Artist(s): Da Goldminerz
Mixtape: The Golden Era (2011)

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If you thought lyricism and horror-core rap was something of the past, you obviously haven't heard the Da Goldminers latest LP, THE GOLDEN ERA. Hailing out of the Tampa, FL area, by way of that up north feel; they bring a dynamic face to the once underground scene that flourished back in the 90's. With a new twist in production by Simon Roofless, the team goes in on what most lovers of lyricism will find to be a haven of poetic ingenuity.

Opening the album with the eerie story plot of aliens who invade earth for interludes; the listener already can catch a small hint of what's up and coming. What every listener who doesn't know this crew will NOT be ready for is the array of lyrics that will be thrown at them throughout the rest of this album.

From the beginning of the album, "In the Flesh" starts it off with a blend of lyrics and a heavy beat that Roofless is known well for. "What You Gonna Do" is reminiscent of a mix between CELLA DWELLAS and GRAVEDIGGAZ; and for those who know those two old school crews, it will become glaringly obvious that this is definitely not your average Tampa crew.

While the production is unquestionably professional and clean, there is a hint of mixing that lacks in the production specifically. While the old school sound is almost undeniably concentrated on lyrics, the need for some of those background sounds like the FLUTE and STRUMMING on "Killin Senses;" or the background sounds on "Starvin Artists;" and the weightier sounds on "Inception" would have definitely made it sound a bit more impactful overall.

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Artist(s): Aych
Album Name: The Cure II
Year of Release: 2010

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Aych's ability to cross over both radio and indie genres is undeniable, and his dedication is even more proven than his talent. This makes him a definite moving force all within himself, and his latest release, THE CURE II, is no exception to that track record.

The album starts off with a good feel on J. Rusch's production for the intro, where Aych tells them to "Call on" him when they get tired of the nonsense we hear so much. This feel is pretty much the angle where Aych leads most of the album, which is a bit of SOUL mixed with various styles to portray the heart of the artist they call AYCH.

Some of the tracks on this album are SERIOUS REPEAT TRACKS! The one that is worth MUCH mention is "Live'N That Life" featuring AJA Lorraine. This song is seriously a CLASSIC and was stuck on my repeat for about a good 20 minutes the first time I listened. This is undeniable REAL LIFE content.

Immediately following that track is "Letter to My Pop," which shows an even deeper side to Aych. There is no doubt he left himself in the studio the night he recorded it. The dynamic in a son's view of his father was adequately explained when he states, "Never showin' up was some shit I got used to / but that's some bullshit kids should never get used to."

Some of the other tracks to pay attention to would be "Change" featuring Triple X and "Somethin' Special" featuring Dynasty. His dedication to showing various sides of his real life persona is obvious enough to command the respect of other artists.

Now, in ALL the good things to say about this album, there were equally as many points of lows to it with tracks like "Ready for the World" which lacked a bit more on the vocalist end and didn't engage the listener as well. "I'm So Fly" really wasn't too fly at all with all the features, and some of the low ends on the mix seemed to be lacking a bit as well.

Tracks like "U Know My Name" lacked a bit on the production end, even though the lyrics themselves were pretty well planned out. And tracks like "The Come Up" were a bit too repetitive on the hook for my taste. There was a little bit more of that on the hooks than I would have liked throughout the album, but it only really hurt a few tracks along the way.

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Artist(s): R.A.P.P. Quelle
Album Name: After The Art: We Are Up Mixtape
Year of Release: 2010

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Most mixtapes are filled with DJ cuts and slices with overbearing DJ's screaming at the mic biding for the attention of the listener as much as the emcee. This was NOT the case for R.A.P.P. Quelle's latest mixtape release, After the Art: We Are Up. Quelle's ability to weave words together as well as the mixtape more closely resembling the track flow of an actual album make this mixtape a good addition to the collection.

The mixtape starts with the eerie song from Pirates of the Caribbean 3, almost making the listener wonder what he means from that. Are WE as Hip Hop the pirates singing our song to the death pursuing perpetual voice in the music market? Nonetheless, the mixtape moves on to the next track resembling the usual shout outs and long intros traditionally seen.

As the first real cut begins with "Why Be Afraid," I couldn't help but think of DMX and his gritty yelling on the mic. R.A.P.P. Quelle does this, but with a twist of his own that stands him apart a bit from DMX. It's more than obvious that Quelle is not your average rapper, and his lyrics alone help him a lot of the way along with tracks like "The Enigma is All Me" and "We Are Up (Light Up Remix)"

Tracks like "Forgot About Wishing" using the airplanes instrumental showcase some of his heart in this music when he states, "I pray none of these words get lost in translation / Hopefully you get every bar that I'm saying." He makes it obvious he has no plans of stopping.

There are some downsides to this mixtape which really accounted for most of the loss in points. One major point is that Quelle's delivery really doesn't range out well. He's pretty much screaming most of the time or at least sounding like he is. The texture of his voice should be a bit mellower on some tracks and lacks that drop in tracks like "All the Way Up" and "PSA."

