Hypnotically stacking syllables over dark and innovative production, Maxo Kream’s music inhabits an insular and grimy sonic universe of its own making. Returning with his highly anticipated third full-length, the Houston emcee shares Punken, his most mature and fully-realized project yet. Titled after one of Maxo’s childhood nicknames, Punken takes a deep and revealing look into the rapper’s past, especially on “Grannies,” an intensely detailed and personal track that earned over 5 million streams on Spotify, which focuses on Maxo’s childhood living at his grandmother’s with a motley cast of relatives.
Building upon 2015’s debut Maxo 187 and 2016’s accomplished and self-aware The Persona Tape, Punken is emotionally and sonically diverse, with weighty tracks such as “Grannies” and “Roaches” sitting side-by-side with insanely fun drug-dealing bangers like the recent single “Bussdown.” Featuring appearances from Trippie Redd, 03 Greedo, and Houston up-and-comer D. Flowers, and with production from The Wlderness, Beatboy, Sonny Digital, Ethereal, Honorable C Note, $uicideboy$, Tommy Kruise, Wolfe De Mchls, Teddy Walton, and MexikoDro, Punken delivers on the promise of Maxo’s previous work and more, as the young emcee experiments with new flows, tightens his songwriting, and sharpens his observational pen.
© 2018, Niyah Nel. All rights reserved.
