Aesop Rock - Daylight

http://www.sendspace.com/file/lvmyda

1. Daylight
2. Night Light
3. Nickel Plated Pockets
4. Alchemy (feat. Blueprint)
5. Forest Crunk
6. Bracket Basher
7. Maintenance
- One of Four (Thank You) [hidden track]

Aesop Rock found himself in a somewhat surprising position with the release of his 2001 classic Labor Days. Not only had he dropped his magnum opus and manged to move a respectable amount of records for an indie artist, but he also found himself with his first hit single (college radio hit anyways). "Daylight" threw Aesop headfirst in to underground stardom with its laid back production and clever lyrics. The song was the perfect entry level tune to introduce new fans with. It featured Aesops erratic flow and dense lyrics, but in a more tame and managed manner. His lyrics were much easier to decipher than on most of his songs, and to top it all off Aesop strung the track together with a ridiculously catchy hook. Def Jux knew a good thing when they saw it, and after the initial success of "Daylight" they decided to spin it off in to its own ep; surprisingly one that doesn't sound at all like a cheap cash-grab. Daylight EP ranks up there with the best of Aesop's material, and is a must own for of inventive Underground Hip hop

The EP starts of course with "Daylight"; it is the showcase here after all, but following that we're thrown head first in to what can only be described as a re-imagining of the hit single. "Night Light" finds Ace pretty much taking every lyric and flow on "Daylight" and switching it with a darker, more sinister counterpart. For example the original "Daylight" starts off:

"Yo...put one up to shackle me, not clean logic procreation
I did not invent the wheel I was the crooked spoke adjacent
While the triple sixers lassos keep angels roped in the basement
I walk the block with a halo and a stick poking your patience"

"Night Light" flips the lyrics with:

"Put one up shackle me, not clean logic procreation
I did invent the wheel, in a previous generation
While the triple sixers lassos keep angels roped in the basement
I locate modern halos and pass em out to the pavement"

The production also reflects the darker tone of the track with a more slowed down, ominous sound. In all honestly the track does come across somewhat corny and unnecessary, but as a fan of the original it's a fun listen all the same. Thankfully the rest of the EP doesn't come across nearly as silly. "Nickle Plated Pockets" is produced by the always on point EL-P and finds Aesop absolutely killing the track with some of his most vivid imagery to date. The way he paints New York here is so descriptive you can damn near close your eyes and see yourself there.

"Walk into the store, same pocket, same nickels
In a city where every crack in the sidewalk's a symbol
Where there's crack in the basement, where there's crack in the slave ships
Where there's crack whores and corrupt pigs killing cats trying to crack cases"

Next up is the absolutely legendary collaboration with Blueprint; "Alchemy". This was actually my first introduction to Blueprint as both a rapper and producer, and needless to say it left me a life-long fan. Blueprint drops one of the all-time greatest Hip Hop verses ever here. His flow and vocals are absolutely monstrous, and he commands the mic in such a way that you almost feel sorry for Aesop having to follow him up. For me this is easily the highlight of the album, and I still to this day get chills when I hear those opening words from Print: "I spit with an immense amount of power". Indeed

Afterwords is the Blockhead produced instrumental song "Forest Crunk" which is another favorite of mine. The track features no vocals whatsoever, but it's still a dope beat and a welcomed interlude. Some may look at it as filler, but personally I just see it as Blockhead (who produces 5 of the 8 songs) getting his time to shine. Though admittedly it would have been interesting to here Ace spit over the unconventional instrumental. "Bracket Basher" is probably the weakest joint on the album, but even that isn't bad. It just doesn't reach the highs that the rest of the ep does. Last but certainly not least is the albums ending track(s). The final song on the tracklist is "Maintenance" which features a superb Blockhead beat that matches Aesop so perfectly that it really couldn't have been produced by anyone else.

The real reason to be excited here though is the hidden track tacked on at the end. You may notice that "Maintenance" has a staggering 24 minute running time; long enough to make even the biggest Aesop Rock fans question if tackling the track is a feasible goal. In reality though the song only runs 4 minutes and some change, and what follows is about 15 minutes of silence. After all that though we're treated to not only a bonus track, but what may be one of Aesop Rock's best songs ever. "One of Four (Thank You)" is the most personal track Ace has ever committed to record. The song is self produced and finds Aesop delving in to the darkest period of his life; his mental breakdown. It's literally the most revealing glimpse we've ever gotten in to Aesop's past. It goes in to great detail about his mental instability and the breakdown he suffered in 2001, then explains and thanks all the people that helped him pull through it. The song is absolutely stuffed with quotables so it's near pointless to try to pick out just one, but I always thought this hit rather hard

"I owe you all my life and please don't argue with that statement
'Cause without y'all I may not have a life to offer, take it"

It's an amazing way to end the ep, and you almost have to wonder if it wouldn't have been better served as an album cut. Then again maybe that's the way Ace wanted it. the song is so deeply personal he went through the trouble of hiding it behind 15 minutes of nothingness; it really is for the people closest to him and no one else, so it seems fitting that he would choose to share it with only his most hardcore fans. All in all this EP is nothing short of amazing, and it really does have a little something for everyone. If I had to recommend just one Aesop Rock project to someone who had never heard his music, this would probably be it. True it does have one or two songs that aren't essential to the Aesop legacy, but everything else here is pure gold.

Pros
-Some of Aesops best songwriting
-Production is fantastic
-Blueprint kills his verse

Cons
-"Night Light" is kind of corny

Overall 4/5