Visions Of Bodies Being Burned - Clipping: Review
is the experimental rap group consisting of producers William Hutson and Jonathan Snipes alongside rapper Daveed Diggs. The group quickly established themselves as some of the genres most interesting and unique projects with a willingness to indulge in wild experiments and narrative concepts. Their 4th record last year There Existed An Addiction To Blood was an experiment in horror-rap that came from the bands immense appreciation for horror movies. The appreciation turned out to be deep enough that they produced a whole 2nd albums worth of material under a similar concept, which makes up most of the tracks here on Visions Of Bodies Being Burned.
Review By Lavender:
Clipping has been one of the best acts around in any genre for the past decade. Since I started writing about music in 2016 they may be the best act period given how they've monopolized spots on my year end lists as one of only 2 (or kind of 3) artists to ever appear on both the Singles and Songs lists every year since their inception. This was enough to have me incredibly excited for whatever the band was planning on releasing next, but what made this my most anticipated album of the year was the trilogy of incredible singles they released leading up to the project. while maintaining that level of quality was always going to be nearly impossible the band comes really really close on what may be their best album to date.
First let's talk singles, because any of the three songs the band released over the last two months can go toe to toe with the best tracks I've heard all year. After an explosive rollercoaster of an intro the record kick off with Say The Name. The song is backed by an absolutely perfect pounding beat but it's the confidence behind Daveed's delivery and his demeanor that helps his amazing verses soaring over the instrumental as he drops slick horror themed bars one after another. The subtle intensity of the performance is so tangible it'll make you shiver while you'll simultaneously have a tough time not singing along. I fell in love with the song as a single and haven't wavered on it one bit since. It's a similar story with 96' Neve Campbell which carries on Clipping's ability to grab remarkable features for their projects. I know I've heard Cam & China somewhere before but I just can't pin it, regardless it couldn't have been as good as they are here because they both manage to drop killer verses. Cam in particular fits right into Daveed's up tempo rapping style and they all pay tributes to scream queen style horror movie heroes over a dark rattling instrumental making for a major highlight. The band went an incredibly strong 3/3 on singles with the track Pain Everyday. The song pairs absolutely manic percussion with Daveed's rapid fire flow switch-ups and constant lyrical assault of horror themes. The track details recently deceased ghosts tracking down and haunting their murderers until the torment drives them all to suicide, yeah that's really what the song is about. Daveed's ability to weave this story into his perfectly tight series of verses may be one of the most remarkable things on the entire record and the track is a big hit.
There's no point in playing around here pretty much the entire record is highlights so lets dive right in to one great song after another. Something Underneath features a creaky abstract instrumental over which Daveed fires off some ridiculously fast verses against a climbing wall of distortion. Hearing the sounds fight each other off for space as the song goes on is absolutely awesome and adds a ton of intensity to the track. There are a lot of metaphors flying left and right in the lyrics and while I can't make a perfectly coherent assessment of the songs storyline it's clearly there and working with a very strong concept. Make Them Dead opens up with what I like to call "The Clipping Special" AKA a short passage of absolutely wailing distortion before kicking the songs core instrumental off. Lyrically the song dabbles in themes of justice sometimes through mob action and other times on a near biblical scale. The hook features ominous spoken word alongside ethereal distant voices whispering "dead" over and over. The track is reserved at points but hits all the right notes at it's intimidating and often terrifying climaxes and I really enjoy it.
Check The Lock has emerged as one of my favorite songs on the record as Daveed trades out his rapid fire delivery to jump on a much smoother flow as he details a Goodfellas type story of a drug dealers increasing paranoia. The beat is simple but incredibly catchy especially when paired with the tight verses and infectious hook. Everything just comes off so smooth even though the song also has a strong narrative focus. Looking Like Meat is a flat out banger with just enough distortion laid over everything to make in unsettlingly brutal. The track sports a ho99o9 feature that pairs perfectly with the rest of the song. The incredibly busy instrumental is less a distraction and more just another element of the songs unrelenting chaos that I always love getting lost in.
The album ends on a series of high notes because of course it does. Body For The Pile is a track I remember from years ago but it feels insanely fitting right now. Daveed describes in intimate detail freeze frame like moments of the deaths of three different cops in three different circumstances. The song is fantastic and deserved another chance to be heard because the instrumental is tinny and distorted yet manages to be really catchy alongside the slick hook and driving verses. The lyricism is absolutely exquisite and the highlight of the song which itself is another highlight of the record. The record has a "secret" instrumental outro but the true last track is Enlacing another incredibly interesting and ultimately fantastic song. This is the cloudiest and dreamiest that Clipping have ever sounded with the soothing vocals hanging in the background despite the lyrics subject matter often being quite dark. The hook seems to be pushing the listener into accepting their own death yet the instrumental is so tangibly beautiful it is nearly inescapable. This is just another moment where the creativity of the band is remarkable and it actually helps the record feel like it's ending on somewhat of a bright note. Historically I have really enjoyed some of Clipping's more intimate and quieter tracks, but on Visions they feel more like a break from the madness with mixed results. She Bad sounds great on the hook but leaves a little to be desired on both of its long verses. While Daveed's writing impresses this is one of the more lowkey performances here and I wish there was just a touch more pressure being put on instrumentally. I still enjoy the song but it hasn't stuck with me like many of the others. Eaten Alive is definitely the records most abstract song with an instrumental made up almost entirely of disjointed metallic percussion. Daveed is almost exclusively delivering spoken word storytelling but this is far from the most compelling I've ever heard him do it. While I still enjoy both of those facets of the song the real nail in the coffin is a hook that just isn't lively or all that memorable in any way and as a result I think this track is one of the records only real misses.
Visions Of Bodies Being Burned is ridiculously good. Despite the massive variety in subject matter, genre blending instrumentals and versatile performances from Daveed the entire record feels incredibly coherent in its tribute to everything horrifying. The record is one highlight after another and adds up to one of the most cohesive and enjoyable albums I've listened to in all of 2020. Even as a huge fan of Clipping coming into the record they have once again proved their ability and potentially pushed it even further across this wonderful record that is sure to be one of my favorite of the year. 9.5/10
Album Cover Review By Tyler Judson:
I really like this cover and think it has a cool concept that is minimal and also plays with distortion and 3D perspectives. I think it's something that you could look at for a while because you're just interested in the effects ig gives and that is an awesome way to gain attention. i think there should be some sort of branding otherwise it could just be a cool art print. 7/10
For more experimental hip hop check out my review of the new Open Mike Eagle album here
