Review: Death Grips

Death Grips niggas on the moon (Harvest/Third Worlds, 2014)

Death Grips have never taken a conventional approach in releasing their albums, with 2012's NO LOVE DEEP WEB being leaked by the group against the will of their ex-record label, Epic, and 2013's Government Plates dropping out of the blue to the delight of hype-beasts and experimental hip-hop junkies everywhere. niggas on the moon was no exception to this rule, with their latest release going viral via their Facebook page, with little more than the information that the Icelandic avant-garde veteran, Björk, features on all 8 tracks, alongside the kind words "have a sad cum bb". The post was then signed off from "us", which incidentally has caused much dispute over the album's controversial title considering the ethnic backgrounds of both the drummer and producer in the band.

Rory Ferreira A.K.A Milo, nerd-rap's "loquacious public speaker", had an awful lot to say about say about the choice of the title niggas on the moon almost immediately after the album's release early in the morning of the 9th of June, stating that "two white dudes [Zach Hill and Andy Morin] just put out a record called niggas on the moon and i hate them for it". A bold comment with logical reasoning, no doubt, but Twitter's general lack of acknowledgement towards to the album title really epitomises the current state of hip-hop lyricism whereby the 'n word' has become almost meaningless. The offence that the word once carried has effectively been forgotten and thus it is used in the bad taste that Ferreira spoke of more often nowadays, so it will be interesting to see the band's reaction to the criticism at a future date.

The album's content, however, is indisputable, and although it is clear that the band has taken yet another extensive change in direction with their latest release being driven by MC Ride's fervent raps as opposed to the synthesisers and percussion loops that very much distinguished Government Plates, the band's most powerful attributes have been grinded together and in doing so, Death Grips have produced their most refined work as of yet, and what can only be described as a contemporary masterpiece. niggas on the moon opens with a thunderous track, "Up My Sleeves", that really sets the scene for the album as it is characterised by the violent darkness of Ride's lyrics; 'I was conceived by my disease' being a particularly stand out line with it feeling like an extension of NO LOVE DEEP WEB's introductory track "Come Up and Get Me" due to the harshness and brutality of Ride's raspy flow.

One thing that can be said for listening to the album for the first time is that it is certainly difficult to follow, with aggressive lyrics being lost in the mix of noisy drum patterns and Björk samples on "Have A Sad Cum" and footwork-like production on "Voila" adding a new dimension to the niggas on the moon experience. It is an album that unforgivingly forces itself upon you and leaks frenzied energy into your eardrums, but as far as experimental music goes, the first half of this album is an absolute game-changer.

Mixtape Roundup, Volume 1

After the success of Joe Sherwood's 'Cassette Roundup' series, I figured that I had also better host a set of reviews for my own series that is based on my primarily-rap-orientated personal taste, because let's be honest, who doesn't like a mixtape or two?

The way in which hip-hop has functioned as a genre has transformed dramatically over recent years due to the introduction of the internet and the wider advertisement that artists are able to get as a consequence of this, and although mixtapes have been knockin' about since the 70s, the birth of the internet mixtape was a pivotal point for the music industry due to its easy accessibility. I am here to make this an even easier journey for you by bringing the hottest mixtapes straight to your screens on a regular basis, and I've even thrown in a couple of links and what not because I'm just that nice a guy.

Enjoy.


Big Narstie What's The Story? Brixton Glory (Dice Recordings, 2014)

Whether it's his vibrant vocabulary of London slang or his comically nonchalant approach to slating the week's latest singles for FACT magazine, there has always been something undeniably lovable about MC and founder of the Base Defence League, Big Narstie, and his latest EP, What's The Story? Brixton Glory, is testament to his charming presence in the UK grime scene. Sure the beats aren't exceptional, and there are some more than questionable sample choices such as 'Clocks' by Coldplay and of course '(What's The Story) Morning Glory?' by Oasis, the track by which the entire mixtape is based around, but Uncle Pain continues to have no difficulty in persuading avid grime enthusiasts nationwide that he is in fact one of the founding fathers of this generation of grime; his energetic vibes and tongue-in-cheek bars are qualities to be admired by any emerging young rapper. A word of advice: make sure that you take as much as possible from the experience of listening to Big Narstie, and whatever you do, do not fuck up the base.




