I’m DC born and raised, but matured in Maryland. When I was an MC I took pride in following local talent but that was a while a go. I don’t know anyone any more so I was surprised to see a tweet from Baltimore based Rome Cee letting me know his new EP was out, hinting at a review. This is a first for me, being asked to review an album. So, without biting my tongue or playing local favorites…

The first thing I noticed on Grey Area is that production quality is inconsistent. I’m not sure what it is, but every track comes off as missing something. Small, but something. Production quality aside, the intro track, The Dual, left me wanting. The track is short, so its peaks and valleys are brief but right when it begins to crescendo, it ends.

On Nightfall, Rome reminds me that he is an indie MC, not just underground, but Indie. Let me say that again, Rome is an indie MC. No where is that more clear than on this track. He says “I’m rain man, doing a african dance on my last chance to get signed on the streets. Bound to the beat like S&M. Wee hours of the morning when gusts come in, when the dust come in, I can tell that it’s dawn. On the following day, we gon’ do it again.” The production in this case only compliments the fact that both he and his music are raw, and ultimately are supposed to be.

Instrumentally For The People is right my alley. Lyrically, it’s pretty damn close too. Rome, without one feature, asks you to read between three lines at once on indirect analogies and metaphors such as “Like an old negro spiritual I experience death in the flesh, and in the physical, and now my tears are digital. I’m crying everyday, you can tell when it’s really real so if you buying can you pay?” as he likens his music birthed through pain to those of our ancestors; both ultimately shared for free.

After zoning out for a few tracks Bout to Blow caught my unfortunate attention. It’s a trap style record with a base heavy southern bounce. I almost feel as if this song like a few others were made specifically to cater to a regional audience. Wether that’s the case or not, I can’t promote the monotone deliveries, stagnant rhyme patterns and lackluster similes.

I’m a big fan of personification and metaphors, so I appreciate the play Rome and 810 present referring to music as their drug on Makes Me High. However I did notice a bit of inconsistency in the 2nd verse where the MC says screw the innuendo, I’m talking about weed here. Otherwise lines like “the studio is like the medicine man, and when I’m lit… what am I gonna say” over the classic sample gets a tepid thumbs up from me.

Honorable mention goes out to Moment to Shine. It screams DC, wait what was that? Rome’s from Baltimore? Sorry, I guess it was wishful thinking. The track is smooth and upbeat, and perfect to nod your head to. Like “For the People”, Virtue is featureless, and it seems like that’s when Rome is at his best. He has his most introspective and thoughtful lyrics when going solo.

Rome, channeling his inner Drake on Cold World delivers a semi auto tuned sing song rap. All the effects and gimmicks really distract from the lyrics and the song as a whole. It’s emo and too poorly produced and sung for my taste.

Rome makes up for Cold World with another top notch solo performance on Something Beyond. Dude spits hard on this track “… when your poor, getting caught in the allure is the norm. When the only warriors you think of is in the streets and the god fearing men was only cowards and they weak, back then, but now it’s deep.”

I was going to skip Koole, but had to point out that it features a Kendrick Lamar audible dopleganger. It’s the third and last of the “extremely inspired by someone else” series.

If your keeping track, Rome’s winning in my book. Less features and maybe better mastering would put this EP in an even better position. I recommend you give it a listen, a couple in fact. I haven’t written a review in months with reason. Passing over numerous commercial releases that I was looking forward to because honestly, I had nothing nice to say. Grey Area is good, not great, but very good.

Yeah, so I’m late on Locksmith. Dude’s been around the block on the underground but I haven’t been checking for him. I say that to say this, I’m not comparing this release to any previous work. Locksmith is an MC through and through. Which is why this album comes off even at its worst as a solid LP representing what mainstream hip hop is missing. Substance.

It took me getting a few tracks into the album to land on the equally instrumental and conflict heavy Stokely Camichael. No one is safe from the “verbal assault weapon” as he likens his peers to the coonery on Meet The Browns.

