2Mex

It hasn’t even been six months since 2Mex released his last solo album, Sweat Lodge Infinite, and even less since he dropped his newest group effort with the Visionaries, but 2Mex is back with a new and improved solo. Choosing to go self-titled for his third solo, 2Mex brings his best work by enlisting Omid (of Beneath the Surface fame) and Life Rexall (of the Shapeshifters) for the production. "Alive-a-cation” is a great, guitar-driven intro track by Omid that mixes 2Mex’s usually good raps with a play on the typical dedication track. Omid also contributes the heavy crunch of the album’s first single and best moment, "The Return of Fernandomania,” and the upbeat "Escape the Toyota Matrix” that breaks down technology versus the spiritual with fellow Visionaries member LMNO. Life Rexall also slips in a banger with "Chillaxing (That’s Chilling And Relaxing),” weaving together a Medieval smorgasbord of great samples that includes violin, flute, trumpet and harp. But mostly, Life Rexall contributes the mid-tempo beats that keep the album moving: "Falcon Gentle” is a nice follow-up to "Alive-a-cation,” "Grandmother Moon” is perfectly appropriate for the earthy message 2Mex drops with Xololanxinxo, his partner in Of Mexican Descent, and "Baby I Ain’t Joking” is a love song as only 2Mex and Awol One could conceive. Plus, it would be wrong not to mention the Omid-produced "Memo,” a very touching dedication to a close and meaningful housemate who has passed on. Finally, 2Mex lives up to his potential as a solo artist.