Ransom is shaping up to be one of 2021's lyrical MVPs, having already laid some clever conceptual groundwork on the sinful Se7en project. Now, the bar-spitter has returned with another new album, Heavy Is The Head, this time teaming up with producer Big Ghost LTD for the entire run. Insofar as guest appearances, we're looking at Mickey Factz, RJ Payne, Ill Bill, Vinnie Paz, Rome Streetz, and more.
Evidently, Ransom isn't the only artist on a hot streak; earlier this year, Big Ghost provided a solid backdrop for Conway The Machine's If It Bleeds It Can Be Killed, a grimy highlight that might have slipped your radar. He's back in fine form here, buying into Ransom's Game Of Thrones-inspired penmanship and blessing him with some thoroughly filthy production backdrops. For those with an ear to the streets, perhaps there's even a case to be made that Big Ghost is putting in some of the underground circuit's best work -- what do you think?
Lyrically, Ransom has always ensured that his bars are his primary draw. Here, he transports listeners directly to the world of Westeros for a trial by combat, delivered with the visceral intensity of The Hound's scrap with Brienne Of Tarth. Many of the song's titles -- "Red Wedding," "Lord Stark," and "Blackwater" among others -- are direct allusions to George R.R. Martin's beloved series.
While Ransom's intellectual mind does give his bars a literary quality, his battle-ready delivery that he's more soldier than scholar. Any fan of bars should queue this one up post haste, and sound off in the comments with your thoughts below.
