Sy ShacklefordGriselda Records has developed a strong reputation for two things: Modernizing the crime tale aesthetic of ‘90s east coast hip-hop and modernizing it well. To that end, Queens emcee Rome Streetz has recruited labelmate/in-house producer Daringer for a new collaborative album “Hatton Garden Holdup”. The title ties into the usual Griselda musical themes and also serves as a nod to Rome’s status as a Londoner by birth. With the album cover being an image of a plethora of emptied safe deposit boxes, it’s clear that Daringer and Rome have, musically speaking, shot steroids into the Notorious B.I.G.-coined adage of “Gimme the Loot”.
With the release of 2022’s “Kiss the Ring”, Rome seemed poised to be a top contender for the throne of New York City’s coke rhymers. On “Hatton Garden Holdup”, Rome and Daringer waste no time in retaining that position, starting with “Ace of Bass”. A drumless intro with a slowed sample, Rome comes right out of the gate with braggadocious rhymes. Daringer creates a decidedly spooky atmosphere on “Sage”, which opens with vocal samples from “The Wire” to emphasize the necessity of getting paper. ScHoolBoy Q makes the album’s first guest appearance and his laid-back flow stands in contrast to Rome’s more persistent flow. “Drive By” is largely comprised of a looped guitar sample as Rome spits battle rhymes which contain references from Ted DiBiase to Billy Ocean. The first single, “Starbvxkz”, has head-nodding thumping boom-bap drums and a looped keyboard sample, and a video reflecting the imagery of Rome’s lyrics, namely urban landscapes, paraphernalia, baking soda, and brand fashion:
The melody on the lo-fi “Cadillac Smoke” gains an assist from Meyhem Lauren, whose hoarse voice emphasizes the detailed verse of his ill-gotten gains. The moody jazz horns and dusty drums on “100 Schemes” is where Rome outright states his lust for luxury and the motivation to get it with bars like “Didn’t get a plate prepared for me, had to go to fish / Caught a whale, had a feast, and now it’s plenty overage / Ain’t no moves made without pay, this a brokerage / My brain operated the same way, whether broke or rich.” Production-wise, “Spike” doesn’t sound like much as it’s drumless and too minimal, even with the sample that’s interspersed. Daringer reinstates his trademark sound on “Pro Tro”, which features an effortlessly gutter verse from Conway the Machine.
Fellow Queens emcee Cormega raps a verse on “Weight of the World”, which evokes a feeling of mentorship from one elder statesman coke rhymer to his younger generation. “Jimi’s Headband” has a menace to the production because of the creepy xylophone sample as Rome spits some of his best rhymes over this beat: “A work of art, that’s why all these marks try to trace me (Fuck ’em) / But they’ll never see me like Banksy (Never) / Amazing artist but I started out a street fighter like Zangief (Ugh) / It was jail, drugs, gangs, grief.” Rome noticeably experiments with his flow on the psychedelic “Space X” while on “Reap What You Sow”, he shows some lamentation for his lifestyle despite its dividends. The closer “Heavy Traffic” is a loose autobiographical narrative over ‘70s cinema-inspired production. “Hatton Garden Holdup” is cinematic with it’s free-flowing crime narratives. For any fan of gritty New York City street rhymes, Daringer’s beats and Rome’s street hood lyricism is satiating.