Album of the Year #22: Westside Gunn - Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Side B - HipHop |
- Album of the Year #22: Westside Gunn - Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Side B
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| Album of the Year #22: Westside Gunn - Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Side B Posted: 12 Jan 2022 07:28 AM PST Artist: Westside Gunn Album: Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Side B Listen: Background by u/LthePerry02 Westside Gunn, born Alvin Lamar Worthy, is someone who's impact really speaks for itself. Along with his brother Conway The Machine and their cousin Benny The Butcher, the three are the fundamental artists of Griselda Records. Each boast their own unique style and influences, and along with their in-house producer Daringer, the three and their label have helped fund a revitalization of dirty and grimy street raps. Perhaps you've noticed one of your favourite rappers going harder on the pure spitting lately. Perhaps you've seen more rap veterans returning to the game as of late. The impact of Griselda is something that will likely continue to expand, and influence the sound of the rap game for years to come. Westside Gunn has put out more projects than most over the past few years, but the Hitler Wears Hermes series are what arguably define him best. Aiming to combine grime and street life with luxury and class, the Hitler tapes have consistently remained just that. Soulful yet grimy. Beautiful yet violent. Keep in mind, Gunn has stated that he's never set out to be the best on the mic like Conway or Benny. Rather, he aims to curate, bringing in wide amounts of features both mainstream and underground, and sets out to create a new vibe with each project. Let's bring it back to the burgeoning popularity of Westside Gunn and his label. Just this year, Gunn and Conway made a showing on Kanye's DONDA, with Gunn even making an appearance at the third and final of Ye's now iconic listening events. Gunn also linked up with Travis Scott for a heavily teased song, "LOST FOREVER", the release of which is very much in the air right now. Tyler The Creator's Call Me If You Get Lost was just nominated for a Grammy, and Tyler has gone on record to say that Gunn was a massive influence on the record, inspiring him to go back to his rapping roots. This past year, Gunn has made big moves within his own label, signing new artists such as Jay Worthy and Rome Streetz. He also made amends with Mach-Hommy after a few years of tense silence between the two, and executive produced Mach's Pray For Haiti, a stunning and triumphant body of work that acted as Mach's return to Griselda Records. With this continually growing popularity, the "Hitler" series was somewhat of an elephant in the room. As Gunn stated, he knew he couldn't continue with the much questioned title, and needed to finally bring the HWH series to an end. Which brings us to Hitler Wears Hermes 8, alternatively titled Sincerely, Adolf. Having an immensely prolific year in 2020, Westside took an entire year off after his Shady Records debut, WHO MADE THE SUNSHINE, a project that was met with relatively lukewarm reviews, especially fan wise. It got people thinking, would West come through with a more fleshed out product as a result? Indeed, Westside Gunn made the pretty unexpected announcement that HWH8 would be a double album, initially slated for an 8/20 release. The rollout was certainly a peculiar one. Gunn missed the 8/20 date on account of him wanting to record more songs, which rather upset many fans. Cue a week later, and rather than the full double LP, we are given what Gunn branded as "Side A", the first half of the entire project. The first half was met with positive reviews, though some were taken aback by the abundance of features and the small variety of producers. Later that week, Gunn would hop on Bars-I-95 and explain that the B-Side would not only be much longer, but way better than Side A. Slated for 9/3, and then pushed to 9/10, Gunn revealed that a featured artist wanted in on Side B, and delayed it once again because of that. After yet another week, West took to socials to reveal the feature and producer lists, immediately indicating something much larger than Side A, boasting much bigger names all around. A week goes by, and Side B finally drops. Even compared to the first instalment, Side B was met with very heavy acclaim, generally agreed as being superior to Side A. It was a messy rollout without a doubt, but the payoff made things all the worthwhile. Review by u/LthePerry02 It's important to remember that this is the second half of a whole 33 track long album, originally meant to drop in tandem with Side A and meant to be listed to as such. It was recorded at the same time, and as such, one wouldn't necessarily expect many differences between the two sides, but I feel there are several, intentional or not. Side B is definitely a more fleshed out collection of tracks, with a considerably larger variety in sounds and beats. Some of the most progressive production on any Gunn project can be found here, and the songs generally feel more "complete". This can of course, be attributed to the huge producer and feature