Killarmy's fourth album, who expected it? It comes out in spring 2020. Twenty-three years after the debut, nineteen after the last album, released in 2001. The cover shows the group's return to full form, military uniforms, explosions, machine guns, guns everywhere, bodies that continue to fall under the blows of our men, who when they don't kill with bullets draw their swords, keeping the strong Wu symbolism alive. A helicopter stands out in the sky, lightning and thunderbolts are raining down, above is the title, a clear reference to the Kubrick film to which the group clung to in their first CD in 1997, then 9th Prince announced as producer. Top left, the cover changes depending on the edition: in this one for example there is the name of the label that publishes the project in red, the name of the group in black and a tank underneath. In other editions you can find the 9th Prince label in white and the historic Killarmy logo together with the group's name, above the Wu-Tang logo in black.
A lot has happened and even the group is no longer the same. Dom Pachino left Killarmy, in fact the cover portrays only five of the six original elements. Killa Sin is still a member of the group (his name appears on one of the covers, together with those of the other four rappers), but due to the fact that he's in prison, there are no contributions from him in this new short CD. 4th Disciple has distanced itself from the group — none of the six members of KIllarmy are present on his new album "The Algorythm", his solo debut, released a few months after this same LP — and doesn't produce any songs, replaced by the group's leader 9th Prince, here in the role of first rapper and first producer.
The four remaining emcees don't feel like completing an album alone and call together a dozen guests. From the Wu-Tang Killa Beez universe come Cappadonna of Wu-Tang Clan, 60 Second Assassin, Killah Priest & Prodigal Sunn of Sunz of Man, Timbo King of Royal Fam, William Cooper of Black Market Militia, Ras Kass of The Four Horsemen, The Reverend William Burk of Achozen and brothers Willie the Kid & La the Darkman. The other guests are El Camino, Planet Asia, Stic of dead prez, Masta Ace and Ill Bill.
1. "The Virus (intro)"
Skit.
2. "Combat Neurosis" (Kinetic & 9th Prince ft. El Camino)
After the skit, Kinetic aka Beretta 9 opens the new Killarmy album on an excellent energetic boom bap jazzy, with syncopated and minimal drum machine, organ in the background and female sample looped tight. It follows the smooth and raw delivery of Elcamino, before the third syncopated verse of 9th Prince. Only half of the current members of the group participate in the track.
3. "Cinema Sinister" (Islord ft. William Cooper & Willie the Kid)
This choice presents a splendid dark rhythm consisting of a skinny and regular boom bap and organ in the background: Islord he [is left] alone to represent the entire Killarmy with two guests who play in a league in which the boy cannot join. Islord doesn't care about the beat and gives meaningless bars (it would make sense if they had added the beat after that he recorded his verse in another moment), the guests William Cooper of Black Market Militia and Willie the Kid do better, despite the track is still a little average, this downtempo drum is weak.
4. "Mediterranean Flow" (Shogun, Kinetic & 9th Prince ft. Cappadonna & The Reverend William Burk)
The fourth choice manages to stand out from mediocrity, which is quite depressing for an album made by Killa Beez: Shogun, Kinetic and 9th Prince welcome Cappadonna of Wu-Tang Clan & Rev Burk of Achozen, longtime affiliate of the formation of Shaolin origin. 9th Prince, who is also the main producer of this effort, brings out a heavy and hardcore rhythm that still sounds jazzy with dark piano looped in the background and chopped female soul sample, Shogun is the best by far, well Kinetic, one of the positive aspects of the song is that it doesn't include hooks.
This is the unique track with a contribute by a member of the Wu-Tang Clan, Cappadonna, who wasn't an official member of the Staten Island group the last time Killarmy released a studio album. Over the course of the four albums released, the group had guests from the Clan Masta Killa (in "Silent Weapons for Quiet Wars", 1997), U-God (in "Fear, Love & War") and now Cappadonna. Plus, this is the closest cut to having Killarmy veterans, the few remaining, and it's alongside two guests. It also coincides with Kinetic's last presence on the record, for whatever reason.
5. "Rusty Dangs" (9th Prince ft. Planet Asia & Ras Kass)
Planet Asia & Ras Kass arrive on the next one to help a group butchered and in evident difficulty: the first has so many joints realized together with the Wu-Tang guys and affiliates over the last fifteen years that he can afford to make a fairly solid album ("Wu Planet", 2019), while the second is also a historic collaborator of Wu-Tang Killa Beez, being also a member of the group created by Killah Priest The Four Horsemen. Over the rhythm of 9th Prince, energetic boom bap with skinny drum machine and female soulful sample looped tight in the background, the same producer provides a rough verse, while the guests dominate the track. Ras Kass is more comfortable than Planet Asia here.
