Don Toliver Meets High Expectations With the Release of His Debut Album "Heaven or Hell"

By Miles Hagan

Don Toliver has done an excellent job of building hype over his short career. 2018 was huge for him as that was when he had his break out feature on “CAN'T SAY” on Travis Scott’s Astroworld. If you're anything like me, when you first Don come in you were left in awe by this unknown artist who was coming with so much energy, and sounded almost like a better singing version of Travis. The Texas native dropped a full length project titled Donny Womack the same year which had several solid tracks but it was clear that this was a less polished version of Toliver. That being said in 2019 he dropped a slew of singles that hinted that he may be working on another album, though nothing was confirmed. The year was capped off with the release of JACKBOYS. Don Toliver and the other signees of Travis’ record label teamed up for a project that he put his individual stamp on time and time again. Eyes were on him as he now had a co-sign from one of the biggest names in music currently.

Toliver occupies a very interesting space in music. His sound stems in part from his Houston counterpart Travis Scott, but there are other elements there. Heaven or Hell opens with the title track that is a perfect example of this sound and sets the mood for the project. The beat is electronic and spacey, as Toliver walks an ever so fine line between rapping and singing (really he's melodizing).

One of the album’s main strong suits is that it is very cohesive sonically. Not only that, but Toliver also stays consistent when it comes to the subject matter on this project. Many of the tracks create the vibe of either before, after or during a party, and it almost seems as if the entire album could be taking place over the course of one crazy, drug-filled night. The early tracks on the album set that tone and have listeners feeling like they may be off something just from production, and that is what makes this album perfect for any party setting.

Deeper cuts from the album like “Candy” and “Company” are enjoyable because of how they evolve as the track progresses. The guitar solo in the background of “Candy” as it plays out into a beautifully sung acapella closing by Toliver might have been one of the best moments on the whole project. This is the strongest aspect of Heaven or Hell as well as most of Don Toliver's music. As each song continues Don sounds more comfortable. He is able to create great moments with a particular flow he catches, or how his voice echoes on a chorus, or just the general energy he creates when his presence occupies a song. Once he finds a way to grab you though it is difficult not to ride the wave for the remainder of the track. 

When it comes to standouts from the album a clear pick that has to be talked about is “Euphoria”. It is perfectly placed as the second song and immediately grabs the listener's attention. The piano and vocals in the background are dark and moody to compliment the rest of the beautiful production. Kaash Paige might have actually had the most impressive performance on the song as she croons about her fake friendships and old relationships that she is leaving behind in her success. Travis and Don rap about the women they've hurt in their pursuit of euphoria from drugs and money. This is one of those songs that grabs you and holds onto you for the entire time it is playing then once it ends you are left wanting to press rewind.

Something that can’t be ignored about the album is not only the fact that 3 out of 12 songs were already released before this. This is worth mentioning because “Can’t Feel My Legs”, “Had Enough”, and “No Idea” also happen to be some of the high points on Heaven or Hell. You have to wonder if the already positive reception of the album wouldn't be heightened if this was the first time these were heard. It does make sense why these would be the singles on the one hand, as these are also the songs that would definitely be more in the vein of a traditional club banger or party hit. They are upbeat, high energy, and some of the most infectious music he has ever created. All of these are excellent songs in any context.

Heaven or Hell was a really good debut for Don Toliver. He seems to be trending in the right direction with everything he does. It is invaluable to have a good group of people around you at this time in the music industry. Not only is JACKBOYS a great image for Toliver to be associated with, but it will also put him in a space with other creatives who will hopefully force him to push his boundaries and produce his best work. Toliver has a very bright future in the industry and Heaven or Hell did nothing but further prove that to be true.

Favorite Tracks

Euphoria

Can't Feel My Legs (Feat. Travis Scott & Kaash Paige)

Company

Rating: 8

Listen to Heaven or Hell here:

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Ugly God Shows He's More Than Just a Meme on "Bumps & Bruises"

By Kaila Cherry

Ugly God is a true character in every sense of the word. He is an absurd and hilarious presence in the rap game today, completely unafraid of making a fool of himself. Ugly God captured the attention of the public with his breakout single “Water” in 2016. “Water” has the Southern native showcasing his smooth ad rhythmic flow over a beat comprised mainly of a spacey synth riff and repetitive hi hats. His lyrics are quirky but straight to the point. In “Water,” Ugly God tells us that although he may not be the prettiest on the block, he has an immaculate sense of style (drip), lots of money, and enough charisma to attract any girl he wants. Despite some of the tracks more questionable lyrical content, such as the use of the lesbian slur “dyke” and the sexism of the line “Your bitch is my slave,” “Water” became one of the most played songs of that summer, launching Ugly God into rap success and effectively creating himself into an online music meme. 

