Hexxx’s Full-Length Debut “Demon Season” Embodies Himself as the West Coast Wicked Shit (Album Review)
This is the full-length debut from Los Angeles emcee Hexxx. First emerging in the underground back in the fall of 2016 off his debut EP Samhain, he would go on to follow it up 3 years later with his 2nd EP West Coast Wicked Shit & here we are another 3 years later just in time for Demon Season after becoming the first act to sign to Ouija Macc’s very own Psychopathic Records imprint Chapter 17 Records other than Ouija himself.
After the bell-heavy intro produced by Devereaux, the title track opens up the album with a trunk-rattling yet dreary instrumental shouting out all his killas whereas “Big Time” with Baldacci has a more celebratory tone to it talking about all their homies being on the rise. The way the beat on “Ruthless” pays tribute to “Deep Cover” by Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg with a modern flip is pretty impressive as Hexxx delivers more raw gangsta raps but after the “Cruise Night” interlude, “Another Homicide” goes into boom bap territory as he viciously quenches for blood.
Meanwhile on “Villains”, we have Ouija Macc accompanying Hexxx to unnervingly declare themselves as the antagonists of this rap shit while the song “Pale Horse” with Project Born takes it back to the trap with some pianos that’re reminiscent to that of a horror flick calling out those who wanted them to fail. The penultimate track “Blood Drip” goes full-blown hyphy thanks to Shaggytheairhead to spit the wicked shit & “Cali Dreamin’” ends the album with an intoxicating confession that he’s trying not to fall in the deep end.
I really didn’t know what to expect when Ouija announced that he was beginning to sign acts to Chapter 17 & when I found out Hexxx was the first new artist, I knew he’d refine his style & that’s exactly what the fuck he does. The way he takes the classic west coast gangsta rap vibes & mixes it with the wicked shit, I haven’t heard uniquely fused together so well in a long time. Chapter 17 definitely knows what they’re doing & this is just the beginning.
Score: 9/10
