While I wasn’t a fan when I first came across Smokingskul (aka MBlock30), after enough time my opinion changed. Charged with beats few people will ever take a crack at, with a flow with so much aggression it will take you aback, Smokingskul helped push Dark Plugg into a new era. With countless projects in 2023, here are some of the highlights.
Chicken Wing [BREADY]
An early EP into 2023, released January 21st, it turned out to be one of his Smokingskul’s best of the year. His flow was much tighter than his usual work, changing from close to a rant to a true flow with real rhythm. The beats are also just demonic, the opener on this EP “Chicken Wing” is completely clipped out, with drums knocking from the underworld.
Rock [Smoke Carter 2]
Smoke Carter 2 saw Smokingskul’s beat selection taking a bit of a turn in direction. They have their signatures, Perc40’s absurd 808s are definitely still here, but tracks like “Today” have a bit of real melody to them on the main synths. These let Smokingskul shine a little more, not getting completely lost within the distortion.
EVERY STICK [EXPENSIVE SMOKE]
A collab with Smoke Supreme, the duo provides each other with equilibrium. Smoke Supreme’s neutral flow gives balance against Smokingskul’s erratic punch-in flow, forcing each other to meet each other a little in the middle. While there are a couple tracks without Smokingskul, the collabs together are so what a good duo they are.