CyHi The Prynce Black Hystori Project (G.O.O.D. Music, 2014)

In a recent interview with Complex, Cydel Young revealed that his inspiration for Black Hystori Project was actually his nephew's school teacher who claimed that he wasn't 'monumental' enough to be considered for a report in black history month at the school. So, to retaliate to this claim, CyHi got on the phone to his close friend Kanye West and began to work on his own project that would cover historic milestones that changed the way in which blacks were seen in society with an inevitable G.O.O.D. Music spin on things. Not a bad way to prove a point, huh?

Of course, the influence of West is almost inescapably obvious, especially on tracks such as 'Mandela' whereby CyHi refers to himself as being "Muhammad to the rap game", similar to Kanye's God complex personality that shines through particularly strongly on his controversially titled Yeezus. However, this powerful lyricism is more than fitting considering the strong nature of the thematic imagery as Young schools the listener about the uprising of black community figures such as Desmond Tutu (the first black Archbishop of Cape Town) that contributed to the resolution of apartheid in South Africa, all over TEC BEATZ and Sekou Muhammed's hard-hitting drum loops.

Black Hystori Project is easily CyHi The Prynce's greatest work as of yet, and with Hardway Musical scheduled to be released later this year, I shall be eagerly waiting to see whether it lives up to the high expectations set by his latest tape.

Review: Young Fathers

Young Fathers DEAD (Big Dada, 2014)

Ever since leaving Black Sugar Records in 2011, this Scottish alternative hip-hop trio have moved further and further from their self-proclaimed "psychedelic hip-hop boy band" sound and into a far darker realm of the genre, carrying with them their trademark percussive sound and ever-faithful young hipster fan base. DEAD perfectly embodies this vehement movement as it isn't only a showcase of their most emotion-heavy work to date, it is also a conscious blend of the group's mixed heritage of Nigeria, Liberia and Scotland, with proof of the latter coming through eminently in the droning bagpipe and military drum ridden opening track 'No Way' which sets the tone for the rest of the album; a raspy procession of intoxicating rhythm and blues numbers, with strong overtones of abstract hip-hop and intelligently cultivated production.

NME dubbed the band as being "locked somewhere between De La Soul and 3T, but re-imagined for the hipster generation." which is an undoubtedly fitting description as DEAD clearly wasn't created with the intention of appealing to mainstream audiences, it appears to be more of a statement of anti-genericism which is also a strong theme in De La Soul's critically acclaimed 1989 debut 3 Feet High And Rising. Despite the unconventional feel, however, all tracks bar one clock in at under 4 minutes long, making it a tightly wound project that is constantly shifting between the twisted and distorted beats that effortlessly merge together in a sonic frisson similar to that of the works of Seattle-based Shabazz Palaces.

Young Fathers' collective lyrical dexterity is among the strongest assets on this project, with powerful hooks and profound verses being an immanent feature throughout the album. A track that epitomises this literary mastery is 'War' which begins with the lyric "big fish little pond/more like a whale in the motherfucking ocean" to portray strong feelings of desperation and solitude before continuing to tell the story of a mother that lost her child through the tragedy of warfare; Massaquoi and Bankole don't make it a comfortable listen by any standards.

For me, DEAD is a paragon of the warped musical universe that Young Fathers have created through their immense communal understanding of the various genres that are explored in their work, and although it may not be their most mind-blowing album to date, it is distinguishable as a project that challenges the audience as well as pushing the boundaries of their own musical capabilities. With this in mind, the future holds much potential for Young Fathers, and it'll be more than interesting to see which route they continue down in forthcoming releases.

Review: Eminem

Eminem Marshall Mathers LP 2 (Aftermath Entertainment)

I haven't a fucking clue how to open this review, so I shan't. Here's a (Facebook) dialogue of mine and Joe Sherwood's time with the Marshall Mathers LP 2:

