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Jul 25: Week 30 of the year. The world of hip-hop turns a new corner this week. Surprise drops, follow-ups and the death of the Prince of Darkness himself mark a historic week for music.

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A distinguished artist very much in his own lane and a true connoisseur of stylist reach, Tyler’s next chapter comes after less than a year from concept-heavy eighth CHROMAKOPIA with a surprise release that even his most diehard fans weren’t expecting. DON’T TAP THE GLASS sees Tyler return to his more visceral complexes of Goblin and the like with mighty instrumentals and lyrical blemishes of colour and quantity. It all but reaffirms Tyler as a true icon who knows no bounds to how far he can stretch this old habit out.

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A left-field take on the changing landscape of alternative hip-hop, Quadeca hones in on a new chapter with Vanisher, Horizon Scraper – a mellow cleanse in the world of indie pop chillout from the former faster-than-lightning wordsmith. Fresh off his booth work on Kevin Abstract’s Blush project earlier this year, Quadeca lights up another insane production performance with a dense flow as hypnotic as the tide. Paving similarities to the likes of Sufjan Stevens and Bjork. Mighty names to live up by, but it’s extremely ambitious from a once one-off rapper circulating the drains of YouTube diss-tracks.

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Another connoisseur to the scene of underground hip-hop, Freddie Gibbs returns with a follow-up to his first working alongside The Alchemist in 2020. Known for their beguiling beats all-too-easy to rap and play homage over, Alfredo 2 takes another bite with a duo more than in sync than Florida’s own.

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Now Would Be a Good Time, is the debut from three proud Folk Bitches down under that rewrites the scripture of folk in a messy manual of modern living. Harnessing a sharp sense of humour and Que sera, sera, the trio un-firls the genre’s plight of serious into silly – projecting life through being alive and having a laugh with your friends has never been more fun.

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