Reviewed by Tony Cummings

Atlanta native Alex Faith has been slowly making a name for himself in the crowded hip-hop underground. After releasing a mixtape in 2012 he now delivers, with the help of Collision Records and a bevy of all star guests, one of the best hip-hop releases of the last couple of years. Standouts abound. "City Of Nightmares" is a hard-hitting depiction of urban chaos juxtaposed with glimpses of Heaven. With an inventive production and some passages where Alex goes into a superfast flow the effect is hugely powerful. Equally good are the three tracks featuring Collision Records labelmate Christon Gray, with Christon's soulful vocals adding memorable hooks to the emcee's verbal barrage. Big names like Trip Lee and Andy Mineo add their support while the most surprising cut of all is "Refuge". When I saw it described as an "interlude" I expected one of those rather pointless tongue-in-cheek aberrations so loved in hip-hop culture. But here Odd Thomas from Humble Beast Records delivers a spoken diatribe aimed at people who support with empty words rather than biblical commitment. Possibly the best track is "Pull Up" featuring Tedashii and Corey P which is a quintessential head-nodding party track. Alex said in an interview recently, "Everyone goes through life trying to get somewhere. This destination we all have to arrive at is always and ultimately going to be at the feet of Jesus." 'ATLast' makes this point crystal clear.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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