(Little Heart)

The first post-Skyscraper Stereo to drop comes courtesy of the immaculate rhymes of Mr. Goodbar and the gritty production of Filthy Rich. The pair come out of the gate swinging with a sound that would have been perfect for early ’00s Def Jux. As such, there is a dirty sort of Cannibal Ox vibe, with the city somehow playing a character in the music, both narratively and in terms of the tonality to the point where you feel transported to an alley doing something illicit. There is a sultry kind of sexiness to the beats here that slink and shuffle like a hustler in a dimly lit bar, riding hard to push whatever it is they’re doing. Mr. Goodbar has a rock-steady flow that never lets up and is always on point — the perfect counterpoint to Filthy’s grimy beats.