Jersey City wordsmith Ransom returns for his 12th EP and 2nd of 2024. Featuring 1/2 of the short-lived duo A-Team alongside Hitchcock, he branched out on his own in 2008 following their breakup which began with the debut full-length Street Cinema & Statik Selektah's sophomore production effort The proposal. But it's safe to say that these past two years have been his biggest yet, whether it's the 5 EPs produced by Nicholas Craven, 7 based on the 7 deadly sins or Heavy's the Head Produced by Big Ghost Ltd., the Rome Streetz collaboration album Coup de Grace or even his latest works Chaos is my ladder, Director's Cut 4 & Deleted scenes 2. Rich Misery produced by Harry Fraud was a step up Save the rod, Spoil the child & hearing that MadeinTYO produced Smoke & Mirrors.
The title track opens with a bare-bones guitar loop that speaks of its time to fight the good fight and has never been fit for rock bottom at any point in his career, while “Antebellum” exudes a soulful vibe by organically delving further into no-nonsense territory. drums telling a woman not to put a bandage on her permanent blemishes and Che Noir counters Ransom's verse giving his best 2 feature on the EP. Closer “Human Nature” featuring J. Arrr then wraps up the 3-track, 9-minute listening experience by working over sumptuous piano chords to discuss the story behind the winner's choice.
I wouldn't say that Smoke & Mirrors it is almost flawless as Rich Misery it was 4 months ago, but there's no denying that as someone who never considered himself a fan of MadeinTYO other than “Uber Everywhere” I really didn't know what to make of this EP and was impressed with what it had to offer. His production is more drumless than Harry Fraud's on Ransom's previous EP, and the latter's lyricist, with both guests doing it justice. I wish they had released two more tracks.
Rating: 7/10