lineup, including legends on the boards like Madlib, Alchemist, and DJ Green Lantern, as well as ones on the mic like AZ and 2 Chainz. I'm not exactly here to compare the two sides though, so that's not how I'll review this. In a similar fashion to its A-Side, the record comes out of the gate with two intro tracks. The first, a brief instrumental introlude, named after the late Mr. Brodie Lee, who passed away in late 2020. It's dark and intense, even despite its short run, and acts as a sinister tone setter. Following this however, is the show stoppingly gorgeous "End How You Start"". This track boasts yet another sagely appearance from AA Rashid, but it's truly King JVYB who makes this one special, bringing some of the most beautiful and wistful production across the entire two sides. Listening to the double LP front to back, this is a moment that really establishes the "finale" of it all. It's triumphant, blissful, and assuring all at once, and Westside Gunn himself hasn't even had to speak a single word yet. Given how dramatic of a prelude the records been given, it's only fitting that a true all-timer be the first real song, the monstrous "Hell On Earth 2". Assembling the classic trifecta of West, Benny, and Conway, the three go ballistic with no breaks in between, featuring some of the three's best verses in a while. Produced by up and comer Sovren, the beat is a very noticeable switch up in the Hitler 8 tracklist, featuring some of the most energetic and progressive production on any WSG song, laced with eerie vocal chants and neck breaking snares. As the title would give away, there is indeed a palpable Havoc influence on the beat. It's an immediate difference from the loop centric beats on Side A. "Free Kutter" is a jazzy and inspirational ode dedicated to a close friend of West and Conway's who was locked up in late 2020. With Vine kid-turned-beatmaker Jay Versace on the boards, the beat is sunny and bouncy, definitely some of Versace's most impressive work thus far. A Jay of another moniker is on here as well, the elusive and occasionally controversial Jay Electronica. Holding a very strong argument for Elec's best guest verse of the year, he comes through with among the most memorable bars on the album, throwing in some witty in-house references to the Griselda team. It truly feels like a real and earnest collab between two rappers you never knew you needed to hear together. One of the undeniable standouts has got to be "Celine Dion". Featuring an underground all-star lineup, it's exactly what I'd show someone as an example of Gunn's immaculate curation skills. The song opens with a luxurious and warm loop from Denny Laflare laced with cinematic strings and a very dirty bassline. It's the type of beat you'd imagine Tek and Steele murking back in '95. Heem of Benny's B$F label slides in with an effortlessly slick verse, featuring some very brutal depictions of street life and gang mentality. However, this smooth cypher-esque tune only turns out to be the first slice of what's to come in this song. Following an audio clip of a classic Jerry Lawler promo, a second beat crashes through, one of the most ghoulish beats I've heard in a while. Featuring twinkly keys, whistling chants and absolutely decimating bass, Gunn pops through again to provide a surprisingly catchy chorus bit while Flee Lord delivers an absolutely vile guest verse, probably my favourite on the entire album. If any beat was made for a specific rapper to murder, it's Flee Delgado on here. This entire song effortlessly shows off everything Westside Gunn does perfectly, and I think it's one of his most defining songs to date. Things don't bother to slow down with the bombastic "Forest Lawn". With both hook and verse, Gunn delivers one of his most unhinged and wild performances ever here. Featuring hilarious bar after adlib after vocal inflection, he manages to slide in some of the sickest flows I've ever heard from him, riding the beat like a titan. Continuing the stretch of his Griselda collabs, 2 Chainz hops on with Gunn for the first time, outdoing his joints with Benny and Conway by a mile in my opinion. Griselda's first lady Armani Caesar goes third, with slick bars about high fashion and pimp talk that I've come to seriously dig her for. "RIP Bergdorf" is an understated yet effortlessly suave moment on the album, with the unmissable duo of Mach-Hommy and Nicholas Craven showing up. Even with Craven's smooth and dusky vocal sample chops flowing over each other like butter, it's really West and Mach's chemistry here that steals the show, resulting in one of the most laser-focused tracks here. The two bounce back and forth, with countless references to designers and clothing. What's there to go wrong? Nearing the closing of the record, things take a turn of direction, going into surprisingly introspective territory for Gunn. "Munch" is perhaps my favourite track here. Conductor Williams yet again blew my mind here, with an absolutely stunning and surreal soundscape featuring string and choir chops, while still throwing his signature warbled distortion into the mix. It sounds like a disjointed memory, like thinking back to Christmas when you were a kid. Gunn sounds honest and very humanized over it, bringing up locked