Less than two months after dropping the epic conclusion to his Trench Muzic trilogy with Lil Trvsh, Southern rap veteran Lil Disceased has released an excellent nine track project that more than delivers on and in many ways surpasses the quality that I expect from the rapper.
Production-wise this is by far Disceased’s most diverse offering, with Loko Los, Sayda and Apoc Krysis comprising the bulk of Infernio Enfermo’s sound. Loko’s contributions are the densest and most crushing: ‘LowBlow’ is a terrifyingly massive song thanks to the evil, cybernetic swarm that the BMB member cooks up. Disceased’s more savage vocal style (previously employed on a few loose cuts) was necessary on his song especially after Sol Faneto’s animalistic growls dominated its first half. On the other Loko collaborations however, Disceased sticks more closely to the sound that he established on Trench Muzic 3. He doesn’t attempt any melodic flows on ‘Blood Reign’, but the charismatic drawl over chasmic dark trap production makes it a trademark offering from the SouthernGawthMobb member.
On the two tracks handled instrumentally by Apoc Krysis, Disceased enters a more reflective zone. His performance on ‘When I Die’ is ironically more alive than ever, his voice triumphant as he bellows over the Doomshop Records icon’s beat. ‘Demonio Del Sur’ is even greater thanks to its bristling atmosphere and longer run time (expertly left to breathe after a climactic final statement ‘Bitch I’m from the dirty south, this the shit I grew around. Rest in peace my kin I know they still around’).
Not including longtime friend and collaborator Lil Trvsh on this mixtape (for the first time in a while in the context of the rapper’s discography) was a bold move, but it allows Disceased to harmonise more naturally with his chosen cast of producers. While it’s no secret that the Disceased/Trvsh chemistry is elite, as is the former artist’s performance on beats from Darth Roach (supple first single ‘Kobe’), Solvrflvre (the sinister ‘Lurking’) and Sayda (uber-rare Sub9K hook up ‘Cappin’ and Keyboard Kid co-produced, LZA-aided tape highlight ‘Hotboy’). Truly, this exploration of Disceased’s most ambitious musical effort has proven to me that the Southern rapper is exactly the artist that I’ve always known him to be: hardworking, adaptable, amazing at selecting beats and most vitally dedicated to curating a perfect project. Check out Infernio Enfermo here and get an early glimpse into the work of one of the most important artists in the underground today.
– Chris (@108mics)
108 MICS 