4 out of 5

Label: Rhymesayers

Produced by: Ant

I’ve had this shifting narrative about what this album “is” in the Atmosphere catalogue, primarily to it being referred to as a mixtape. It’s… part of a series of cassettes recorded before Atmosphere was Atmosphere, and it was the Headshots crew – hence the name – but this is also conceived of as the second Atmosphere album after Overcast!

But then, again, it’s also constantly called a mixtape.

If Overcast! was an intended mic drop – battle tracks; braggadocio – Headshots: Se7en is just, like, having fun. It contains battles, it contains tracks about getting girls and getting got by girls, and it contains small spatterings of life-ly musings, and then some general Slug playfulness of smart lines he giggled when stringing together, but it’s all delivered with this very open-ended on-to-the-next-one vibe that is just delightful. Overcast! can be a bit cringe for all its bravado; Se7en has none of that, even if steeped in some of the same juvenilia, because Slug, Ant and their guests are just kinda letting the tape roll. And if that sounds like it’d be capturing sketches or demos, you’re discounting how battle-sharpened this crew was; a compilation of one-off tracks recorded over the years ends up sounding more polished and purposeful than 99% of their peers, then or now.

Of course, that lack of definition is probably why this has continued to be called a mixtape (setting aside that that’s literally what it was – a mix of songs originally on tape), and is the plus – it’s so light and fun! – and also the minus, in that the 21 tracks have no extractable vibe. Songs wander; the album wanders. But, amazingly, that 70 minutes of wandering is also never boring.

Ant sticks to a very bouncy range of old school beats, enhanced with choice samples. I tended to find his more soulful era a bit stale; I love that 2010s-era Ant somewhat returned to this classic style, which favors a higher-toned, peppier beat. Slug is very awake, very clever; his guests are fun but don’t necessarily come off as well, sticking to battle stuff.

There are, for sure, select tracks from every Atmosphere album that serve as great singles to show off what they’re capable of; Headshots: Se7en is honestly the only album I would hand someone as evidence. Lacking definite singles, I admittedly tend to overlook it, but it’s so enjoyable top down that once I put it on, it stays on for a while.