Gilbey: My iTunes play count for MMLP2 currently stands at 18 and I still don't have the foggiest clue whether I love it or not. Thinking about it, its a hell of a lot better than Recovery although that isn't too hard I guess... yeah I love it.
Sherwood: tbf recovery was a pile of crap. this however... its much better than anything I thought a man of ems vintage could produce
Gilbey: I think his vintage has actually worked to his advantage on this is I'm honest. Most of the beats that he and Rubin worked on are testament to many of the tracks on the first LP, that's probably why I like Brainless so much... that beat is raw.
Sherwood: yeah man, having heard the beat for rap god i wasn't exactly expecting much, but on the whole i have to say the production is above average for late-period em.
Sherwood: speaking of rap god... what do you think of it
Gilbey: Well let's just put it this way, when he was on Radio 1 with Zane Lowe on Monday and revealed that he freestyled the whole track, I think I creamed... his flow is just absolutely untouchable. That shit about Ray J and Fabolous? My gosh that had me in bits.
Sherwood: if it was indeed a freestyle, then i guess em truly is the goat. shame he had to do it all over a wack beat
Sherwood: and the homophobia aint gonna win him any points in these hyperaware times

Gilbey: Talking of which, that Craig Jenkins Pitchfork review really pissed me off... I think he slated his controversial lyrics more than they reviewed the actual musical content. I'll admit that his politically incorrect slurs go too far sometimes but come ON man, it doesn't make him a bad rapper...

Sherwood: well em is operating within a genre which is heavily reliant on lyrics
Sherwood: but yeah you still cant knock his technical ability

Gilbey: Despite that, 90% of his lyrics are absolutely stellar, you can appreciate that after just listening to the first 30 seconds or so of Rap God. "...they said I rap like a robot so call be Rapbot. But for me to rap like a computer must be in my genes/jeans, I've got a laptop in my back pocket." JEEEEEEEZ

Sherwood: especially if theyre straight off the top of his dome

Gilbey: I actually read somewhere - I think it was in Complex's interview with Rick Rubin - that he writes lyrics all day every day to keep his mind exercised, and that he discards about 98% of the raps he writes. Surely that's gotta make him one of the most committed in the game?

Sherwood: probably, its just that said commitment is no substitute for quality lyrics, something hes lacked of late

Gilbey: Fair point, I thought his references to I'm Back and The Real Slim Shady in So Far... were pretty damn cool though, ngl. Anyway enough of the lyrics, what about the features?

Sherwood: fuck rihanna, all im saying
Sherwood: kendrick had a good turn on love game tho, some quality punchline rapping

Gilbey: To add to that, fuck Nate Ruess.

Sherwood: tru say

Gilbey: Kendrick's verse is so hard. Its been nice to see him feature on a lot of tracks in 2013 actually, he seems to have a very different street-smart persona when rapping on his own tracks to his comical, almost angry, approach on tracks like Nosetalgia and Control

Sherwood: its great having em and kendrick on the same track. like, one of mainstream hip-hops biggest artists collaborating with one of mainstream hip-hops most promising stars

Gilbey: I posted on Twitter a while ago that Kendrick's got the potential to become the greatest rapper alive and I'd definitely still stand by that. YOU WANNA SEE A DEAD BODY?

Sherwood: on a slightly related note, dig the kendrick sample on 18+ new mixtape
Sherwood: back on topic doe
Sherwood: is mmlp2 something of a swansong? a new beginning? or just another record?

Gilbey: That's an interesting one actually. I certainly wouldn't say its a swansong because he's still easily got another couple of albums in him, from what I've seen in interviews and documentaries he treats rap like a way of life so he'll want to hold onto it for as long as he can. A new beginning however... I'm really not sure, its difficult to say considering its a sequel to a 13 year old album. We'll just have to wait and see I guess

Sherwood: so, another record? id say so, albeit better than all of his recent stuff

Gilbey: Yeah I'd say its his best piece since The Eminem Show 11 years ago, loved that shit. One last thing, Em won a Global Icon Award at the MTV EMAs for MMLP2... deserved?

Sherwood: hmmm, probably. em IS a global icon, and mmlp2 is a pretty decent album of his, so alls good in my book

Review: Milo

Milo Cavalcade (Hellfyre Club, 2013)

Milo, member of Scribble Jam champion Nocando's label Hellfyre Club, is the latest breakthrough in abstract hip-hop. You may be questioning yourself, "Abstract hip-hop? What on earth could that possibly imply?", but after listening to any of his 5 acclaimed releases, it will soon become strikingly clear. His music has been dubbed by Rate Your Music as being a part of the rap sub-genre 'nerdcore', and with track names such as 'Sophistry and Illusion' and lyrics based around 'boiling the elements down into the axioms', it is evident that Milo clearly isn't your generic rap artist.

