Physical exclusive 5th extended play from Mt. Clemens, Michigan rapper Blaze Ya Dead Homie. Originally 1/2 of the 2 Krazy Devils, the Insane Clown Posse eventually signed him to Psychopathic Records & his eponymous debut EP as well as his full-length debut 1 Less G n da Hood would become some of the hatchet’s most beloved material at the turn of the millennium. Colton Grundy: Tha Undying introduced us to his alter-ego & Clockwork Gray received the same praise as his earlier material, departing Psychopathic after the Mike E. Clark-produced Gang Rags to make the sequel Reborn the inaugural release for his childhood friends Twiztid’s label Majik Ninja Entertainment in tandem with his own imprint Grundy Entertainment. It’s already been a decade since The Casket Factory but coming off Cadaver & Dead Serious, his Last Rites are being read.
“Smoke” starts us off with Blaze talking about not being the one to provoke while “Armed & Dangerous” instrumentally embraces a rap rock vibe cautioning that he has a gun on him. “Sold” experiments with trap metal airing out the people who’ve sold their souls to the Devil & once “In Between” awkwardly talks about there being no one to blame other than ourselves, the outro “No Tomorrow” ends Last Rites explaining shit ain’t been the same since he came to the game although I much prefer the Stir Crazy remix.
If you’re going into Last Rites expecting it to be a bunch of leftovers from the Dead Serious sessions kinda like what The Casket Maker was to The Casket Factory, you’ll be surprised to hear that a great deal of this EP doesn’t have as much of a Jelly Roll influence as Blaze Ya Dead Homie’s most recent album we got over the summer since the production fluctuates between rap rock along with trap metal & regular trap music to compliment the wicked gangsta performances he solely handles contrasting his longtime associates making appearances throughout Dead Serious.
Score: 7/10