Rome Streetz is a 35 year old MC from New York who broke out in 2016 off his debut mixtape I Been Thru Mad Shit. This was followed up by a plethora of projects, most notably the Noise Kandy tetralogy & Headcrack. Last year however was probably his biggest one yet, as he dropped some of the best work of his career from the DJ Muggs-produced Death & the Magician or the Futurewave-produced Razor’s Edge to the Ransom-assisted collab effort Coup de Grâce & the Griselda Records deal that followed. Fast forward a little over 7 months later, Royalz is being brought into the picture to produce Rome’s 7th album from front to back.
After the “Pure Crystal” intro, the first song “Peep the Status” truly kicks the album off on a bluesy note with Rome talking about being cut from a different cloth whereas the Eto-assisted “Wise Guys” mixes some dusty drums & a guitar with both MCs getting in their mafioso bag. The title track with al.divino works in these creepy piano melodies describing the hustler life just before “Versace Drip” laces some horns saying he’s all about the checks.
Meanwhile on “High Noon”, we have Rim accompanying Rome on top of an orchestral beat asking what the move is leading into “Lexus Coupe” fusing pianos & a guitar together talking about forever being on a mission for the loot. “Xo” then incorporates a vocal sample expressing his eternal love for the paper, but then Ty Farris comes into the picture for the rock-tinged “Rebel Forces” talking about how losing ain’t an option for them.
The song “Empire State Haze” returns to a more symphonic sound saying he’s trying to touch $1M while the penultimate track “Walter White” eerily proclaims that everything he spits is biohazardous whilst paying homage to the main character of one of the greatest TV shows ever made. “Unfamiliar Projects” closes out the album with a crooning loop & Rome telling the story of a man who later shoots someone in the elevator after fucking a bitch the night prior.
Given that he’s got another album with Muggs on the way along with his Griselda debut & one fully produced by Big Ghost Ltd. on the way, Pyrex Pot Poetry is a great effort to hold us over until then. Royalz continues to reveal himself as one of the best producers out of Australia currently & Rome’s intricate lyricism never fails to amuse me.
Score: 8/10
Source: UndergroundHipHopBlog.com