In front of us is the 10th studio LP from Connecticut underground MC/producer Apathy. Emerging only 2 decades back as a member of the Demigodz & the Army of the Pharaohs collectives founded by Open Mic & Vinnie Paz respectively, he was also signed to Atlantic Records at one point even though he eventually left due to creative differences. Since then The Alien Tongue has built up quite the solo discography on his own, with my favorites being Honkey Kong! as well as The Widow’s Son or more recently Where the River Meets the Sea & King of Gods. No Second fully produced by Stu Bangas. Connecticut Casual 2 mostly produced by Playa Haze was a highly worthy successor to Connecticut Casual last spring, getting ready for the summer by remembering his Mom & Dad.
“The Great Flood” featuring Little Vic & Suave-Ski recalls a series of severe floods that affected various regions of the U.S. roughly 4 decades ago whereas “Shore Life” keeps the trio together for a self-produced boom bap joint reminiscing on what it was like for them growing up in the east coast. “Put the Money in a Bag” featuring Little Vic produced by Playa Haze finds the pair sticking together so they can talk about hustling to the point of exhaustion just before “All Good” soulfully suggests you holla at him if you need anything.
Slaine of La Coka Nostra appears on “Blue Collar Scholar” to talk about the kind of art they make in a world built on lies over a sample-driven boom bap instrumental while the title track goes drumless referring to the President & First Lady of the U.S. during a bulk of the 80s as his parents. “Vintage Canvas” slickly cracks the code without having to go into practice mode, but then “Old Lyme Like Old Times” featuring Ryu gives off a laidback approach to the beat talking about letting the champagne blast off.
“Summer at the Shore” chops up a soul sample so he can confess that he’s getting sick of getting his fingers dirty from counting money & sleeping with his wife in high fashion declaring themselves as slaves of consumerism while “1 Crown” returns to the boom bap wanting to know the possibility of people who’ve never been great relating to what he’s saying. “Lee Harv” featuring a verse & production from Little Vic sees the 2 warning you’ll get shot in front of the world as if it’s JFK’s assassination & “Whalers” wraps it all up with some woodwinds using the same scale they use to weigh the whales with.
Coalmine Records has teamed with Dirty Version Records to uncover Ap’s biggest memory growing up on the 80s, which was during Ronald Reagan’s presidency because he feels as if he was raised by the actor turned politician & his widow even though neither one of them were related to him. Meshing the nostalgia of the very decade that raised The Alien Tongue & socio-political commentary, the underground veteran takes it up a notch with the personal topics going from expanding on the state that made him last spring to reflecting on the Reagan administration’s impact on his life felt to this day.
Score: 8/10