After "Reject on Steroids", one of the best mixtapes of the year, in autumn the Buffalo, New York State rapper Conway the Machine released this tape with DJ Green Lantern. Daringer is the main producer of the CD, the other beatmakers are The Alchemist, Green Lantern, Statik Selektah and Boodeini. The credited guests are Benny and Elcamino.
The introductory track is signed by Chef Raekwon, uncredited guest in this spoken word intro over the sample of "Walk on By" by Isaac Hayes. The Machine freestyles over Half-a-Mill "Some Niggaz", produced by Norman Glover in 1998 for the movie soundtrack of "Belly", sick piano keys, obsessive loop, harsh drum, tight dirty underground New York rhythm. The next choice is another freestyle by Conway over a classic beat, maintaining Wu vibes. The disk credits [DJ] Green Lantern behind the keyboards, the rhythm is created by Havoc (credited to Mobb Deep and Schott Free) for the Mobb Deep masterful joint "Right Back at You" featuring Ghostface Killah, Raekwon and Big Noyd. The frees is an homage to Prodigy, died few months before the release of this tape, the emcee from Buffalo goes braggadocio with a velvety flow.
The track number four is "Bucket": splendid guitar licks and horns from the sample "Black November Day" by the the Filipino-born Spanish singer and actor Antonio Morales Barretto best known as Júnior. The Alchemist adds a slow drum and elements to build a dark rhythm, ideal soundscape for the rapping style of Conway, in a coke rap track that keeps his feet on the dusty streets of the city. The following choice is a lyrical exercise for the main emcee over the rhythm of 50 Cent's "Body Bag" invented by Alchemist. The next one is another freestyle, La Maquina spits bars over "You Ain't a Killer" by Big Pun. The musical carpet painted by Richard "Younglord" Frierson is a blessing, Conway celebrates himself and announces his upcoming mixtape "G.O.A.T.", legitimately one of the best mixtapes of the year and of the decade.
Daringer arrives for the first time after a dozen minutes at the joint number seven, to cement this project as one of the tightest records you can listen to in 2017 hip-hop. Sample from "Je T'aime, Moi Non Plus" by Raymond Lefèvre et son grand orchestre, gloomy vibes, raw bass line, beautiful strings, distorted sounds, slow drum, amazing soundscape for Conway the Machine and Benny the Butcher, both kill this drug rap track. "3 Bodies" is the eight pick of the mixtape. The sample is beautiful, "Тема Аэта", instrumental version of "Ария Аэта" from the last album of the Georgian music ensemble Iveria, already used by Alchemist for the beat of his "Yacht Rock - Side A". Fresh, lively, slick piano keys in loop, roaring bass in background, dusty midtempo drum, great essential modern rhythm by Statik Selektah, slow, silky delivery by Conway who follows the current and tears this drug rap cut with his calm, relaxed flow.
The next one is a homage to Wu-Tang Clan, in particular the author takes the rhythm of GZA's "4th Chamber" to drop some bars. Daringer comes back in "St Regis" to create a personal masterpiece for the Machine: wonderful tight female soul loop from Lynn Williams' "Don't Be Surprise" left to breathe in the background, downtempo drum, deep perfect bass line, the rhythm seems born for Westside Gunn. Conway wraps the beautiful beat invented by Daringer with gangsta and bravado bars, bringing home this solo with a clean, velvety, dope flow. Daringer stays behind the keys for the next tune, "Voices". The soundscape is spectral, ghostly, scary, thanks to a sample from J.A. Caesar's "Tenshoutan", distorted guitar licks, booming bass, skeletal drum, Conway spits literally surrounded by disturbing voices to represent the voices the author hears in his head, placing a joint in which he intertwines boasting and invectives against weak rappers.
The last beat of Daringer is reserved for "Nash". "Wanderlove" by Esther and Abi Ofarim is sampled to build the musical carpet of the twelfth piece, obsessive keyboards, hard midtempo drum, raw bass line, dark beat, the Buffalo emcee pulls out another drug rap tune. Boodeini produces "D Wade": rough bass, tight vocal loop, minimal drum, Elcamino delivers slowly, almost in spoken word, Conway completes this street joint. One of the last tracks is "Paranoid", Daringer sometimes is credited as producer. The trap rhythm is livable, pleasant hi-hats, minimal drum, dark beat, Conway runs well here. The tape is closed by "Carti", La Maquina goes with a fluid style over the beat of Playboi Carti's "Magnolia", trap rhythm created by Pi’erre Bourne.
"More Steroids" is another excellent tape in Griselda discography. Here Conway proves to live up to any production, trap ("Carti"), paranoid ("Paranoid"), oriental ("187th Chamber", the homage from "Liquid Swords", second work of GZA) or hardcore ("Killer" pays homage to Big Pun hit "You Ain't a Killer"). Raekwon (uncredited) opens the tape, inaugurating a lucky series of dark rhythms on which Conway drops raw bars. The tape remains at home Griselda with the guests Elcamino and Benny, the former is surprising, the latter a confirmation. In the second part of the tape the best cuts arrive: "Voices" and "Nash" boast dark and tense jazzy rhythms, with Conway following the mood of the tunes, while "3 Bodies" and "St Regis" are the absolute bangers of the record.
Rating: 7/10.
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