NYC drug rap is this weird fixation, especially inside New York, like some kind of ritual that will be lost if someone doesn’t keep resurrecting The Infamous and Wanted Dead or Alive. Alchemist is in a very compressed and tight mood here, almost fading out of view sometimes. Drug yarns and boots and baggy NY Yankees gear is rarely this elegant and sleek. The Alchemist version of hard has always involved reticence, and he is now creeping towards silence. The minimalism brings Marciano away from his snarl and back into his chest rumble. Lots of great interstitials from other rappers, too.