#34 - Conway the Machine & Big Ghost Ltd. - If It Bleeds It Can Be Killed REVIEW

2021-02-23

(Go to 0:55 to skip the intro) After coming out the gate in his career as the most respected member of Griselda, with two strong projects in G.O.A.T. and Reject 2, in the couple years prior to 2020, Conway was starting to fade... seemingly moving into third place in terms of popularity and respect in the Griselda crew, through the emergence of Benny as an elite level spitter, and Westside Gunn's continued excellence in creating decadent slices of street rap luxury. Conway was at a crossroads...

(Go to 0:55 to skip the intro)

After coming out the gate in his career as the most respected member of Griselda, with two strong projects in G.O.A.T. and Reject 2, in the couple years prior to 2020, Conway was starting to fade... seemingly moving into third place in terms of popularity and respect in the Griselda crew, through the emergence of Benny as an elite level spitter, and Westside Gunn's continued excellence in creating decadent slices of street rap luxury.

Conway was at a crossroads in 2020... and proved his doubters his wrong. His full-length album From a King to a God was finally the fulsome and mature effort that many of us were looking for, serving as maybe the best album of Conway's career.

Now fast forward only a few months... If It Bleeds It Can Be Killed shows that Conway's growth displayed on FKTG wasn’t just a fluke. Conway sticks to his guns, pun intended, but continues to expand his subject matter to more personal territory. He gives us new information that I only just learnt 5 years into listening to the guy.

So for me, Conway continues to show growth lyrically, but also from an album construction standpoint. The key reason this album stands out in Conway's vast catalog is due to him and Big Ghost Ltd. creating a well-rounded album that satisfies in multiple ways, featuring songs that are as luxurious as they are murderous.

The beats here are the best I've heard from Big Ghost to-date, with crunchy percussion, nicely placed soul samples and flashes of sinister sounds that all come together really nicely.

The flow of this album too is much improved from No One Mourns the Wicked, because there is no unnecessary lulls or wastes of space this time around.

Instead, we get 30 minutes of Conway in peak form, with production that matches his talent... all in a neat and trim package. All killer, no filler.

RMPP Preferred Cut: "Lessons to Blessings"

Stream/Buy If It Bleeds It Can Be Killed here: https://bigghostlimited.bandcamp.com/album/if-it-bleeds-it-can-be-killed

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