I love it when projects get released without any real prior warning. Take the third instalment of the exquisite Lice series, which Aesop Rock and Homeboy Sandman have been treating us to for the last couple of years. Friday saw its arrival without much hype building, except for an IG post from Aesop Rock, which pictured him and Sand with the caption “What are you doing Friday? #3”. Read the rest of this entry »
In case you hadn’t heard, billy woods is bringing us a new album with production from Blockhead and Aesop Rock. He already collaborated with Blockhead back in 2013 on Dour Candy, so we know the finished product is going to be something dope. Wonderful is the next leak and features additional verses from Aesop Rock and Homeboy Sandman. The full album is out on 6 June and can be pre-ordered now via Backwoodz Studioz. Read the rest of this entry »
Yesterday I was alerted to the fact that billy woods’ upcoming album is being produced by Aesop Rock & Blockhead. As fans of the two will know, Blockhead produced a lot of Aesop’s earlier work before AR himself took over the reins on Skelethon and The Impossible Kid. It’s fair to say Blockhead’s work had a big influence on Aesop’s own production, so I’m keen to hear how the two of them sound side by side, on the same record. And billy woods always hits the mark anyway, so all in all this should be a pretty damn good project. Groundhogs Day is the first single and is produced by Blockhead. The album, Known Unknowns, is out on 9 June on the Backwoodz Studioz label. Pre-orders are available here.
The second sliver of one of the most anticipated albums of recent times made its appearance yesterday, as Jam Baxter released a video for Teeth Marks.
The track is taken from his forthcoming follow up to So We Ate Them Whole… and is another collaboration with Chemo. This video is a little bit special in itself as it’s made in karaoke style, giving listeners a real insight into the rhyming structure of one of the best lyricists in the UK right now. Read the rest of this entry »
Aesop Rock is my favourite rapper for a number of reasons, including his transparency about his struggle with mental illness.
First time I heard One of Four on the Daylight EP, I was blown away but the honesty and also by how he managed to turn psychological trauma into a decent rap topic. On his most recent album he took a comedic swipe at the world of therapy in Shrunk and yesterday Rhymesayers released an excellent video for the track. Read the rest of this entry »
Hooray for Aesop Rock and Homeboy Sandman. Yesterday they unexpectedly released the follow up to their surprise Lice project, which dropped at the end of last year. I say unexpected, but the day before Aesop started tweeting the hashtag #stillbuggin, which had got fan’s feelers twitching. Read the rest of this entry »
Little bit of a treat here as Aesop Rock has unearthed a children’s song he wrote a few years ago. It was for a project which never came to fruition, so he’s decided to drop it himself as a little gift. Complete with free download and another great illustration from Jeremy Fish, check out My Belly. Downloads are available here.
A couple of weeks ago, Aesop Rock released a new video for Kirby. For those of you who haven’t seen it, or haven’t heard the album yet, Kirby is Ace’s ode to his pet cat and what a tribute it is too. Especially when you combine it with the awesome concept video. No spoilers, just press play and enjoy.
Blueprint has always been a master of storytelling raps – listen to Scared w/ Jake One – so when I heard that he had released a mini murder mystery in hip hop form, I was understandably hyped. Taken from his forthcoming Vigilante Genesis EP, which is produced in full by his friend and frequent collaborator Aesop Rock, Graffiti Writer Killed is a lyrical masterclass in building suspense. I won’t spoil anything, just press play and enjoy the story. Watch out for more news on the EP soon.
Deeply personal new song and video from Aesop Rock, as he reminisces over times past with his brothers. If this is a signal of the overall tone of the new album, then perdonally I can’t wait. I have always admired Aesop for his ability to convey personal emotions on a record (e.g. One of Four) and so this looks like it could be some of his best work yet in my eyes. Pre-orders for the Impossible Kids are available now via Rhymesayers.
