Ellenville, New York duo The Hoodies, made up of siblings E-Class and Young Poppa, are back with their third EP. These guys have dominated the local underground music scene for the past 6 years with their debut mixtape Blood Thicker and their first couple EPs Where Should We Land and WhatPressure Makes. However, their debut full-length studio album last fall, Hidden Gems, produced entirely by Kid Capri, ended up being their most acclaimed work to date by critics and fans for its interpretation of New York hip-hop past and present. With the anniversary approaching in a few weeks, they remind everyone that no one is greater than us.
“Closer” is the sample opener with a chipmunk soul flare that talks about being underrated but still scoring like the Cleveland Cavaliers, while “Love Birds” continues the soulful flip-flopping showcasing the soul boys they truly are as they suddenly Emerging Draco is a reference to Big Draco’s nickname, the first rapper to do everything since. Ms. Tiff’s “Despise Me” collects the money with a majestic back-and-forth on the mic, while “Not the Same” closes out Whitney Houston’s EP-sampling “All the Man That I Need,” trying to teach people about their predecessors.
I’m usually pretty picky when it comes to artists in the Brooklyn drill scene, but there’s no doubt that both E-Class and Young Poppa have enough lyrical skills to do the style justice, which is what they do on ” What he did in “Nobody Bigger”. While we’ve already heard them experiment with this sound (eg: “Top of New York”), they embrace it even more here, even fusing it with elements of Sample Diamond and Chipmunk Soul to form a Charming effect.
Score: 7/10
