Review Summary: Side-quests are optional
The Scythe is a brand-new collective spear-headed by Denzel Curry, featuring Ferg, TiaCorine, Key Nyata, and Bktherula—plus some additional guests sprinkled in for seasoning. It’s a pretty stacked lineup, and on paper it reads like one of those “fantasy rap Avengers” threads you see on Reddit at 3AM. Stylistically, this project feels like a direct extension of Denzel’s last solo record,
King of the Mischievous South. That album saw Denzel digging deep into southern hip-hop and Memphis throwback aesthetics, and the lead single "Hot One" also featured Ferg and Tia, so
Strictly 4 The Scythe feels like a natural evolution of these individuals collaborating together and this vibe.
But more than that, this album very blatantly wants to evoke 90s posse-rap energy—early Three 6 Mafia, classic Memphis tapes, that gritty, tape deck underground sound. Just look at how 90s-coded the album art is for example. But when I think of what makes posse rap bang, one thing comes to mind: the interplay between members. The back-and-forths, the finishing-each-other’s-bars energy, the shared themes, the sense of wild, chaotic chemistry. This album has some of that… but not quite enough to feel like a cohesive group album.
The first half of the album is pure, unashamed Three 6 Mafia worship —which I am perfectly okay with (if anything, we need more Three 6 influence in modern rap). The grimy bass, the horror core beats, the shout-along hooks… all good. But here’s the rub: Because the album wears its influences on its sleeves so clearly, it feels derivative and puts a ceiling on itself.
“The Scythe” is absolutely the mission statement here. Filthy Memphis-style beat, gang-chant hook, and the members actually feel like a group on this one. Denzel echoing Tia’s
“I wish a bitch would” line is exactly the type of interplay the album needed more of. Tia’s verse is long, charismatic, commanding. Ferg sounds like he barged into the booth with sunglasses on coked out his brain. And Denzel himself? Razor-sharp.
“Lit Effect” taps into a fun, swaggering trap bounce. Denzel’s verse is stellar, that unemployment line got me. But it's proceeded by Lazer Dim’s verse, who sounds so sleepy he may have rocked up the booth still in his pajamas.
“Phoney” is one of the album’s highlights. The Juicy J feature alone gives the track (and album) instant credibility—like the album summoned one of the patron saints of dirty south rap to bless it. Key Nyata absolutely snaps, Ferg is larger than life, and Denzel keeps the momentum going. The horror-tinged beat feels ripped straight from
Mystic Stylez in the best possible way.
“Mut That Bih” - I don't have anything to say other than I am simply too British to know what this slang means.
Then we reach the second half of the project, and things start to drift.
“Hoopty” suddenly becomes a bling-era party anthem—shifting from 90s into early 2000s energy, shiny, playful, not at all Memphis-coded. Tia once again steals the show with hilarious bars about showing your asshole and hanging it out the window. But stylistically, we’re far from the aesthetic of the opener.
“You Ain’t Gotta Lie” brings a catchy melodic hook with Denzel and 454 singing. Big synths, big vibe change. Still good, but very different.
“Tan” is apparently a rework of a Bktherula track, and it shows a bit. The clubby pianos and Playboi Carti-esque hype energy feel fun, but Bktherula unfortunately just isn’t as compelling as some of the other members here. Tia helps elevate it, but again feels stylistically far away from the album’s opening mission statement.
“Up”, the closer, goes full dreamy SoundCloud rap, floating off into the night. Not a bad track—but once more, a total stylistic departure.
And that’s kind of the story: The first half is unified around the gritty, Memphis-coded aesthetic, the second half is a grab-bag of different vibes. Individually, these tracks are fine—even fun. But with only eight tracks total, the project loses its identity quickly. At times this feels more like a playlist or a sampler. While everyone here is talented, the group chemistry isn’t fully fleshed out yet. We get flashes of it, but not enough. This leaves the whole project feeling like a fun side quest, not a new force to be reckoned with in the hip-hop landscape. It doesn’t hit the heights of Denzel’s solo work, and it’s ultimately less than the sum of its parts. It's still enjoyable, though.
So, to wrap things up: Strictly 4 The Scythe is a fun, nostalgic, and energetic project that delivers some strong moments—especially in its first half. But it’s also inconsistent, stylistically scattered, and doesn’t fully capitalize on the insane talent assembled here. It’s a good time, but not a great time.
