Although Dame Grease isn’t a household name in Hip-Hop, he has been making beats for a little over ten years starting with the Ruff Ryders in the late 90’s. He was the man behind DMX’s gritty, dark sound that ballooned him to superstar status. So don’t expect any sensitive introspection from Dame Grease’s aptly titled Goon Muzik (Vacant Lot / Babygrande).
Goon Muzik is an assortment of hardcore independent and underground rappers with a seemingly obsessive compulsion towards violence including, Max B, Tony Wink, and Bigga Threat. On the song “Lotzilla” Grease brings a hard bouncy track with a southern appeal. The deep distorted voice on the hook makes the song just that much more goonish. Bigga Threat and Loose Cannons were fairly consistent on the track until Cannon drops a play on words that just don’t mesh: “Dead it/ Your life bed it / Behead it / Decision regretted / Meatballs and spagett it.”
“Bout To Ride” featuring E. Snaps and “The Tombs” has the full, hardcore, anxious sound that Ruff Ryders perfected years ago with help from Grease, then a little known producer. For the most part, Dame Grease’s production skills are on point, but on his earnest attempt at making a song for the ladies “Goon Luv,” the beat falls flat. While the rhyming from Tony Wink and Fosho is on par, the actual beat sounds like it was made with a Casio keyboard; repetitive, dull and cheaply done.
Goon Muzik definitely lives up to its title. It’s the type of album that may never get radio play but can definitely become a favorite among, well, the goons. It’s hard, hood, and far from short on drug, gun and f####### references.
Dame Grease Featuring Max B. and Messiah
“Connecticut Kush”