Easily offended? Then skip Silly Negro where the half black MC goes in on black america, Commander In Chief included. Arguably, rightfully so. Lock cites the media, religion and the youthful “do what I want” motto as the cause for lingering “Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome.”

There are two polar sides to the so called conscious MC. You’ve got the soft spoken and clever quips of Nas, Common and Talib. And then you have the harsh, aggressive tongue of Dead Prez and Immortal Technique. Lock finds himself nestled right in the middle. He speaks smartly but strongly, with a lot conviction in his words.

Lock directs his frustration with the music industry, or more specifically with terrestrial radio, at Mr Program Director via ”Instead of playing songs, you selling niggas commercials… That’s why I never listen to the radio.“ It’s a beef that’s as old as radio itself. Though I think it’s too focussed on a single point of failure the song is lyrically solid and on many levels transcends genres.

In 100 Millions Views he accurately points out that “There’s some east coast niggas that never heard of me“, it’s like he’s talking about me. In this song though, he kinda hints at a desire to be an attention whore. As if only he’d share more personal thoughts and random happenings in his life he could in fact have 100 million views.

In a world where people get more news and human interaction through Youtube, Facebook and Twitter Attention Whore takes a jab at the human desire for fame. “If everybody’s straight then I’m gay. If everybody’s gay then I’m straight. If everybody’s love then I’m hate. I don’t give a fuck if people talking about me. Long as them mother fuckers keep talking about me.”

Metabolic, he raps. That’s it. No message, no eloquent quip, just the bravado that you’d expect from a seasoned MC. Give me 3 sixteens and a dope beat. I suspect he channeled his inner battle MC on this track. I’m a big fan of substance but know that not all music or artists have to have any. This was a nice change of pace for Embedded.

Give it a listen and if it doesn’t deserve a place in your queue well above the likes of other recently released albums, turn your hip hop card in.

Outside is Childish’s way of introducing you to what his life was like—explaining how he got to where he is, why he thinks the way he thinks. He’s hoping to shatter your preconceptions. Successful or not, it comes off as self-pitying, feel-sorry-for-me whining. Like much of the album.

Bonfire is a lame attempt at battle rap, with Childish trying to define himself as being as lyrical and clever as he is animated. I doubt he expects his tough talk to be taken seriously, but I still find the over-the-top shock-rap rhymes delivered to be overcompensating for a piece of his personality that he claims to take great pride in. He’s a nice and talented guy, that doesn’t want to be judged for not being a stereotypical tough black guy.

I appreciate All The Shine  because he’s honest and being himself—rapping about dick jokes, his lack of fashion sense and being “lame.” That said, the song starts off stronger than it ends and whoever is singing on the hook—it might be Childish himself—needs to be choked.

Just when I was about to say this sing/rap record is going into the trash,Backpackers comes on. So far, this is as hip-hop as Childish can be.

If Childish really wanted to make a point and get people talking, the entire Camp album would sound more like Hold You Down. He says, “White kids get to wear whatever hat they want. When it comes to black kids one size fits all.” His subject matter is biting and honest. His cadence and flow are perfection, as he takes his time to say exactly how he really feels. Being black in America is hard. What’s harder? Being black and not letting that define you. Even when your own community judges you for not living up to a preconceived image.

Sunrise and The Power are decent closeout tracks for the album. Unfortunately, the standout tracks are drowned out by other mediocre ones. Not worth the money or time, in my book. Camp would be better released as a 5 song EP. It would be a solid well rounded extended play.

There should always be room for humor in hip hop. It’s nice change of pace from either the obsessively socially aware, excessively violent, embarrassingly ignorant, and impressively lyrical music that fills the very diverse genre that we call hip hop.

Call it want you will, I like Humorcore, but it’s no different than much of the music that came from the likes of the Bestie Boys and Biz Markie back in the day.