Ruffnation Music US Vinilo y CD

Review: Few people chuck bars like Public Enemy legend Chuck D chucks bars. Though he is in the autumn of his career, this new record proves he has still got the skills to pay the bills. It finds him become Mistachuck and pay homage to the great American pastime of baseball as he spits over a collection of tunes that were first penned as Major League Baseball TV promos. We Wreck Stadiums doffs its b-ball cap to greats of the game past and present and salutes the impact they have had on the game with hip-hop Hall of Famers Chuck, DMC, and Rahiem & Kidd Creole of The Furious Five all featuring.

Review: Mike Flips and Seize join forces here for an album that draws on the magic of classic boom bap. Life Cycles is brought to life with the dexterous rhymes of the talented Outsiders Syndicate MC Nord1kone and makes for an introspective trip that both looks to the past, but also the future. There are some cultured guest spots along the way too from El Da Sensei of the Artifacts crew as well as another Outsiders Syndicate MC in The I.M.F. Arriving on translucent blue vinyl this is a perfect record for those with a love of the old school but who like a little new school freshness with their beats.

Review: The first Wu-Tang release to feature all nine living members in over a decade, this new full-length is a reminder that when aligned, the Staten Island collective still operate on a level of their own. The production is raw and cinematic — heavy with martial arts samples, bassline grime and dusty soul flips — while the verses come sharp, tight and unshowy. No gimmicks, just business. ‘Sucker Free City’ and ‘Mandingo’ come in swinging, full of tight drum programming and rugged, overlapping verses. ‘Roar Of The Lion’ and ‘Shaoilin Vs Lama’ lean into the classic kung-fu mythology, with a sense of pace that recalls their earliest work. ‘Cleopatra Jones’ and ‘Dolemite’ are funk-fuelled standouts, where the crew’s storytelling and timing land in full form. ‘Let’s Do It Again’ and ‘Trouble-Man’ close with a tone of reflection that cuts through the grime. It’s a new release, but also a reunion that doesn’t feel like a legacy act — more like a sharpened return. No attempt to modernise, no need to. Just nine distinct voices, still bouncing off each other with control and character. A serious addition to the catalogue — and one for the heads.