Meyhem Lauren and DJ Muggs have set the streets ablaze with the destined-to-be underrated Gems From The Equinox. If you like Raekwon, Ghostface, Action Bronson, Sean Price, Westside Gunn, or Conway, you should definitely add this one to your playlist. The eleven song project features guest appearances from the aforementioned Conway, the late Sean Price, Roc Marciano, Action Bronsolinio, B-Real, Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire, Benny The Butcher, andhologram. In other words, you already know you're in for thirty-two minutes of raw, East coast hip-hop, with plenty of emphasis on dope lyricism and spectacular turn-of-phrase.
Meyhem Lauren drops some murderous bars, while never being above a little humor, not unlike his friend and collaborator Action Bronson. Together, the pair turn in some truly phenomenal bars, especially on the hilarious "Szechuan Peppercorns." "Naked knife fights in the bath house in Turkey, dipped the razor blade in herpes," raps Bronson, living out his own "Eastern Promises" fantasies. On "Redrum," Lauren takes to the bass-driven sample like a beast, spitting "fuck around catch a hollow tip heart attack, let the chrome turn you right to an artifact." Damn.
As for the production, Muggs comes through with some dope instrumentals, lacing Lauren with a nice array of old-school samples. The vibe tends to favor live instrumentation, with sixties and seventies era overdriven guitars, distorted drum kits, and smooth basslines. There are also some nice nostalgic moments, especially on the album's second track "Street Religion," which finds a 2017 flip on Outkast's "2 Dope Boyz In A Cadillac." "The calculator's good, my scale is calibrated, I'm still a wolf look at the work and then I salivated," raps Lauren. "Know a couple Rambos that hop out Lambos, I ain't really bout that I'm good with my hand throws." Steam Gems From The Equinox now, and support the musical unity of Meyhem Lauren and DJ Muggs.