PsyQonaut - Blade of the Ronin Album Review lyrics

Track 1 Cipher Unknown A really dope intro to the album that has a really banging instrumental to it. It sounds really futuristic and has a grimy and metallic feel to it. Does a great job in setting up the overall mood of the album 8/10 Track 2 Opposite of Desolate A really grimy start to the album that has a nice futuristic instrumental on it. Both MCs do really well on here, but I feel like Vast Aire really takes the cake when it comes to who had the better performance. Really nice lyrics too with lots of apocalyptic feeling vibes coming out of this joint 8/10 Track 3 Psalm 82 Really dope beat on here and the hook does wonders for the overall vibes of the song. The instrumental is nice and slightly changing which makes the song go nice and there is tons of biblical references coming out from within this one. Really has a standout feel to it 8/10 Track 4 The Power Cosmiq Hands down one of the best beats on the entire album. It goes from the slight clanging to a beautiful feminine voice that vocalizes wonderfully in the background that is eargasm material. This also has one of the best hooks on the album with Vast Aire k**ing both the hook and his verses. Definitely one of the best songs on the whole project 9/10 Track 5 Blade The Art of Ox Whoo another damn great instrumental was whipped up for this one courtesy of Black Milk and it has both the Artifacts and U-God who all do their best to k** their verses. The beat drones on and just gets better and better as the lyrics keep on coming. A really nice posse cut 8.5/10 Track 6 Pressure of Survival A nice little interlude that makes it feel like there is going to be some really hardcore streetales ahead of you in the album. Very short but it does the job 7/10 Track 7 Carnivorous Another pretty good space sounding beat that is nice but doesn't really stand out in any way. Vordul's flow also sounds kind of half asleep on this track also which is a shame cause I know he is capable of more. The features are nice and Vast brings some energy back to the track with a really nice lyrical performance. Overall the song is good but not great 7/10 Track 8 Thunder In July The hook caught me off guard at the beginning of the song, but as it progresses the hook fits more and more and adds a lot to the song when the really smooth background instrumental fits well with the spitting. Vast once again was the standout for me and the feature was also dope as well 8.5/10 Track 9 Water I really f**ed with the beat on this one as it was kind of just a gentle feel to it and yes it brought a liquid atmosphere to the whole song. Vast had some really great lyrics on here that might be some of the best on the album. A really great track that had both MCs just going off on it 9/10 Track 10 The Horizon Another instrumental interlude that has a really nice beat that has a real nice little synth in the background and a pleasant string sound going on in the background. Not amazing our groundbreaking but a really nice little break from the hard lyrics. Good to vibe out to 8/10 Track 11 Harlem Knights One of the best tracks of the Gotham LP made it to this project and I'm glad it did because it has a super future and metallic sounding beat on here that is home to some really nice lyrics by Vast and Vordul. Probably one of the darker sounding songs on the album but still enjoyable nonetheless 8/10 Track 12 Sabertooth A decent beat but I kinda just feel like this song goes nowhere for me. I don't know what it is about this track but I just don't feel it at all. The lyrics, flow, and beat were all decent but there was nothing that really got my attention at all here 6/10 Track 13 Iron Rose Oh yeah probably the best song on this whole album right here. Vordul was actually awake on here and Vast absolutely k**ed the hook and his verse. DOOM decided to stop by and spit some really hard bars over this crazy good electronic banger of a beat. Easily one of the highlights of the year for me 9.5/10 Track 14 Solar System (Cosmos) A short little interlude that is basically the intro to the next track. Not a lot to this track to talk about because it is so short. Just decent, but wasn't really needed at all 5/10 Track 15 The Fire Rises One of the weirdest beats on here because it sounds like a mixture between futuristic space beats mixed with trap. Really nice to hear though because once again Vast absolutely k**s this song, he has some really great lyrics on here. I really hate the hook, it feels just kind of meh for me and brings down an otherwise really good song 7.5/10 Track 16 Gotham (Ox City) Definitely the best track to pull off of the Gotham LP is this joint right here. It has an absolutely stellar beat and the lyrical performance was really strong on here. This song is still as good as when it was first released and fits into the span of this project really well. Definitely a highlight 8.5/10 Track 17 Unison Another really short interlude that really doesn't do much for me. Just a few words spoken over a nearly non-existent beat and boom the whole sh** is over. Meh 5/10 Track 18 Vision Yeah the production on this one is amazing with the guitar going on really nice in the background some nice keys and an echo/water drop almost sounding effect going on slightly. Some of the best lyrics on the tape here and a great Nas sample made this a really dope track 9/10 Track 19 Salvation A really triumphant beat was saved for the last track and it definitely has a sense of closure to it. The lyrics have lots of references thrown back to their debut The Cold Vein and both MCs really push their flow here for the better. Vast really had some nice storytelling about his early life on here. A really great note to end the regular album on 9/10 DELUXE EDITION Track 20 Silver Hawks Really nice track that has a pretty dope beat on it with a weird little purring sound that occasionally pops up and some nice lyrics as well. Everyone actually k**s their parts on here and I'm not quite sure why this didn't make the cut of the original version, seeing as how this was better than several other songs 8.5/10 Track 21 Moksha A decent beat and decent lyrics, but the whole song never really comes together very well for me. I don't what it is about this but it just doesn't really get me feeling any sort of way about this. I think I would of rather just had an instrumental version to this 6.5/10 Track 22 The Eternal Path Another beat that is just decent, but I wasn't really expecting it to be crazy good with it being a bonus track. The flow exhibited on here aren't really all that great, but as usual for this tape Vast Aire kind of saves the whole thing. Just a decent song in general 6.5/10 FINAL THOUGHTS A great effort by Cannibal Ox that had some good individual tracks but was nothing spectacular as an overall album. There was no way in hell that this was going to come close to The Cold Vein. While they did try their best and Vast Aire still proved to be in top form, Vordul was half asleep on here and the production sort of ran into itself at times. Dope individual songs, but lacks some replay as an album 7/10