It's Halloween, so it's only appropriate that much of the music dropping today is filled with dark, horror-movie themes. Offset and 21 Savage's Without Warning, for example, is a nightmarish odyssey through the trap, scored by none other than dark-banger connoisseur Metro Boomin. Kodak Black dropped "Happy Halloween," and Chris Brown's Heartbreak On A Full Moon conjures up one of horror's most iconic images in the title alone. It's only fair that U.K. heavyweight Skepta joined in on the fun, and the closing track of his six-song EP Vicious more than fits the bill.
Gothic bells chime over a spooky, piano arpeggio, setting the perfect mood for Skepta, A$AP Rocky, and A$AP Nast to drop a murderous verse apiece. Rocky sets things off with what may very well be a highlight performance, spitting lines like "Chopper, chopper, pull up around with a Mossberg, when the reaper come, redrum, I'll murder something." After all, it wouldn't be a Halloween banger without a Stephen King reference. He continues down that dark road, lyrically channeling Big Shaq's "Man's Not Hot" as he busts out the onomatopoeia skills for a Tec-9 impression.
Skepta holds it down on the second verse, and while Rocky's excellent verse sets the bar high, Skepta's menacing cadence allows for a unique sense of authority. At 35, Skepta is verging on OG status, with many an accolade to his well-respected name. He doesn't have to say much for it to make an impression, and when he spits bars like "told the plug it's for me, he came down on the price, live a bit in these streets, I teach you how to survive," young rappers better take note and listen.
With a solid verse from A$AP Nast to close things out, "Ghost Ride" is an excellent posse cut for the eeriest day of the year. Be sure to check out Skepta's Vicious EP if you haven't already, and happy Halloween!
Quotable Lyrics
Chopper, chopper, pull up around with a Mossberg
When the reaper come, redrum, I'll murder something
Enemies on my mind, Enemies in the past when I blast
My TEC-9, it go pat pat pat pat, rat a tat tat tat
Too fast, n***s know how I get
And this revenge up in my eyes, I'm committing my sin, amen