Cavalcade is a mixtape that showcases the self-reflective and mindful lyrics that truly epitomise Milo, and although I have thoroughly enjoyed every piece of work since his debut album I Wish My Brother Rob Was Here, I feel like his lyrical adeptness and general artistic awareness have evolved dramatically over the past two years and have harmoniously mingled together to create one of the most conceptual mixtapes of 2013. This 'awareness' comes through well in the first track, 'Geometry and Theology', which contains a thought-provoking concept from the late Ludwig Wittgenstein in the opening minute about the origins of language, and then transitions to a dreamy spoken-word verse that flits between themes of the generic fangirl on Twitter and the Book of Ezekiel in the Old Testament. It sounds like it should be an awkward mish-mash of trivial nonsense, but in reality, it works so perfectly well.

Although none of the tracks on Cavalcade reduced me to tears like 'The Ballad of Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy' on the EP Milo Takes Baths so very nearly did, producer Riley Lake's airy, dream-like production really creates an overwhelming atmosphere; the samples from America and shadowy drum beats fluctuate between creating a quiet, ambient atmosphere and a strangely pleasant harsh one.

All in all, Cavalcade marks the beginning of a promising career for Milo, and I am thoroughly intrigued as to whether he shall continue in this direction on future releases.
 

Reviews: Young Fathers, Paisley Parks and Pharmakon

Young Fathers Tape Two (Anticon, 2013)

The Edinburgh-based Young Fathers are an alternative rap trio, and Tape Two follows 2011's impressive Tape One. Since then, they've signed to Anticon Records, and this latest release sees them drop some of the lofi-ness of their debut. I say some, because they haven't exactly gone crystal-clear yet, and Tape Two is still grottier than your average squeaky clean hip-hop release.

"I Heard" opens the proceedings with a croon reminiscent of The Weeknd, and almost-whispered rapping over a mysterious drum pattern. Elsewhere on Tape Two there are a variety of sounds which are all indebted to traditionally black music; the album abounds with tribal drums and vocals heard in Afro-pop, and the aforementioned heartfelt crooning harkens back to soul music. One criticism of Tape Two is the rather pointless 51 second interlude "Bones", which serves no real purpose other than to pad out what is a rather short release; the all-too-brief length of Tape Two is another criticism of mine. On the whole though, this album/EP is satisfying enough, and it definitely whets my appetite for future Young Fathers material.

Paisley Parks Бｈ○§† (Pan Pacific Playa, 2013)

Footwork isn't an exclusively Chicagoan scene, you know. Paisley Parks are part of a wave of Japanese footworkers, and they've been putting out material since 2011. I knew nothing of them until earlier in the year, when Tiny Mix Tapes writer C Monster featured their new album, Бｈ○§†, in the webzine's "Chocolate Grinder" section. His write-up made the album sound fairly interesting, and being the sheep that I am, I checked it out. And, well... it wasn't quite as good as he (or TMT reviewer Birkut) would have you believe.

Part of the problem I have with Бｈ○§† is that I'm not entirely sure what it aspires to be; it treads the line between parody, homage and sincerity so finely that it leaves me confused as to what the intentions of the project actually are. Take the track "There’s no pain killer anymore", which all but steals elements from DJ Rashad's "We Trippy Mane". Not a problem in and of itself, but when combined with stuff like the frankly annoying “Pai-Pai-Pai-Pai-Paisley Parks” production tag, I cannot decide whether Paisley Parks are critiquing and mimicking footwork conventions, or if they simply want the listener to move their feet to the music. Maybe I'm reading a little too far into this one. That aside, Бｈ○§† overstays its welcome a little bit at just over an hour in length, and tracks vary in quality, but it's also a strangely addictive album that does have a few choice cuts, namely stand-out track "G.H.O.S.T", and I do admire Paisley Parks for providing a new spin on footwork and juke, even if it isn't always all that successful.

Pharmakon Abandon (Sacred Bones, 2013)

Abandon begins with a tortured scream, and from there on in Pharmakon grabs you by the throat and plunges you into a dark place. A place where chains rattle, electronics groan and any signs of humanity are distorted beyond any decipherability. This is a resolutely murky album, and as a power electronics/death industrial record it has earned comparisons to the likes of Throbbing Gristle and Wolf Eyes, as well as the Hospital Productions roster.

