns luxury talk into a survival manual—chemicals, Scripture, winter paranoia, and jokes that don’t soften the dread. Some albums invite you to relate. Dry Clean Only... more »
Stormkeep Album Review: The Nocturnes of Iswylm Is Powerlifting in a Cloak
Stormkeep’s sophomore album The Nocturnes of Iswylm delivers a focused, immersive black metal experience that weaponizes lore and atmosphere with precision, marking the band as a rising... more »
Wyclef Jean’s Quantum Leap Vol. 1 Is a Time-Travel Diary That Refuses to Behave
Wyclef’s Quantum Leap jumps from boom-bap to Afrobeats to 2030 prophecy—messy on purpose, sharp when it counts, and weirdly personal. This album doesn’t “flow.” It ricochets. And after a... more »
Elephant Room Mixtape Review: Catch Makes Confessionals Sound Like Threats
Elephant Room Mixtape hits like road rap with the mask off—queer desire, jail math, and grief told in uncomfortable close-up. Road rap usually moves like it’s late for something. South... more »
JRDN & Lane Hall’s Lane Hall Review: Soul From Halifax, Somehow
Lane Hall is Halifax soul with real weight: live bass-and-drums warmth, romance-as-addiction hooks, and one song that actually lands the punch. If you told me a warm, low-slung soul... more »
Prof’s Good Time Boy Review: Party Rap That Quietly Asks for Help
Prof’s Good Time Boy sounds like a joke album until it starts confessing. Big hooks, bigger guests, and a mid-album gut-punch hiding in plain sight. Prof has spent a career being the guy... more »
YoungBoy ML2 Review: Love Songs With a Silencer (Yes, Really)
YoungBoy ML2 traps you in a low-lit mood where romance and violence share oxygen. It’s claustrophobic, blunt, and weirdly tender in the same breath. There’s a point on YoungBoy ML2 where I... more »
Holly Grove Review: Jadasea Drowns His Voice on Purpose (It Works)
Holly Grove sounds like Jadasea hiding inside the mix on purpose—bass-first, bruised writing, and a few moments that almost feel like escape. If you’re expecting Holly Grove to “come... more »
2 LIVE! Review: K, Le Maestro’s “Live” Album That Won’t Stop Flexing
2 LIVE turns a guest-stacked rap showcase into one person’s blueprint—then loudly reminds you who drew it. Anybody can jack a familiar loop, juice it for clout, and call it culture.... more »
97 Bad Boy Review: Rico Love’s “Writer Steps Out” Flex Is Kinda Wild
97 Bad Boy turns Rico Love from behind-the-scenes hitmaker into the main character—and he spends the whole album daring you to call it romantic. There’s a special kind of confidence... more »
Nectar Woode’s Naturally Mixtape Is Quiet on Purpose (And That’s the Point)
The Naturally mixtape doesn’t try to “wow” you—it tries to corner you. Nectar Woode sings low, lets bass do the heavy lifting, and dares you to sit with it. Most singers from London... more »
Time Will Tell Review: Devon Gilfillian’s Breakup Tape Wins by Refusing to “Fix” It
Devon Gilfillian’s Time Will Tell bets that one-take performances beat studio polish—until the cracks start sounding like the whole point. Courtesy of Fantasy Records. The first thing... more »
PLUTO Mixtape: Diary of a Young Lit B*tch Is a Cash-First Sermon
PLUTO mixtape energy flips strip-club rap: she pays herself first, auditions men, collects women, and only gets shaky when violence is the whole point. Strip-club rap usually runs on a... more »
Precious Cargo Review: Maiya the Don’s Flex-Pop Rap Isn’t “Deep”—It’s Sharp
Precious Cargo turns “influencer-to-rapper” skepticism into a loud, polished argument—and it wins more often than it should. Most albums want you to believe the artist “found themselves.”... more »
T.I. Kill the King Review: A Crown-Tossing Flex That Still Sweats
Kill the King isn’t a retirement lap—it’s T.I. checking the “King of the South” myth for cracks, then rapping through them anyway. Image credit: Grand Hustle LLC / EMPIRE.... more »
Ibeyi Offering Album Review: a “homecoming” that ditches the drums
Ibeyi Offering is what happens when the twins cut the band setup loose and dare you to stare straight at their voices. I kept waiting for the familiar anchors: the drum kit, the piano,... more »