up friends and the late MF DOOM. Tiona D delivers some beautiful vocal harmonies towards the backend, and Conductor's tag attempting to shout its way through his production gives me chills every single time. "99 Avirex" is an earnest spot as well, with Stove God Cooks making his seventh and final appearance across both sides on the chorus. It's possibly one of the best hooks of the year, being extremely enigmatic, yet honest and meaningful. AZ hasn't lost a step either, delivering a thoughtful verse with some very potent rhymes. "Big AL" is a melancholic survivor's guilt tale, featuring understated boom-bap drums and a weepy piano loop from Denny Laflare. Rome Streetz discusses how far he's come with rapping, and the sacrifices he's made to achieve such heights. Gunn reflects upon family and friends that he's lost lately, wishing that no one listening has to endure the challenges he's experienced in life. It's a beautiful and somber close to the record, certainly different than what would usually close out a Gunn album. It's just one of many things that I think separates HWH8 Side B from his discography, truly making it a standout. Now, I will address a few qualms I have, though they are very much scarce. Gunn and Tyler certainly show out on "The Fly Who Couldn't Fly Straight", but I think this track really disrupts the introspective momentum that begins with "Munch". It should've been placed elsewhere on the record. I was very excited to see Madlib here, but I honestly think it's one of his weakest showings in years, using an already well-known sample that's quite obscured by some poor mixing and annoying dialogue samples. "Survivor Series 95" has one of my favourite beats here, and Larry June has one of my favourite features, but I don't particularly think TF and Jay Worthy were that entertaining, especially Worthy in how long his verse was. I'll usually skip straight from Gunn's part to Larry's. However, these are all minuscule issues I have with what I'd consider my favourite Westside Gunn project to date. I think more than any work before, this project blends grit and luxury the best, with more finessed rapping and even more cinematic production to enhance that. It's very evident in the rapping, the production, and the overall experience that Gunn took his time with this one to make it special and a fitting ending to the Hitler Wears Hermes series, well deserving of the "finale" title. Favourite Bars by u/LthePerry02 >>Heard he got max in the supermax, word is I'm diesel like Luger, turned one to three and yelled "hallelujah!" - "Hell On Earth, Pt. 2" >>"Fly fashion rebels fucking on your fiancé, living fast for the funds, did stickups with Andre" - Rome Streetz on "Eddie Kingston" >>"Jay Elec-griselda done finally entered the chat, with that "skrrt, doot doot doot doot" all over the track" - Jay Electronica on "Free Kutter" >>"Told my mama that I loved her, loading up my rifle" - Heem on "Celine Dion" >>"Cloe was watching outside with the window agape, creaming, she made Thierry spray Angel on semen" - Mach-Hommy on "RIP Bergdorf" >>"Imma buy guns for you suckers, imma buy more Johnny Dang, 200 rounds, watch that thing hang" - Forest Lawn >>"They love my album like I died" - Stove God Cook$ on Ostertag >>"Why God so precise with firearms? Now you lying dying in your baby mama arms" - Why I Do Em Like That >>"I blew the tires out then hopped out like leapfrog" - Tyler, The Creator on "The Fly Who Couldn't Fly Straight" Discussion Points Where does Side B rank for you in the Hitler Wears Hermes series? Do you think the project served as a worthy conclusion to such a long running series? Is a ninth instalment due? Would you have preferred the entire 33 track project dropping altogether? Or do you think Westside Gunn made the right move in the end by splitting it up? Which feature was your favourite? Did you think anyone underperformed? Who would you like to see Westside Gunn executive produce for in the future? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 12 Jan 2022 12:07 PM PST Here's what I can tell: Young Thug, Gunna, and Toosie booked a private plane to NY for a show A flight attendant claimed that one of them disrespected her It is unclear what happened, Young Thug claims that none of the artists know who is at fault or what they did to disrespect her The pilots made the decision to ground the plane Young Thug may miss concert, claims to have booked a new flight. Thug accused many of the airline staff of racism Thug read out his phone number on IG live lmaooo Can someone please tell me wtf the 🅿️ emoji means? Drake in the chat telling Thug that they can take a new plane Live is muted, probably because he leaked his own phone number [link] [comments] |
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| Daily Discussion Thread 01/12/2022 Posted: 12 Jan 2022 06:33 AM PST Welcome to the /r/hiphopheads daily discussion thread! This thread is for:
Do not create a separate self post for these types of discussions outside of this thread - if you do, your post will be removed, as stated in the guidelines. Weekly/Monthly Threads Other ways to interact There are a number of other ways to interact with other members of HHH:
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