Spectreview: Earl Sweatshirt – FEET OF CLAY

-LIGHT SLATE BLUE-

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“I’m not on board with the board you try and lead me on
I’m pullin’ strings, it’s time to let me off
The cook’ll singe you
Protect your neck and don’t forget the heart”

It’s fitting that Thebe Kgositsile’s dropping one last project as the finish line for the decade approaches. The man that, for marketing purposes, still goes by Earl Sweatshirt has built up a reputation as one of the defining rap artists of the 2010’s. Born to a law professor and a deadbeat South African poet laureate, his pedigree reads as flawless, but he has the flows and the vocabulary to back it up. His earliest mixtapes brought horrorcore to a new level of national recognition, and his loose flows and warped songs provided the inspiration for countless budding artists especially as Soundcloud was constructing a foundation for contemporary underground rap. His role as the young technical centerpiece of Odd Future helped bring the controversial zeitgeist-defining group both widespread fame and critical acclaim, and the narrative surrounding his disappearance from the rap scene remains a classically fascinating tale of how the marketing power of the Internet can be harnessed.

Throughout his career, Kgositsile has made a name for himself as one of rap’s most creative lyricists, with a penchant for layering assonance over metaphors like baklava, and as he’s evolved as a solo artist his productions have become as transcendentally original as his raps. Last year’s Some Rap Songs set a new precedent, pairing his signature lyrical onslaughts with perfectly muddy, fractured backing tracks that feel pulled right out of the garbage disposal. Now free from a recording contract with Columbia Records, he’s primed for more exploratory ventures, and the ultra-short, ultra-layered FEET OF CLAY bears the mark of an artist attempting to sharpen what made Some Rap Songs work so effectively. Despite the dying status of song collections, EPs are still used by artists to signal change, and though sonically this EP feels at times like an interchangeable companion piece to his previous LP, its relative brevity and flirtation with non-traditional hip-hop samples lends it enough differentiation to be its own piece.

At just over 15 minutes long, it’s perhaps the quickest Earl Sweatshirt project yet, though this is not a situation where its shortness becomes a liability; as with most of his output, Kgositsile often crams more in two bars than many rappers can (or choose) to say in an entire track. One could argue that any more length could potentially be extraneous, as references to basketball, iconic rap songs, current events and his own streetwear line are littered across the bars at such an unceasing frequency it’ll certainly take more than a few listens to unpack it all. Opening number “74” sees him snapping into action right out the gate, laying down a state-of-the-union address that would be breathless if we weren’t consciously aware of how brazenly continuous his flow is. From then on it’s essentially a verbal torrent battering the ears, and just as on Some Rap Songs the meter matters almost none, especially on the chaotic vortex of “OD” and the bewildering accordion loop of “EAST”.  On “EL TORO COMBO MEAL” feature Mazi stands side by side with the bars, whiplashing across his minute with startling acuity, though when it comes back to Earl, the differences in wordplay and theming are subtle but prominent. It’s not until the closing track that we see any space, which makes the disconcerting, pillowy bookends of “4N” almost cavernous in comparison.

Similarly to its predecessor, at times it feels like there’s too much decipherable meaning stuffed into his words, if there could be such a thing. Kgositsile bears almost an addiction to double entendres that occasionally threaten to rob his rhymes of clarity or urgency. It’s a molehill of a problem though, especially considering the record’s all-encompassing thorniness. Multiple layers is Earl Sweatshirt’s schtick, and his followers are well aware of it. Whether the EP’s title is laden with a characteristic, punchline-like self-loathing or meant to evoke the indomitable Cassius Clay is beside the point – most likely, it’s both. What’s important is that Kgositsile’s delivered yet another project that feels like a clinic in lyrical composition, and it’s more heartening than frustrating that he keeps his words inscrutable and lets his listeners put the pieces together. Regardless of how much he wants to change up the formula in the future, FEET OF CLAY, in spite of its slightness, still makes an impact as one of this year’s most complex, knotted rap releases.

Recommended for sunlight flickering through bare trees.