THANK YOU CLAM GOD: New Hip-Hop Thread

[Thermofusion]

Also, Apollo Kids was a pretty good record, and that Ghostdini thing was a mess, sure, but he was trying something new, at least, and it wasn't boring!  Ghost is one of those artists where we kinda judge him unfairly; anything less than an instant classic feels like a disappointment, even if it's a pretty solid record.

Agreed on all counts, and I've also noticed that even the most unremarkable Ghost tracks often contain a killer throwaway line or two that remind you what a left-field lyrical genius the dude is.

[Antero]

Also, Apollo Kids was a pretty good record, and that Ghostdini thing was a mess, sure, but he was trying something new, at least, and it wasn't boring!  Ghost is one of those artists where we kinda judge him unfairly; anything less than an instant classic feels like a disappointment, even if it's a pretty solid record.

I don't know, Apollo Kids felt underbaked to me.

Ghostdini definitely had "Stapleton Sex," which is amazing.

[elpollodiablo]

Must say, I didn't get I'm Gay at all. A lot of the rhymes are totally cheesy and the production left me cold. Something I'm missing?

[Thermofusion]

Is it your first time listening to Lil B?

[elpollodiablo]

Yeah

[Thermofusion]

It's an unusual record for him. I don't know, dude wears a lot of different hats which makes it hard to come up with recommendations. I think "Based Blunts Vol 1" hits a lot of those hats (a dash of 'new age Lil B', a dash of 'reflexive hip hop culture jammer Lil B', a dash of 'accidentally avant garde Lil B') and will probably enable you to make up your mind about him pretty quickly.

Also man it is hard to talk about Lil B without sounding like a pretentious fuck.

[elpollodiablo]

Yeah, "accidentally avant garde" also sounds pretty condescending.

But yeah that track that opens with the Obama sample... Bluh. Is that at all representative of his work in the main?

[Antero]

I don't think B's ever been "accidentally" avant garde.  I don't think he necessarily conceived of it as such, but everything he does is 100% intentional.

There is really no such thing as a representative Lil B track.  I'm Gay is definitely the closest he's come to, like, a conventional album though.

[Thermofusion]

I mean I think Lil B's a genius, so I didn't intend to slight him with that phrasing. I think I wrote a long post once about how certain tracks of his set off the same receptors in my head as a lot of 60s-70s "downtown music" does, and how my interpreting it as avant garde probably has more to do with my baggage as a listener than it does his intent (Lil B is all about openness and lack of pretense, while I find the phrase "avant garde" kind of immediately divisive). Anyway!

I like I'm Gay a lot, but it treads different turf than anything else I've heard by him. I'd dare to call it the biggest stylistic outlier of his output so far, but dude's so prolific that I couldn't really say that comfortably.

Of course, all of this is much ado about nothing, you might hear a few more tracks of his and decide it's completely idiotic! He's the rorschach test of new rap.

[elpollodiablo]

That track I mentioned above did certainly strike me as completely idiotic.

[Antero]

I would listen to "I'm God" or "Motivation," or one of the other Clams Casino produced tracks.  That's a golden partnership there.

Alternately, "Ellen Degeneres," which is perhaps the single weirdest song I have ever heard.

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Also, yeah, that track with the Obama into is definitely my least favorite on the album... or at least, it's so saccharine that it walks the edge of tolerance, and is redeemed largely by Lil B's infinite earnestness.

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Random: The random-internet-cut "I Cry" involves an auto-tuned Lil B singing Antony & The Johnsons.

[Thermofusion]

Alternately, "Ellen Degeneres," which is perhaps the single weirdest song I have ever heard.

Anyone else interpret Lil B's cooking songs as kind of a sideways send-up of Lex Luger-style rap?

[Antero]

Alternately, "Ellen Degeneres," which is perhaps the single weirdest song I have ever heard.

Anyone else interpret Lil B's cooking songs as kind of a sideways send-up of Lex Luger-style rap?

Nope.  While his swag-rap has gotten a little harder sonically, the whole thing was concurrent with, and in fact slightly ahead of, Lex Luger's prominence.

That's not to say there's no relevant interaction - Noz wrote somewhere that Lil B was ahead of basically the entire world on Waka Flocka as a rapper rather than a Gucci Mane hypeman.  But the cooking thing is quite independent.  If anything, it seems like elements of it are a fractured reaction to "Crank Dat Soulja Boy."

Now, what IS a total send-up is Tyler/Jasper/Taco's "BSD," which is an homage/parody of both Lex Luger gothic-orchestral bangers and Lil B swag rap (including direct references to the latter).

"I bought a fuckin whale
'cause I'm ballin"

[Antero]

New Weezy tape.

[Antero]

It ends with a Weezy based freestyle with multipe Lil Waynes screaming at us at once over "Pon De Floor", shout outs to the Based God and Jay Rock, "Rest in peace John F. Kennedy," "HIT A BITCH WITH A CAR BOMB HIT A BITCH WITH A CAR BOMB HIT A BITCH WITH A CAR BOMB," &c &c

[dieblucasdie]

Yeah, I cannot imagine any circumstances under which pollo would like a Lil B album.  Pollo, go listen to Rain in England and post your response.  Really, though, I know you're wanting some new rap, so you should listen to Pl3dge.  You would like Pl3dge.

Also, I love "Gon Be Okay" (the Obama sample one).  That shit is hilarious.  I would definitely listen to a whole album of Lil B fake-soul songs.

[Thermofusion]

Noz wrote somewhere that Lil B was ahead of basically the entire world on Waka Flocka as a rapper rather than a Gucci Mane hypeman.

This is definitely spot-on. Also I loved how everyone's opinions of Waka did 180s seemingly overnight (I ain't gonna front, he went from being one of my least favorite rappers to one of my faves within the span of about 3 minutes)

[elpollodiablo]

Yeah, I cannot imagine any circumstances under which pollo would like a Lil B album.  Pollo, go listen to Rain in England and post your response.  Really, though, I know you're wanting some new rap, so you should listen to Pl3dge.  You would like Pl3dge.

Y'know I did listen to some of this while moving a couple of weeks ago. It was okay, but some of it was a little too wheedlingly conscious & topical for my tastes.

[Thermofusion]

Yeah I can't think of any rap you'd like honestly. Contralto-voiced widows strumming guitars isn't among the current production trends.

[elpollodiablo]

Yeah you're right there's no rap I'd like.

[dieblucasdie]

Pollo you should listen to Thank Me Later

[Thermofusion]

totally

[elpollodiablo]

All things being equal, I don't know that Drake could do much worse than "Gon Be Okay"

[ellaguru]

On a related note, I had fun doing cooking dances at the gigs I went to on the weekend.

[dieblucasdie]

Pollo you should listen to Pink Friday