Since “Water,” Ugly God has gone onto to release an EP entitled The Booty Tape in 2017. Alongside “Water,” The Booty Tape has other songs with a similar level of personality to them such as “Stop Smoking Black and Milds,” “I’m Tryna Fuck,” and his own diss track to himself, “Fuck Ugly God.” If you could not tell from his stage name or song titles, Ugly God has made a name for himself by not taking himself too seriously. He knows he is funny and uses his humor to carry his music. For the most part, the public does not consider Ugly God to be an “artist” as much as he is seen as a joke. For a while, this is exactly what Ugly God wanted to be. But now, the rapper known for wanting to “pull up and fuck on your daughter” has changed directions with the release of his debut album Bumps and Bruises. 

Unlike the vast majority of Ugly God’s previous work, Bumps and Bruises has moments of legitimate introspection and reflection as the rapper navigates the landscape of fame and the pressure he fells to make it. He mentions more than once that he is a college drop out, taking a risk by dedicating himself to music and enjoying the fruits of his labor. Lyrically, the project does not divert much from what he has done before. We know Ugly God has money, we know he lives in luxury, we know he is going to find a way to have sex with all our girlfriends. Although he is an braggadocious as ever, Ugly God’s flow and the production on Bumps and Bruises does a lot to elevate his sound into something more mainstream and refined. The instrumentals are not complicated, sticking to his brand of mellow cloud rap that blew him up in the first. Although they are simple, they are not boring. Tracks like “Back to Basics,” “Right Now,” and “History” are slow and melodic, again leaning on an effortless beat coupled with a vibey synth pattern. Ugly God’s rap flow on these tracks is fairly laid back as well. He utilizes a fairly consistent “AA BB” rhyme scheme to carry him from song to song. 

There are moments on Bumps and Bruises where Ugly God explores a more aggressive style of rap and production. On tracks such as “One Two,” “What's Up” and “Batman,” Ugly God’s flow is quicker, louder, and more confrontational. On the instrumental end, the production is revved up and tense, as if the songs are trying to start a fight with the listener. We see this kind of style being embraced by several rappers within the Soundcloud subgenre today, most notably by the late artist XXXTentacion. Ugly God’s attempt to be tough on Bumps and Bruises are just ok. It is not that he completely misses the mark; songs like “One Two” and “Batman” are fun party songs with just enough energy to sustain themselves. However, they are not entirely believable. With his vocals cracking and strained during some parts of his delivery, I do not feel a sense of intimidation coming from Ugly God. Although I doubt that it was his intention to come off as an authentic gangster, he does not do enough with the sound in order to make it funny or interesting. Because of this, his more “aggressive” tracks come off as awkward instead of hard. 

Overall Bumps & Bruises is an alright project. It is clear that Ugly God no longer wants to just be a meme. Now that he is known within the music world, he is trying to be more professional with his approach to the craft. He has improved his production, his lyrics, and his flow. He is trying out different kinds of sounds and aesthetics, throwing things at the wall and seeing what sticks. Personally, I am most satisfied with Ugly God when he is at his most laid back. When he is not trying to be super outlandish is when he delivers his best performances. Bumps & Bruises is undoubtedly a step in the right direction for Ugly God. Always eclectic and unpredictable, he is surely an artist to keep an eye on.

Thanks Ugly God!

Favorite Tracks

Jaguar

Right Now 

Tell Me How You Feel (Feat. Wintertime) 

Rating: 6 

Listen to Bumps & Bruises here:

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Maxo Kream Remains the Rap Game’s Most Honest Storyteller on His Excellent New Album “Brandon Banks”

I’d say “Brandon Banks” is a top rap album of 2019, but Maxo Kream isn’t a rapper, he’s a f*****g grave digger

By Spencer Lobdell

Maxo Kream is the heart and soul of Houston rap. Hailing from the Alief specifically, the notorious trapper has been making waves since 2012 when he released his debut mixtape, Retro Card while he was still in high school. The project was followed up by a string of well-received tapes leading up to his critically acclaimed debut album Punken. The album was released independently in 2018 and boasted features such as Trippie Redd and 03 Greedo as well as solo cuts like “Bussdown” and fan favorite, “Grannies”.

Since the beginning, Maxo has hooked fans by telling hood stories with brutal honesty and locking into a unique flow that can be near hypnotic. Even when Kream is rapping about robbing and killing it’s hard to ever antagonize him because of how well he articulates his intentions as while as the circumstances that lead to his action. Maxo Kream’s music gives anyone who wasn’t raised in the trap a unique and important perspective that allows them to understand the lives of their fellow Americans far better.

The rollout to Maxo’s newest album was insanely fun to witness and showed early signs that Brandon Banks was going to be something special. It started in late January with the release of his excellent single “Meet Again”. Over the course of the five-minute song, Maxo locks into the instrumental and opens up about all of his homies that are either locked up or passed away with. His stories are captivating and every bar is masterfully crafted.

