21 Savage and Metro Boomin' - SAVAGE MODE II ALBUM REVIEW

-
When I first heard of 21 Savage, I didn’t think much about him. I just felt like he was one of the copycats in the crowd of Soundcloud rappers. Boy, I’m glad I was wrong. The first installment in the SAVAGE MODE series was a morbid, dark, and horror-inspired mixtape which has become beloved by the trap scene. While I personally prefer Without Warning with Offset, I can’t deny the impact of SAVAGE MODE. These two projects have in common Metro Boomin’, one of the best producers to come out of the game this past decade, and when he and 21 collaborate, it’s fireworks. There’s no reason why fans shouldn’t be hyped for this, and with the inclusion of Morgan Freeman’s narrations, it’s pretty crazy to not be hyped about this. Well, I’ve talked for long enough. Let’s just get right into SAVAGE MODE II.

SAVAGE MODE II is a hip-hop album with trap influences. Now, while this still has that dark and morbid vibe, it’s not as prominent as the first installment. Instead, what we have is a more streamlined sound of top-notch trap beats with versatile performances from 21. Legendary actor Morgan Freeman’s part comes into play with little vignettes as interludes and/or outros to songs about how anyone can meet up and change the world, along with motivational mantras like “There will always be doubters and haters, but they only have the power you give them.” The big highlight from him is the entirety of his “Snitches and Rats (Interlude)” verse, which will go down in notoriety as time passes by for a very good reason. The actual songs, though, are quite consistent. While I could keep some tracks like “Glock in My Lap” and “Rich N*gga Shit” out of my playlist, they aren’t inherently bad songs. They just aren’t my thing. I’m in the majority on this, but “Many Men” is probably one of my favorite tracks here and “R.I.P. Luv” is a track that I haven’t seen anyone talk about, but it’s a great song and guess what? I’m talking about it now, bitch. Either way, I’m satisfied with this project.

Holy shit, 21’s been on a roll lately. His last solo effort i am > i was is an awesome album that I can't recommend enough, his feature on Childish Gambino’s 3.15.20 is still a track I go back to, and now we have SAVAGE MODE II adding to that pile. While none of the songs are truly stellar, none of them ever become stale. This is one of the most enjoyable rap projects this year so far, and honestly, Morgan Freeman’s part on the record makes SAVAGE MODE II a must-listen.


8/10


Stream SAVAGE MODE II here

Spotify

Apple Music

YouTube Music




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Lil Yachty - Let’s Start Here. ALBUM REVIEW

-
Image
I gotta keep holding to my promises about reviewing. I always love it when an artist takes a risk with their material. Whether or not it works out, I usually admire the risk and appreciate the fact that any artist can do something out of their comfort zone. Either way, the artist in question today is Lil Yachty, a rapper that has basically become a joke the longer his career’s gone on. However, going into a new genre out of left field isn’t totally new to rap. Childish Gambino jumping into the world of neo-soul with Awaken, My Love! , along with later projects from Mac Miller and Tyler, the Creator having more jazz influences, have proven that turning to a new genre for new ideas has worked out pretty well. Yachty, however, has turned to psychedelic rock in the vein of Tame Impala for this new album, Let’s Start Here. to mark the new chapter of his career. Let’s get into it. Having stuck around with Yachty during the rough patches, I can easily say that Let’s Start Here. is his best
Read more

King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard - PetroDragonic Apocalypse; or, Dawn of Eternal Night: An Annihilation of Planet Earth and the Beginning of Merciless Damnation ALBUM REVIEW

-
Image
Just when I think I’m out, I’m pulled back in. Okay, hi again. I’m not saying I’m back for good, but I just hit a stride, and I’m not gonna lie, I miss writing for the fun of it. Anyway, I’ve talked about this band on the site before. I might just have to make a tag to link all their albums together. King Gizzard went on a damn-near-perfect streak of three separate projects last October, and knowing that whatever they did next was a spiritual successor to 2019 fan favorite Infest the Rats' Nest , it’d certainly be up my alley. Now, we have PetroDragonic Apocalypse , which I will just shorten it to that because of the long-ass album title you can see at the top. It’s a mouthful, I know. Either way, let’s get into it. PetroDragonic Apocalypse sees the group move into a genre they’ve dabbled in before: metal. Throwing in dashes of thrash, speed, and even stoner metal helps make the Aussie band’s most chaotic, in-your-face, and probably entertaining project as a whole yet. Environment
Read more

Cities Aviv - Working Title for the Album Secret Waters

-
Image
Still mad that I never got the vinyl release of his last album. Every time I review something that ended up being a surprise release, I always talk about how nice surprise releases are. Even if it’s by an artist you’re not a giant fan of, a surprise drop is always something cool. Memphis rapper Cities Aviv is one I got real excited about. Then again, I was always gonna be excited to see what he did next after his two-hour-long epic MAN PLAYS THE HORN , which is in my top 10 favorite albums of this year. I would’ve never expected there to be a new album so soon given just how large his last project was. Now, we have Working Title for the Album Secret Waters , a damn good surprise release that genuinely caught me off guard. Knowing that this project is only a fraction the length of HORN , does that addictive, hypnotic sound translate into a shorter project? Let’s tread into Secret Waters . What I think stands out here the most is the production, more specifically the sampling done here.
Read more