I believe this is the 12th EP from Millville, New Jersey emcee/producer Gibby Stites. He started in the music industry a decade ago from his first 2 mixtapes Gillmatic & Broken n Localhe wouldn't catch my attention until he played a set during Netfest on your couch during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020. Later that fall, he signed to Majik Ninja Entertainment and I had the honor of interviewing him shortly after the deal was announced. The 13th Wonder he pretty much introduced Gibby to the jugglers as Jamie Madrox's protégé and Welcome to iLLViLLE Several months later, listeners were learning exactly where he was coming from, but he decided not to renew his contract with MNE to form his own label iLLViLLE Worldwide shortly thereafter. Off Air since last summer marked his return behind the boards after 5 years and is by far my favorite thing he's done since leaving Majik Ninja & Pariah earlier this year he focused on mental health, but he's back with Charlie Beans to take us to Echo chamber.
“Wrapped Up” jumps over a crazy boom bam beat to get us started kicking that sick shit, while “Work Ethic” keeps the kicks and snares in tact while talking about its terror. “So Alone” featuring Charlie Beans himself finds the 2 sharing the mic together pointing out the loneliness everyone is feeling these days, just before the cavernous group chants of the title boom boom talk they can't hear a word.
Paradime joins Gibby for “Commotion” aggressively looking at both of their designs in motion leading into “Twist of Fate” which throws it back to the 90's and lets you know he's chillin like he's asking what's good with you. “Durban Poison” psychedelically lets listeners know exactly what kind of shit he's smoking and “To Whom It May Concern” ends the EP untangling all the pain inside.
Compared to STILL sick about two and a half years ago, Echo chamber shows a significant maturity from both Gibby Stites and Charlie Beans, as they each went through a lot of personal issues separately during the making of this and channeled each of those difficulties into a motivational 27-minute badass EP.
Rating: 7/10