The first and possibly only masterpiece of 2007
After three listens I still I don’t fully understand this album enough to do a proper review. But I'll Sleep When You're Dead finds El-P raising the bar to a level that I cant see being topped this year. I used to write him off as a noisy king of the backpackers, but now he’s incorporated actual melody into his chaos to marvelous results. Part B-Boy, part apocalyptic visionary, part cynical critic, this is what happens when (Cannibal Ox's) The Cold Vein wakes up from an almost 6 year coma angry and totally devoid of hope. El-P has rewritten the book on multi-layering and broken into his own as a full fledged composer, managing to bring artists like Cat Power and The Mars Volta (neither of whom I'd probably give the time of day) to perfectly fit in his world. Do not attempt to listen to this album if you aren’t ready for your head to be taken to a different place. It’s nothing short of hard work perfected into brilliance, and most other hip-hop will pale in comparison until it dares to push the envelope like this while simultaneously succeeding at sounding good.
After three listens I still I don’t fully understand this album enough to do a proper review. But I'll Sleep When You're Dead finds El-P raising the bar to a level that I cant see being topped this year. I used to write him off as a noisy king of the backpackers, but now he’s incorporated actual melody into his chaos to marvelous results. Part B-Boy, part apocalyptic visionary, part cynical critic, this is what happens when (Cannibal Ox's) The Cold Vein wakes up from an almost 6 year coma angry and totally devoid of hope. El-P has rewritten the book on multi-layering and broken into his own as a full fledged composer, managing to bring artists like Cat Power and The Mars Volta (neither of whom I'd probably give the time of day) to perfectly fit in his world. Do not attempt to listen to this album if you aren’t ready for your head to be taken to a different place. It’s nothing short of hard work perfected into brilliance, and most other hip-hop will pale in comparison until it dares to push the envelope like this while simultaneously succeeding at sounding good.
No comments:
Post a Comment