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Artist(s): Cyhi Da Prynce
Album Name: Royal Flush Mixtape
Year of Release: 2010

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With a guest appearance on Kanye West's giveaway track "So Appalled" and the BET G.O.O.D. Music Cypher. G.O.O.D. Music's new recruit Cyhi the Prynce is showing his royal status in hip hop with his new mixtape "Royal Flush". Cyhi has a great lyrical delivery and catchy hooks. The album also includes the productions of the J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, Kane Beatz, Drumma Boy, and more. The Atlanta MC is ready to take over the Hip Hop industry.

The album starts off with "Ring Bells", which uses the famous speech "I have a dream" by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The track sets the mood for the Royal Flush mixtape and takes the listener into the lyrical spectrum of Cyhi. Cyhi street story telling swagger in "Bunch of Rounds" lets it be known that he will not hesitate to put people in their place.

Kane Beatz produced the track "Never Again", Where Cyhi expresses the trials and tribulations of his life. He teaches the errors of his ways and expectations of never having to return to that life.

Cyhi continues to speak on past mistakes and taking a different route in life with the Anita Baker sample on "Hear Me Out." Cyhi da Prynce also lets the ladies know that he is looking for love in "Can't Find Love" with a laid back R&B feel.

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Artist(s): The Watchmen
Album Name: Wu-Tang Management presents The Watchmen
Year of Release: 2010

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Wu-Tang has never really stood still since their emergence on the scene almost a decade ago. They have released various group and solo albums, as well as movie music and animated adventures. While the last few years we have seen various efforts from each member to extend themselves within their respective styles, there has also been a major recruitment of affiliate groups that the Wu has been pushing out lately. One of those groups coming out of Florida is THE WATCHMEN. A crew consisting of 5 determined artists to make a mark on the WU Map.

Keeping true to the Wu Brand, The Watchmen dropped a double CD, with the first beginning very reminiscent of most albums with intro scripts from old school karate flicks. From the beginning of the album, you can hear a slight nostalgia of Killa Army influencing some vibes, but the crew quickly breaks away into their own style and flow as the album moves on. It's not hard to understand that this group is clearly ABOUT THAT LYRICISM and the use of "poison darts" to dominate the tracks one by one. There are some serious "burners", and much for the most unexpected reasons.

Tracks like "It's Not Too Late," with its signature Wu female vocals and crazy wordplay; as well as "Not Living" with its Soul Music quality combined with great lyric delivery make a clear impact into both the independent and commercial markets. This album has some diversity with tracks like "Cruisin" that brought a very Latin element to the crew. With tracks like these, there may be something the team is onto. It's VERY clear they experiment well.

By CD number two, you can see that the crew can do both old school styles, but have an updated flow to match the younger minds as well. There are some tracks that don't build well for the team in this album. Tracks like "It's a Shame" and "Chinese Split" didn't really stand out at all, and made the forward button look increasingly tempting.

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From the "burbs" to the "blocks," Asher Roth has undoubtedly been getting some good exposure into the game from various media and releases. His style is original and his insistence on having his own sound is definitely apparent in this last mixtape release he completed with DJ Wreckineyez.

He begins the album with "a quick life lesson" in Muddy Swim Trunks, and introduces us once again to the goofy, yet non-psychotic white emcee who loves Hip Hop. The beat produced by Madlib is a definite mellow feel, and Asher's lyrics definitely blend well with the drops. While this is not the most impressive track on the album, it is definitely one that sets the listener up in the mood that they will probably need to endure for 17 more tracks.

Now, to be totally transparent, I will preface that Asher's lyrical ability is unquestionable, and his choice of production in some cases was great - but the fact of the matter is that this was not really that impressive of a mixtape. There were only a few great tracks out of the 18 that existed on the album. Among these tracks was Con-Fid-Ence, produced by Kanye West; which definitely had a great momentum and delivery to it.

Oddly enough, the 4 tracks following were much better in quality, sound and delivery than the previous tracks on the album. With I'm Eddy, and its great swing to the beat, and Just Blaze's heat on the Rick Smits, this portion of the album between track 9 and 13 is definitely top quality heat.

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From the start, Ruste Juxx has been a moving force in the most recent years of Duckdown Record's vast history in the Hip Hop scene. His murderous delivery and his ability to put together dominant wordplay has earned him a crown of own. Hailing from "Killa" Crown Heights, his newest album, Adamantine helps to continue his reign united with UK master of production, Endemic.

The album opens with an introduction to the word "Adamantine," in order to provide the listener with a basis of understanding. This is simply the foundation and beginning of a fully loaded album with heat at every track played.

As the album continues with "U Know What Crime It Is," featuring Sledge; it becomes apparent that executive production did a good job in deciding the order of tracks. The fluidity between tracks maintains throughout the project, providing the listener with perfect transitions to keep the pause button on the backburner.

Most of the tracks match each emcee creating a great chemistry between the production and song writing. This album definitely emits artistic quality, which is something hardcore hip hop had been missing at times. Tracks like "Music to My Ears" give us those scattered heartfelt tracks that keep Ruste's image at the level of the listener. Everyday life music has been the lifeline of Independent Music and this album is no exception to that strength.

While the album is definitely a banger from start to finish, there are a few moments that drop the ball, but the rarity of them is what makes this project impressive. In the "Thrill is Back," the hook had a GREAT concept, but could have used a more intense delivery or a bit narrower mix to bring in the sound tighter. "Music to My Ears" also could have used a bit more of the female vocals throughout the track and "Killa Crown Heights" didn't truly stand by itself as an outro enough.

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