Debut record for Simon John Stoker aka D-Cypha, who made an album-producer combining Greek and American rappers: produced entirely by D-Cypha, along with some rhythm co-produced with Empne, the album features collaborations by Benny & Conway of Griselda, Bronze Nazareth of Wisemen, Cappadonna of Wu-Tang Clan, Tragedy Khadafi, Blaq Poet, Heltah Skeltah, Ruste Juxx, Craig G & Kool G Rap of Juice Crew, Sadat X of Brand Nubian, Jadakiss of LOX, Busta Rhymes and Solomon Childs, of School of the Gifted.
The tape opens with a spoken skit on raw lo-fi rhythm, so the second track immediately boasts the presence of Griselda's rappers: boom bap jazzy midtempo, slow pounding drum, honest samples, scratches, then Benny the Butcher. The MC delivers with a smooth and hardcore weighted slow style, while Conway the Machine has a smooth and effortless flow; the track is closed by Kanon, a Greek rapper who delivers hardcore bars with a quick inspired style. "Munsterz" has a disturbing and dystopian rhythm, dark boom bap with Silenthillian vibes, slow pounding midtempo drum and dark samples: UG & Phantasm deliver while keeping the dark vibes of the track, perfect music carpet. The fourth track boasts a boom bap with excellent string samples, hard and slow drum pounding, perfect Wu vibes: Bronze Nazareth hardcore slow syncopated delivery, then follows Taki Tsan. Don Cappachino tackles the cut with a relaxed, raw, slow and regular delivery style.
"5 Fingers of Death" has a jazzy production with skeletal drum, great sample of a few elegant piano keys, Tragedy Khadafi and Blaq Poet deliver with a smooth, fluid and hardcore style, closes El da Sensei, with a slow and regular flow. The sixth song is a posse with Sean Price, Rockness Monsta, Ruste Juxx and XL the Beast: D-Cypha delivers a jazzy boom bap with soulful male samples and light guitar riffs, Sean P delivers bars with a smooth dope style, Rock well and velvet too, Juxx and XL complete the track. An instrumental choice follows that divides the project in two sections. "Fake Emcees" features a jazzy rhythm with vibrant eclectic drum and dark sample: Craig G offers bars with a smooth, fast and hardcore style, MC Yinka has a good smooth and fast flow, Sadat X is the ultimate rapper and delivers with a slow and aggressive rapping. A section of three tracks follows which lowers the overall quality of the project slightly, they all feel like unnecessary choices that stretch the LP. Jazzy boom bap, slow pounding hard drum, honest sample, Smoothe da Hustler, MC Juice and Thytis spit bars for four minutes with decent regular style.
"Esoteric Darkness" features another posse with lesser known performers than the others, two Greek rappers, Katahanas and Empne, and Cella Dwellas' UG, on a generic production. A hard, pounding and slow drum machine marks beat number eleven, jazzy boom bap with frantic dark sample that is suited to Pacewon's raw and dirty delivery, while the other performers don't stand out. "Some Gangster Shit" restores order: jazzy boom bap, slow and pounding hard drum, dark sample, slow raw syncopated delivery of Xarmanis, Greek rapper who anticipates the MC of the Juice Crew. Hook with several samples including some lines from the latest bars delivered by AZ in "Life's a Bitch", then G Rap, slow, effortlessly flowing, still dope. It closes Katahanas with a dirty, rough, hardcore delivery style. "My Brothers Keeper" is the latest posse track of the edition: jazzy boom bap, slow pounding drum machine, good sample, Jadakiss's slow velvet syncopated delivery, hook, Busta's slow syncopated delivery, then the album is closed by Solomon Childs, with a slow and regular style.
About 50 minutes album consisting of 13 cuts, most of which are quite solid. Some aren't on the same level and could have been left out, but I understand that it's a good showcase for Greek rap talents. It's not part of the final selection "Stone Cold", however: originally, it's the track number two. D-Cypha creates a boom bap that suffers from a messy mix, vibrant drum, honest sample, there's G Rap with his flowing style and Vinnie Paz, who comes with an aggressive, dirty, raw and hardcore style. Either way, with the likes of Griselda, Killa Beez, Heltah Skeltah, Juice Crew, Brand Nubian and LOX, East Coast fans might find it an interesting listen.
Highlights: "Represent", "O.G.", "5 Fingers of Death", "Venomous", "Some Gangster Shit", "My Brothers Keeper".
Rating: 7.3/10.
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