After a three month hiatus, he dropped the second single off the album titled “Still”. On the pulsing bop, Maxo announced that he had signed a record deal with RCA records for 1.5 million dollars making his forthcoming album his major-label debut.

A week later, the Texas trapper dropped his last single “She Live” which featured Houston hottie, Megan Thee Stallion. The song is so fun as the two rappers go back and forth over an infectious instrumental produced by TJ OSINULU. After the release of “She Live” the hay was in the barn for Maxo and Kream fans prepared to wait however long it would take to get the rappers highly anticipated new project.

On July 25th Maxo Kream released his major-label debut, Brandon Banks. The album runs for 48 minutes and is host to 15 tracks with impressive features from ScHoolboy Q and Travis Scott to Maxo’s blood brother KCG Josh. 

The aforementioned single “Meet Again” acts as the album’s intro and is a perfect way for Maxo to hook any listeners unfamiliar with his music onto Brandon Banks. 

The second track “Bissonnet” opens with a spoken anecdote from who we can only assume to be Brandon Banks. The voice condemns Maxo’s blue bandana and tells him to “take all his gangsta shit off and have a real discussion” with him. Maxo’s first four bars immediately following the narration is about his father leading us to infer that Brandon Banks is indeed Kream’s father. The song is enthralling, authentic, and dripping in southern swagger.

The third track “Change” is an easy standout on the excellent album in large part due to the exceptionally smooth instrumental which was actually derived from the same sample that fellow Alief emcee Travis Scott used on his Astroworld hit, “Yosemite”. On the track, Maxo dives into how his newfound wealth has changed his life. For Maxo, the only thing the money has changed is the size of his chain but for those around him, it totally warped the way they interact with Kream. While the money failed to alter his identity, he finds himself deeply affected by the murder of his little homie who told Maxo all he wanted was to be like him. The song is fantastic and a new sound we haven’t yet heard from the talented artist.

The fifth song “8 figures” is another standout on an album of keepers. The song again dives into the topic of wealth and how everyone wants to be rich but no one is ready to put in the work necessary. Kream uses the verses to specifically spotlight the years of work that it required him to acquire the bag he currently sits on. Halfway through the song, there is an epic beat switch that I believe to represent the wonderful moment when all the work finally paid off for Maxo and he began to make real money due to the fact that the song switches from a motivational song about the grind to a fun flex with a celebratory tone.

“3AM” features TDE rapper ScHoolboy Q and is absolutely sinister. The songs showcases the two menacing emcees robbing a house and flexing their lyrical prowess the entire time. Everything from the instrumental to Maxo’s tone is dark and foreshadowing and it's impossible to shake the fear that you might be next on Kream’s hitlist. ScHoolboy Q pulls up for the second verse and delivers an excellent offering with Q’s classic intensity, something that I would’ve liked to see more of on his most recent album CrasH Talk.

Perhaps the most eye-opening track on the album is the eleventh track “Prey 2 The Dope”. The song gives us a perspective into the life of a drug dealer and how threatening a potential drug drought can be. Maxo raps about how difficult it can be to get a real job when you’re raised in the hood leading to the only alternative source of income, dealing dope. This can be profitable but also unpredictable because if one’s supply of drugs gets cut off it could be life-threatening. These themes are articulated precisely by Maxo and the D.A. Doman instrumental makes this song absolutely addicting.

Two songs later we get the heart-felt “Brothers” which features Maxo’s real blood brother, KCG Josh. It must be a special sort of feeling to be able to give your brother a feature on your major-label debut. The song is simple and to the point: Maxo will ride for his brothers no matter what.

Maxo Kream’s Brandon Banks is undoubtedly his best work to date. The album is cohesive and sticks to its major themes of life in the hood and Maxo’s appreciation of his father. Spoken interjections from Maxo’s dad frequent the album and contribute to the overarching story that is the relationship between the two. It also seems that the more we understand the dynamic between Maxo and Brandon the more we understand Maxo Kream the artist and where he comes from. This context makes Kream’s hood stories all the more captivating and impactful. 

While the album is certainly cohesive this didn’t take away from his innate ability to craft bangers. The album is packed full with hard-hitting tracks that don’t miss a beat. Songs like “8 Figures”, “Drizzy Draco”, and “Murda Blocc (Feat. A$AP Ferg)” provide OG Maxo fans with exactly what hooked them on the Alief emcee years ago; brutally honest hood bars over rattling southern trap instrumentals. Brandon Banks shows terrific growth from the heart and soul of Houston and is one of the best offerings so far this year.

Favorite Tracks:

8 Figures

3AM (Feat. ScHoolboy Q)

Prey 2 The Dope

Rating: 8.5

Listen to Brandon Banks here:

Brandon Banks, an album by Maxo Kream on Spotify

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