Mindbender

Love him or hate him, there are two things about Mindbender that you just can’t deny: his abundance of love for his home and for hip-hop. From his new digital-only release, Better Late Than Never Made, songs like "Thank God For Toronto,” his ode to the screwface capital, or "Blame Canada,” where he namedrops Canadian MCs and works in some of their lyrics, or even the many rap references and Canadian trivia throughout, make this attitude readily apparent. He also gets vitriolic towards wack MCs on "MCs Get Fucked Up” and "Music is My Weapon,” and discusses his excessive weed use on drum & bass track "Fucking Up My Life.” Still, it’s not all negative, with optimistic opener "Dreamer” the most accessible track on the album, thanks to a Supertramp sample for the chorus, although much of the rest of the album is also a little easier to digest than his normally crazy production choices. The Collizhun-produced "Blame Canada” is also a highlight. So far, of his solo discography, Better Late Than Never Made may be the best introduction to Mindbender for traditional hip-hop fans.