HEROES & VILLAINS – Metro Boomin
Ross Urso January 30, 2023
By: Ross Urso
Undeniably, Metro Boomin has been one of Hip-Hop’s most dominant and talented producers in the past decade. The Atlanta-based beatmaker follows up his 2019 classic LP “NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES” with yet another cinematic, immersive listen.
Like his last album, Metro, once again, recruits some of the biggest heavy-hitters in the industry. This list includes: John Legend, Chris Brown, Future, Travis Scott, 21 Savage, Young Nudy, Young Thug, Don Toliver, The Weeknd, Gunna, A$AP Rocky and even a posthumous A-Z alphabet verse from the late Takeoff on the song “Feel The Fiyaaaah.” This is one of my favorite songs from the record that hasn’t left my rotation. It even had me shedding a few tears during my first listen, since this song perfectly showcases how talented he was, which was taken away from us in November. Overall, the production is top-shelf and the most polished we’ve heard Metro thus far in his career.
Apart from “Feel The Fiyaaah,” HEROES & VILLAINS is a phenomenal listen front to end with stellar transitions in between songs, such as on “Metro Spider ” into “I Can’t Save You” or the albums soulful intro “On Time” moving into “Superhero.” Metro’s incorporation of skits are a delightful touch to the record that marinates it with more flavor than it already has, such as Homelander from Amazon Prime’s The Boys, Morgan Freeman and Jay-Z. Conceptually speaking, the record’s ideology of pinning all featured artists either as a hero or villain is flat out brilliant, as this stylistic choice from Metro enhances this album as an experience that makes you forget you are listening to an album. Future and 21 Savage are the MVP’s as far as artist performances are concerned. Best of all, even over a month after its release, the album hasn’t lost its steam or my interest.
Tracks such as “Around Me” and “Lock On Me” are songs that initially didn’t resonate with me, but grew on me over time that I find more redeemable with each listen. Truthfully, there are miniscule nitpicks I have. For instance, Travis Scott’s lackluster performance on “Trance” or 21 Savage’s feature on “Creepin” feeling out of place and unnecessary. Still, I am assertive to proclaim HEROES & VILLAINS by Metro Boomin as an instant classic that will be talked about for a long time in the rap community. I am pleased Metro Boomin took his time, tapped in with his creativity and curated as fun of a listen as this album truly is.
Rating: 8.75/10
