Voir Dire - Earl Sweatshirt & The Alchemist: Review
Earl Sweatshirt & The Alchemist
are two well-respected legends of the hip-hop underground whose paths have crossed before. Now for the first time, they're releasing a collaborative album, though many won't hear it as it dropped exclusively on the Gala music streaming platform.
Review by Lav:
No, I did not pay any money to listen to this album or to buy whatever NFT ass shit they're selling the individual tracks as. Was it slightly inconvenient for me, sure. Was I going to do it for Earl? Definitely. I've been a big fan of both for a while and when operating at or even near their peak they have the potential to thrill. Does this album feature them at their peak? A few times. But it's pretty solid even without that perfect consistency throughout.
That peak pops up a few times. All The Small Things is a fascinating track with vintage key blips and slow drums that feel almost vaporwave-inspired. Earl is pretty damn lethal on the track delivering some of the album's best lyrical gems through his perfect vulnerability. 27 Braids has one of the most killer opening series of bars I've heard in a while, especially after bursting out of the slick guitar riff the song deploys. Later on in the project tracks like the confessional Sirius Blac and the glittery vintage Dead Zone make for even more highlights.
The record gets off to a pretty solid start with 100 High Street which features layers of blown-out strings contrasting well with Earl's more intense performance. Vin Skully comes next with a bit more jazzy flavor to it. Unfortunately, the song has a repeated hook that I'm not crazy about which holds it back from being a major highlight. Similarly, Senty starts off strong sounding like Some Rap Songs right out of the gate in a way I like a lot. It unfortunately follows that up with a Mike verse which is actually kind of above average for him, but I'm still not crazy about it. For the record though the album does end on a series of good tracks punctuated by the excellent closer Free The Ruler.
The weaker songs on the album normally have to do with weaker instrumentals on The Alchemist's front. My Brother. The Wind does have a pretty strong contrast between the unstoppable series of flows and transition into the more free-form vocal sample at the end. While I wish the instrumental here gave Earl a bit more support it at least doesn't actively crowd him out. Mac Deuce features another great performance from Earl but the instrumental is absolutely oppressive. It's honestly a testament to the intensity of his performance that the searingly loud keys don't silence him completely. Geb is another point where the instrumental can get annoying with the incessant vocal samples serving as a distraction from Earl's performance. Even though it's one of the sloppier series of bars here I can't help but enjoy much of what Earl is saying.
Voir Dire isn't re-writing the book for either of these two but despite some misses I think it's a solid project. The short presentation of the songs and the album as a whole mostly fits both the sonic aesthetics and general vibe of the recent work from both rapper and producer. While their pairing doesn't necessarily feel like the timeless match made in heaven of something like Freddie Gibbs and Madlib, the artistic chemistry is obvious and they at least provide the potential for something great every time a new song comes on. If that great album ever comes though, hopefully it isn't released on Gala. 7/10
For more hip hop check out my review of Noname's Sundial here
