On his official solo debut, hip-hop producer
Metro Boomin
gathers a team of familiar faces and serves up a shadowy collection of hypnotic trap nuggets on the chart-topping
Not All Heroes Wear Capes
. His work is typically addictive, as hazy atmospherics and popping beats lay the groundwork for the guest rappers to do their things. At the top of the pack,
Travis Scott
scores five slots, including album highlight "Overdue," which rides a haunting
Annie
sample, while
21 Savage
contributes a trio of ominous yet deviously enthralling songs, with "Don't Come Out the House" and "10 Freaky Girls" the standouts.
Young Thug
,
Gunna
Swae Lee
Wizkid
, and
Migos
'
Offset
each drop a pair of tracks, personalizing
Metro
's production with their distinctive deliveries. In addition to these multiple appearances,
also recruits
J Balvin
on the
/
collaboration "Only You" and
Gucci Mane
on "10AM/Save the World." Elsewhere,
Kodak Black
joins
Scott
and
21
on "No More," a weary comedown that finds their hard-living lifestyles catching up to them. The effort's sole promotional single, "No Complaints," is basically a
song with a
Drake
verse, allowing
to take his place in the spotlight while
Future
pop into the studio for some ad-libbing. Overall,
Not All Heroes
advances
's technique, utilizing an Avengers-of-trap team to amplify the drama in his atmospherics and focus the hypnotic appeal of his sharp beat pops. ~ Neil Z. Yeung