San Diego, California slasher, horrorcore veteran and Brainsick Muzik founder Twisted Insane kicks off the Halloween season with the release of his 17th studio LP. He wrote his first rhyme song at the age of 12 and went on to release 5 mixtapes and several full albums until he was featured on the Tech N9ne single “Worldwide Choppers”. The Root of All Evil & The Insane Asylum further elevated his underground status, maintaining a steady schedule since releasing 13 more albums in the process. “Halfway Gone” is said to be the most profound creation to date and has great potential to be a set highlight.
The title track has a fun, guitar-driven trap instrumental that ensures he’s here even though half of him feels as though he’s not, while “External Wounds” talks about mental health with darker riffs and hi-hats that plead to get the hell out of him life, because he doesn’t need these things. “So Far Ahead” maintains a gritty trap vibe, bragging about being one step ahead of the rest, until Swisher Sleep joins him on the somber “Memory,” heartbreakingly reminiscing about his kids who were hit by someone. He died in the streets.
“Blackout 4” continues a series of tracks that began as a two-parter on his Hell’s Kitchen mixtape, expressing his desire to experience sudden and temporary loss of consciousness, while the acoustic “Tailspin” The state of being in a state. “Jesus” spends three and a half minutes in his helicopter bag, nonchalantly picking up his tempo with some beat switches, but then “Motel 6” showcases more vocals detailing his time in the eponymous car Details of the hotel chain’s drunkenness.
“1 Foot in the Grave” takes an uncanny trap approach, subtly talking about not asking him to stay because he’s going to die anyway, just as Fase 1’s “Growin’ Up” finds the pair vulnerable. Man let’s see what that’s like because both of them grew up in the Southeast. “Wings” is a major highlight, a send-up for those still shrouded in darkness from the guitar/trap crossover, leading up to “Left Behind,” in which C. Ray talks about those hoping to see two of the biggest brainiacs Artists are forgotten people.
Easily one of the most personal moments in “Halfway Gone” is when “KJ” tells his son, who no longer lives with him, to put him on the phone whenever he wants, and “OT-IZ-UM” Continuing the theme of fatherhood, he sang coldly that he also has an autistic child. “NTS 2 (Night Time Shit 2)” happens to be a stunningly morbid world set in one of my favorite Twisted Insane songs, reaffirming his love of darkness and writing his best music in the dark, and “Back When” It feels like he hit rock bottom and achieved nothing in the pager era.
“Botched” starring Kamikazi brings “Halfway Gone rollin'” back to work, wondering why women today are seeking validation so much, while “Same” starring C. Ray reunites the two to talk about how they’re still the same person they used to be Same. “1 Trick Pony” sings with guitar to those who said he would always be himself, and when he proved them wrong, “Endgame” perfectly closes the record, searching for the final stage of his life.
In a string of albums Twisted Insane is working on, each sounding completely different, his 2024 second album surpasses this summer’s West Coast gangster rap heavyweight predecessor Shoot for the Face 2.5 in favor of the deepest and The most emotional music he has ever created. It will change the lives of many in their darkest moments, as the West Coast host uses his own life experiences to help others cope with the difficulties they face.
Rating: 9/10
