ALBUM REVIEWS
We’re back.
After eight years, Griselda’s tag team duo Westside Gunn and Conway The Machine unearth the second installment of the duo’s Hall & Nash series produced by The Alchemist.
Locked in at 9 tracks, Hall & Nash 2: The Original Version begins with the “Introduction” followed by “Ray Mysterio”, and the lone collaboration “Fork In The Pot” featuring ScHoolboy Q. The long-awaited sequel continues on with “Michelangelo, “94 Ghost Shit”, “Pete VS. Andre”, “Fuck & Get High”, “Judas”, and finally the closing and title-track, “Hall & Nash 2”.
The Alchemist says, “When I first linked with @westsidegunn & @whoisconway the original plan was to do a Hall & Nash 2 tape. From the first day in the lab, I knew I needed these guys on my beats more than they needed my beats. The shit was coming out crazy, they linked with @groovyq one day at my spot and made one, we knew we had something good.”
He continues, “While we were finishing the project, they signed their deal with Shady. We ended up changing the plan to drop H&N2, & over time used some of the songs for different things, but a handful of songs never came out, & the original version of the album was never released.” The Alchemist also mentions an official version is in the horizon. “Next year me @daringer_ Wes & Conway already cooking an official HALL & NASH 2 .
ALBUM REVIEWS
2024 has been a big year for Lip Critic, who are well on their way to becoming one of the next great New York bands. The quartet – comprising Bret Kaser, Connor Kleitz, Daniel Eberle and Ilan Natter – have spent the past half-decade building a loyal and sizeable hometown following that has, in recent months, caught the attention of music fans across the other side of the Atlantic.
Lip Critic make music that is both freewheeling and fun – with a thrillingly dark, Frankenstein-esque edge to their sound and aesthetic. They have played alongside rappers, hardcore bands and dance acts – and toured with IDLES and Geese – with NME describing their live show as “a pulsating rush of energy” in a five-star review last November. “You never know what sound is going to pop up next – our focus is to not get pinned down into a set of aesthetics, but to stay nimble” Kaser previously told us.
Opener ‘It’s The Magic’ bursts into life with a set of heavy 808s followed by contrasting rhythms. “I told them take their grace / And send it where it came / Only the generous get to live another day,” Kaser sings, evoking a sense of danger. ‘The Heart’ follows, diving headfirst dives into skittish, almost anxiety-inducing drum patterns – it’s wild and brilliantly unnerving.
’Bork Pelly (featuring Gösh and ID.Sus)’ is a perfect fusion of The Prodigy and ’90s hip-hop influences. ‘Death Lurking’ (featuring Izzy Da Fonseca), meanwhile, offers a change of pace, an atmospheric number that builds into a skippy beat fit for headbanging.
Throughout ‘Hex Dealer’, Lip Critic prove why they are the band of the moment. A full-on, disruptive force emerging from their city’s underground scene – their music rides high on a bolt of infectious energy.
