- Hazed out New Orleans MC Curren$y doesn't really try too hard to divert attention from the fact he really seems to enjoy indulging in the art of getting and remaining relatively chilled out, embracing the pace whilst going against type, constantly releasing a steady stream of surprisingly high quality music, amassing nearly 30 official releases that all have some reason to exist. Throughout my fruitful relationship with Curren$y he has proven himself to be quite the poster boy for consistency, releasing music as feverishly as Lil B, if Lil B had some filter for his, arguably, insane, magical diarrhoea that constantly flows from his mouth, an unnerving mixture of the sublime and plain gutter trash. Armed with his seemingly endless supply of self-belief and itchy brain fingers, The Stoned Immaculate see's Curren$y take another crack at seeing his music actually sold physically in actual shops to actual people like that's still a thing that happens, the record playing out like a star-studded, more thought-out and expensive version of one of his tapes- something that maybe doesn't sound all that groundbreaking but actually plays out pretty well in reality. Curren$y sounds right at home here amongst the almost alarming number of producers and guest vocalists- the rapper proving to be the consummate host, his undeniably likeable, if not world changing flow complementing and holding together what could have been a real mess of clashing personalities and concepts. On paper The Stoned Immaculate shouldn't work, with Curren$y's stellar track record usually favouring fewer beat makers and relying on a tried and tested small circle of relatively unknown but talented and like-minded friends to add vocal flourishes amongst lush, laid-back instrumentation- the combination of which has always seen Curren$y retain the most workload by far, carrying records on his shoulders like a tort and rippling Greek god, something that has always kept him firmly in the driving seat. Each cut from The Stoned Immaculate see's a variation on the main theme, with certain players infecting a little more personality than others, Daz Dillinger adding a welcome slice of g-funk to the mix, old soul Big K.R.I.T. infuses a little southern soul and even Pharrell pops up behind the boards, injecting some choppy-quasi-future beats while continuing his trend of pretty much always putting himself on his own hook, something that luckily for Pharrell usually turns out just fine. Despite the small army of guests and their relatively seamless intergration here, it's a solo Curren$y joint that is the pick of the crop, the gorgeous "Chandelier" every piece it's namesake- a smooth and sexy number that is fuelled by piano and bass, it drips and oozes something I can't quite describe with words- not even with a picture painted by my sultry and provocative words- the whole thing just fires on all cylinders and is as good an introduction to Curren$y as you'll find, that first little taste to get your goose.

- Jay Edwards.