Industrial music and power electronics are oftentimes quite repetitious affairs, wherein electronic effects, noises and drum patterns are looped and stretched out, and Abandon is no different in that respect. Like others operating in the genre, Pharmakon is effective in her employment of sheer noise and metallic, spine-tingling drums to create harsh, sometimes brutal atmospheres, and that indeed is what Abandon is all about; the long, pulsating sections of ambience are unsettling, even on record. Imagine what it'd be like to witness this live. Perhaps Pharmakon's greatest achievement, however, is the relative accessibility of this release; I'd say that most people could find something to enjoy in Abandon's deepest and darkest crevices, which isn't always the case for extreme music.

(Not So) Retrospectives: Death Grips

A name on the lips of many a music blogger, and fans of music in general, is Death Grips, the alternative hip-hop outfit (comprised of Stefan "MC Ride" Burnett, and producers Zach Hill and Andy Morin) that has dealt with a fair amount of controversy in the past few days and months. Following the April release of The Money Store, the groups major label debut, it became clear that they were certainly worth keeping an eye out for, especially considering they had teased at No Love, the follow-up album, which was to be released in the fall. No Love became No Love Deep Web, and the album was cryptically teased further through a series of archive files, that revealed details about the release in Braille, QR code, and Morse, but to name a few. It quickly became one of the most highly anticipated releases of the year, but the saga took a turn for the stranger when record label Epic allegedly pushed the release back to 2013. The group took issue with this, and in one of the most daring stances against a major label ever, No Love Deep Web was self-released by Death Grips on October 1. To top off the controversial manner of its release, the artwork was revealed to be an erect phallus, complete with the album's title Sharpied onto it. No Love Deep Web has had over 30 million legal downloads since its release, and in the past few days, the group have been dropped by Epic, in a move that suprised nobody. So, here's to Death Grips; 2012's most brilliant troublemakers. Oh, and the albums are pretty good as well.


The Money Store

Following Exmilitary, the 2011 mixtape, Death Grips were an exciting prospect, and with The Money Store, they just about fulfilled all of their promises. To describe the album, one could only use the word harsh; from the production to the lyrics, The Money Store is brash, often alienating, but always thrilling. And in a world filled with prima donna popstars and "rappers", the album is an adrenaline rush, and a wildly exciting experience. The production is abrasive and loud, with an eclectic range of influences, from rave to techno, to DnB to electro. Lyrics deal with racial issues, paranoia, and an age of materialism, particularly in closer Hacker, where pop culture references are dropped at will - MC Ride shouts that Gaga can't handle this shit, after claiming he will make your waters break in the Apple store - and it flows as a stream of consciousness, off-the-top-of-the-head piece of writing. The album is an outpouring of rage, and is gleefully unfocused in doing so. Overall then, The Money Store remains one of the calendar year's most essential listens, and is certainly a contender for album of the year. For any fans of Exmilitary worried about the group going pop following their major record deal, The Money Store is a chaotic, angry affirmation that they needn't fret.




No Love Deep Web 

In the aftermath of The Money Store, you could be forgiven for being excited about No Love Deep Web, the second album released by Death Grips in 2012. The downright bizarre, albeit innovative, promotion of No Love Deep Web only heightened the hype surrounding it. Just as it seemingly reached fever pitch, the albums release date was pushed back to 2013; the rest, as was explained in the opening paragraph, is history. So, here we have the single most controversial release of the year, in all its glory. How does it stack up against its predecessor? As it turns out, the group can be even more angry; the album is fairly sample-less, with dark Roland drum machine sounds being the key component of the production, and the production certainly feels a little colder, aggressive even, for it. Lyrics are, true to form, shouty and brimming with anger; suicide seems to be a constant running throughout No Love Deep Web, as MC Ride asks you to "Die with me/ Blow out the lights, take your life/ Ride the falling sky with me". He also comes across as quite fierce, more so than ever, providing quotables such as "I'm the coat hanger in your man's vagina", found on track Deep Web. No Love Deep Web is an undeniably riotous listen, and although it doesn't match the sheer inventiveness of The Money Store, it is intriguing nonetheless, and well worth the free download.