6. "Just Like Prison" (Islord, Shogun & 9th Prince ft. Stic)
Islord returns to "Just Like Prison", together with Shogun, 9th Prince and stic.man of dead prez: skit, then boom bap jazzy with skinny and syncopated drum machine, resonates like tribal bongos, even the sample seems tribal (female soulful looped tight in the background), here too Islord decides to completely ignore the rhythm and go a little randomly straight forward, he doesn't care about the beat. Shogun brings out a regular and syncopated delivery, which seems to compensate for the previous bars, then stic.man with a rough style and 9th Prince to close the games.
7. "Star Wars" (Shogun & 9th Prince ft. Masta Ace & Timbo King)
Killarmy, Royal Fam and Masta Ace in the seventh track of the new Killarmy disk. Good Shogun initial crisp delivery on this boom bap jazzy: syncopated and minimal drum machine, piano sample in the background, less well 9th Prince, rough, cumbersome; Timbo King comes to help the cut, closes a smoothness performance provided by Master Ace.
8. "The Shootout Pt. 2" (Shogun, Islord, 9th Prince ft. La the Darkman)
The Darkman is the only guest of the eighth song, overwhelming the simple rhythm with a heavy, determined, flowing and syncopated delivery while the others (Shogun, Islord & 9th Prince) are practically watching.
9. "Wake Up Pt. 2" (9th Prince ft. 60 Second Assassin, Ill Bill & Killah Priest)
9th Prince is alone with two guys from Sunz of Man and Ill Bill in this apocryphal sequel to one of the best tracks from their debut, and in general from their entire discography. Thanks to a different production, Beast's work after eight consecutive 9th Prince rhythms, we get to another highlights, "Wake Up Pt. II": excellent rhythm, splendid jazzy boom bap with piano dope, minimal syncopated drum machine, samples by The Allen Toussaint Orchestra's "Theme From the Incredible Hulk" which recalls the one used in "Wake Up", rough delivery of 9th Prince who opens the track, inside Ill Bill kills the beat with a syncopated, hardcore, aggressive flow, then Killah Priest tries to stay in the wake with a syncopated verse, closes 60 Second Assassin with a cumbersome verse, decent.
10. "Musical Terrorist" (9th Prince, Shogun & Islord)
The title loudly shouts 'Dom Pachino', but the boy isn't there. This is also the only guestless piece of this edition, unfortunately also one of the weakest, work of 9th Prince, Shogun & Islord: the latter comes out of this album as one of the main protagonists, at the end of the day.
11. "Living Legends" (Shogun ft. Prodigal Sunn)
While the other kids are going home, they decide to leave the keys with Shogun and order him to lock up when he finishes everything. Shogun therefore remains alone to welcome the last guest of the album, the inevitable Prodigal Sunn, a constant presence of quality in the Wu-Tang Killa Beez albums.
Prodigal Sunn, longtime affiliate of Wu-Tang and protagonist of the Killarmy cousin group Sunz of Man, has the honor of being able to close a Killarmy record: splendid boom bap jazzy made by 9th Prince with a skinny and minimal drum machine, good clear smooth delivery by Shogun, then P Sunn with a slow and irregular delivery, closes Sergeant Hartman directly from "Full Metal Jacket" (1987; from which the title of this CD derives) while pursuing Pvt. Cowboy.
Final Thoughts
First Killarmy album to bring together Sunz of Man, Royal Fam and Wu-Tang Clan. It's therefore a historic album in its own small way, relying on an extraordinary quantity of guests compared both to their past efforts and to the running time, just over half an hour. 9th Prince is the main performer of the album with 8 appearances on 11 tracks, followed by Shogun (6), Islord (4) and Kinetic (2). Shogun returns to being the second most listened to rapper on a Killarmy album after his debut, then he was the one with fewer minutes, less even than Killa Sin.
Almost twenty years after the release of their latest effort, Killarmy are back in a half reunion album, its number four of their long and solid career. Without Killa Sin (in prison), Dom Pachino (kind of problems with 9th Prince) and 4th Disciple, the group remains without producer and without their two best performers: the disc would be all on the shoulders of Shogun (who easily ends up being the best in this edition), if it weren't for the industrial quantity of guests brought to drop bars in this effort. It's a cohesive, tight and honest effort from the boys and boasts robust production created by 9th Prince that manages to recreate the group's signature sound.
Highlights: "Combat Neurosis", "Mediterranean Flow", "Wake Up Pt. II", "Living Legends".
Rating: 6.5/10.
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