Weekly Fix #50 ('21)
Welcome to the Weekly Fix, where I go over everything that I’ve listened to that has come out within the past week. I’ll give a little blurb about the project/single with my feelings on it thrown in there, throw some descriptors and other artists names to give you an idea what the project/single is like, and link to all applicable streaming services where you can find the music. The next section will be devoted to projects that have Bandcamp or online webstore links, to give a greater highlight to those artists who you can support directly. The final section will be for projects that have had a Hot Deal-type release, but have recently come to streaming. Click here to see a list of previous Fixes.
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Well folks, it’s back to the grind over here at Tha Soup Dude’s Kitchen. I spent a lot of time over the past few weeks looking back across the year getting my year-end lists as set as I could, but I’m back to my big boy job now and, let me be real with you, I’m not very excited about it. Lot of listening, lots of unwinding, lots of gaming (been on a Morrowind fix here over the past few weeks), and lots of thinking have been the name of the game over the past couple of weeks, and the thought of going back to the real world is daunting as fuck. But ya boy will get through it.
So this week dropped some very potent projects, ones that are really on another level in terms of quality and vision. We got whole-ass barfests from Russ, 80’s throwbacks from Tory Lanez, and holiday cheer from Hus Kingpin, among a whole bunch of others. I’m particularly partial to the playlists that came out this week, a crazy spread of good tracks that y’all should check out when you get the chance, links below.
As for next week, I only have a couple projects that I can see on the horizon, ones like Chief Keef and Roddy Ricch, but I think the 2021 releases are going to slow to a trickle in these last few weeks, as is tradition (but I have been blindsided before by releases at the 11th hour: I’m looking at you i am > i was). Keep track of everything I’m seeing over at my Upcoming Heat page, a simple calendar of releases for y’all.
Thank you to everyone for the readership and patience, I appreciate every one out there in the music community and elsewhere who takes the time to get into what I got going on over here. Let’s finish 2021 out strong.
==> LINK TO THA SOUPCORD <==
Here’s a link to the Week #50 (’21) Playlists
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Here’s a link to the Week #50 (‘21) Singles
-----STREAMING PROJECTS-----
Russ – CHOMP 2
Cover Artist: [Unknown]
I’m having a little bit of difficulty coming to terms with it myself, but, y’all, this album is one of the best pure hip-hop albums of this year, and it’s a feat that comes down to several different parts. So, up until the first installment of this CHOMP series he’s got, I don’t think many people in the hip-hop community proper thought that Russ was more than a pop-rapper; my mind was completely changed with CHOMP, showcasing a thoroughly skilled rapper who had the respect of many in traditional hip-hop, enough that his last album boasted features from Busta Rhymes, Ab-Soul, and fuckin’ Black Thought, among others. The dude held his own in the rhymes department, able to go toe to toe with those massive names with grace, a HUGE surprise to me whenever listening to that project last year. But this one? CHOMP 2? This is better than the original in almost every way: Russ has elevated his rhyme game, has tastefully incorporated some hooks, *doubled* the runtime, and almost QUADRUPLED the number of expert emcees that he brings along with him. The feature list on this shit asks “if you could put anyone on your album, who would you get”, and Russ answers this question with “everybody”. Lloyd Banks, Ghostface Killah, Papoose, Joey Bada$$, The Game, CyHi the Prynce, Jay Electronica, and so, so many more all provide quality features on this motherfucker, making this feel like some sort of legendary funhouse of hip-hop. Lastly, these beats (a few of which are done by Russ himself) range from perfect cuts for straight rapping to more ethereal and vibey ones, with not a beat out of place across the entire thing. No matter what you feel about Russ (and trust me, I know the opinions out there), you *need* to listen to this if you fuck with hip-hop at all. Albums like these are special, and anyone who has the balls to pull something like this off deserves major props from everyone in this community.
Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music
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Tory Lanez – Alone At Prom
Cover Artist: Josh Farias
I’ll get out in front of this one by saying this: the *fact* that Tory did all of this horrible shit in regards to Megan Thee Stallion is absolutely indefensible, and nothing that I say in regards to his music should be seen at all as support for the man’s character and actions outside of music. OK, with that out of the way, Alone At Prom is an unbelievably solid experience unlike anything you’ve heard in hip-hop, but I’m a bit hesitant to even call what we’re getting here “hip-hop” in the strictest sense. What you’re getting is an honest to God revival of sappy, peppy 80’s vibes, complete with the boisterous synthy beats, over-wrought melodies, and lyrics that hover around late adolescence and heartsickness. I would go as far as to say this is squarely in the “pop” umbrella, but the uniqueness and the quality found here is a way to ease myself into something that sounds so different from what I would normally pick up, and Tory at the helm is something that I can scarcely believe myself at times. Every track here sounds ripped from the John Hughes movies of the 80’s, each sounding like a banger that would have hit the radio and blew peoples minds in 1985. The biggest thing that places this album in the modern era is the singing, with a decent amount of autotune used to modulate Tory’s voice to have him emulate the vocal tones of those singers from the 80’s. Alone At Prom is a one-of-a-kind experience in the hip-hop sphere, something that I would compare to the Silk Sonic album that came out a few weeks ago: a faithful and fun romp through older nostalgic sounds that pays close attention to details, a project of passion beholden to a distinct set of source material. More than anything, this project is one of the most creative things you’ll hear this year, and I have got to recognize the artistry on Tory’s part. Listen to this one y’all.
Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music
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OT the Real & DJ Green Lantern – Broken Glass
Cover Artist: John Sparkz
OT and Green Lantern are two dudes that I would not have seen going together as well as they do on this project, but I’m always glad to be taken by surprise with this music shit. OT the Real, as a Philly cat, has a very street-level energy to him, and an ever-present grit in his voice that really places him in the shoes of a street general with every verse he kicks; I see his career similar to someone like Benny the Butcher’s in the early days, someone who takes influence from the 2000’s New York gangsta rappers like Lloyd Banks but who is still willing to get into the dirtier side of modern boom-bap. Up until recently, I didn’t think DJ Green Lantern was that kind of beatmaker, able to tap into the atmospheric and gross beats that you’d hear from the Griselda-types out there, but I think Broken Glass has shown me that his production talents have largely kept up with the direction of the modern underground, because these beats are fucking awesome. Sometimes you hear something that sounds like it would be on a CD mixtape from 2010, and other times you get something that would sound right at home on the newest Westside Gunn tape. I mean the drums are still a lot denser that the today’s normal, but the overlaid samples he gets into run the gamut of hype to eerie, a variety of vibes that OT takes advantage of and works his drug-kingpin magic over. If you’re looking for some variety in your underground hip-hop I think OT and Lantern have you covered this week.
Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music
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Falcon Outlaw & Nicholas Craven – Maplehearst Graduates
Cover Artist: Martin Cura
Yet again, Toronto is out here going totally bananas on 2021 with more quality hip-hop to bless our ears, this time coming from Falcon Outlaw and Nicholas Craven. We’ve covered Craven many, many times over the past few years, but I don’t think there has been an album yet that showcases his production better than this album right here, and I don’t say that lightly. A large part of this is Falcon Outlaw as an emcee, who is very hands off in his rap style, giving both his words and the beats plenty of time to breathe amongst his wisdom; what would normally be empty space on an LP are instead instances of instrumental clarity and relaxation. The richness of the samples and the boldness of the vocal loops are among some of Nicholas’ best work out there right now, but that may be simply a bit of bias on this album’s part because his contributions are given so much time of their own to shine. All of this is not to say that Falcon Outlaw is a misusing his time here: Falcon recognizes that Craven is just as much a part of the creative process here, and gives the instrumental the time it needs. The rapping style is paced and deliberate, a style (and accent for that matter) that reminds me a lot of Nomad Carlos, who also is found among the features on Maplehurst Graduates, but I couldn’t tell you where the accent was from exactly. I just can’t recommend this pairing enough, a perfect blend of a respectful emcee and a confident producer from one of hip-hop’s most promising cities. Give this a listen if you like that real soul in your hip-hop.
Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music
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YoungBoy NBA & Birdman – From The Bayou
Cover Artist: [Unknown]
In case you haven’t noticed, YoungBoy drops a lot of projects, and I’ve only covered a couple over here at Tha Soup Dude’s Kitchen over the years. A huge part of this lack of coverage boils down to the lack of features on his projects: if you’re dropping multiple times a year, with relatively large mixtapes, you gotta include some features in there to break up the project a bit. So, what makes From The Bayou different from some of NBA’s other releases? Well… not much to be honest, but this album has a solid drawing point to it: Birdman. Much like his album with Rich The Kid last year (which I actually quite liked, and I think anyone who fucks with this project should go back and check that one out), the prospect of a double-faced album with Baby was too interesting to pass up, and what I ended up getting was a lot more quality than I expected. Excited flows, solid melodic work, catchy hooks, and a very wide range of bouncing and melodramatic trap beats. HOWEVER, I was promised an album with Birdman, and up, until track 4, this was an album with Birdman. But then he dips, with no ceremony, and it just… gone… for the entire remaining runtime. To Baby’s credit, I fucked with his verses, and legitimately wanted more from the guy, but it seems he was advertised on here to move units, and I guess it worked because… here I am. Despite the bait-n-switch, the music here is still good, and anyone who wants colorful and violent southern trap music will find things to like about this project.
Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music
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Rio Da Yung OG – Fiend Lives Matter
Cover Artist: [Unknown]
Detroit is home to some of the funniest rappers in the country right now, and it’s not that “dumb haha” kind of funny either. These emcees have made their hip-hop into a gangsta stand-up act, an attitude that extends from the lyrics and flows on down to the rambunctious beats, and all of that isn’t even bringing into account the personalities and characters of the rappers themselves. Rio Da Yung OG was without a doubt one of the most promising acts out of Detroit in this new trap scene, with an incredibly memorable and one-of-a-kind voice that sounds like some sort of cartoon character spitting the most filthy obscenities he could come up with. However, what we’re listening to on Fiend Lives Matter here is pre-recorded material from a while ago, not exactly brand-spankin’ new, and that is because, unfortunately, Rio was sentenced to five years in prison over the past summer. After listening to this album, my first from Da Yung OG, I was upset as shit to learn this immense talent is behind bars right now, and we won’t be hearing from him for a minute. If you want some truly depraved and hilarious trap music to fuck with, this is my new favorite dude to go to, and I highly recommend Fiend Lives Matter to anyone looking for the same.
Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music
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Papoose – November
Cover Artist: thakidshadow
Papoose is almost at the finish line: after 12 months, we’ve gotten 11 projects, one for each month, and November is another in a long line of quality New York hip-hop. When it comes to bars, there are few dudes out there as committed to his craft than Papoose is, something that is evident not only in the sheer volume of his output this year, but also in the strength of his pen game, which seems to only get better as he gets older. He thinks more about his words and delivery, focusing on rhyme structures that both accentuates his punchlines and wordplay as well as pay respect to the greats before him (guys like Kool G Rap and Jay-Z seem like clear influences here). But while his earlier career was mostly focused on being the best rapper in the room, I think his projects these days straddle a line between reckless and wise, being able to give you those solid punchlines but also taking time to reflect on the truly important things in his life: the relationship with his wife, the injustices in society, and paying homage to the legends in this genre (like he does on here with the final track, a tribute to the late DMX). Pap just comes across as a person totally comfortable in his position as one of hip-hops unsung heroes, and I think as time goes on and people look back at over his career I think they’ll see someone who deserves more props than they’ve been given. Give November a try if you want classic New York vibes on the microphone.
Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music
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-------SOUP’S HOT DEALS-------
Hus Kingpin – Holiday Hus: XXXMAS
Investment: $10.00
Cover Artist: artbydani7
If you were to ask me “what is one thing Chrismas needs”, I probably wouldn’t have told you an album about Hus Kingpin’s sexual conquests, but since that’s the hand that we’ve been dealt let me tell you how great this little EP is. Holiday Hus: XXXMAS really lives up to the XXX in its name, because pretty much every track gets into the… intimate details… of Hus’ encounters with women, complete the totally freaky shit they all seem to be into. There is a fine line (at least in my mind) between being smooth with this kind of talk and being totally ridiculous, and I think Hus is able to walk it pretty well; he could be throwing out genuine pimp gems in one breathe, and then come with something about dipping titties in eggnog in another. It’s really a wild experience how completely debauched this album can get at times, a characteristic of Hus’ writing that I’ve noticed before but now I’ve fully come to embrace as a part of his style, and I think exploring it here (and on a couple of his other releases this year that came out while I was away) is a way to cement the whole “sexual deviant” thing as a pillar of his persona. The people that he brings along with him play along with the assignment here: SmooVth is definitely a bit more tasteful with it, but Reverie gets nasty with this shit just like Hus does. Roc C on the other hand is spitting transcendental shit, such a strange juxtaposition after Hus says something wild, and none other than Killer Ben matches that elevated energy with an incredible verse to close out this project. The beats across this thing are also fantastic as well: cool chipmunked samples, slower more menacing tracks mixed in with slightly more “festive” vocal-looped cuts, but also with that trademark shades-of-experimental boom-bap charm to it. For ten bucks, you’re getting a hell of a deal on this one, so consider dropping some money on one of hip-hop’s finest.
Cover Artist: Che
