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I've always thought that one of the most impressive aspects of Aesop Rock's musical career was that he had arrived a nearly fully formed artist on his debut album in 1997. Especially considering how unique and genre defying his style of rapping really is. Admittedly I was a bit late to the Aesop Rock party, only vaguely hearing about him in 2000 during the release of his Mush Records debut album Float, and not finally sitting down to really listen to him until his 2001 Def Jux classic Labor Days, but I found it was better late than never and I was immediately hooked. Working backwards from Labor Days I was shocked to see that while the production became more sparse and spare, Aesop himself remained relatively untouched. In fact I was damn-near picking my jaw up off the floor when reaching his debut lp and found that while Ace's style might be slightly more defined on later releases, his was still spitting with the same 1-in-a-million vocal tones, and rapping with a flow that belongs to him and him alone. In music, and Hip Hop especially it can take an artist a handful of releases to truly find their voices and become comfortable in their own skin, but Aesop seemingly knew exactly who he was and how he sounded best; years before he even knew if people would listen to him.
In truth if this were just about any other artist this probably wouldn't be that big a deal, but this is Aesop Rock we're talking about here. One of the single most unique individuals in Hop Hop; if not music as a whole. He was blowing minds with his deep, croaking voice long before Lil Wayne ever began experimenting with different vocal tones, and delivering lyrics so complex that literally 15 years after his debut fans STILL haven't deciphered everything he's saying. The fact that he had this twisted insane persona figured out before he even had an audience leads me to believe it's not a persona at all; Aesop Rock is just a weird, talented, one-of-a-kind motherfucker.
Listening to Music For Earthworms in 2012 still proves to be a unique and exciting endeavor. All these years later and this album still sounds like nothing else that's hit the market. Long before Aesop's name would become synonymous with soon-to-be longtime producer Blockhead, he found a fairly perfect foil in underrated producer Dub-L. L is probably best known for his later work alongside DJ JS-1, but it was on Music For Earthworms that he would make his debut to the world, producing every track here (excluding the radio freestyles). As a long time Aesop Rock fan it's interesting to find that Dub-L has all but been written out of the Aesop Rock lore, especially considering he essentially created the blueprint for the production landscapes Aesop and Blockhead would later use to sky-rocket to Indie Fame, but for whatever reason the two had a falling out and as a result this would be the only time L would contribute production to an Aesop Rock album.
It's a shame really because while Dub's production lacks the infectious Jazz samples that Aesop and Blockhead would master, he still understood Aesop's style very well and crafted production that perfectly suited him. The beats are dark and creepy; sounding almost like the soundtrack to the worst nightmare you've had. Like most Underground Hip Hop created in the 90's it's very firmly rooted in the house that RZA built, and really he doesn't do a whole lot to put his own stamp on the sound, but he still executes it very well, and considering it was his first production available for mass consumption it's quite the achievement. Aesop is the main attraction here though and you're made well aware of it from the opening track "Abandon All Hope"
"Is a love such as that which I exhibit for my practice
The factor which then amalgamates debates with straight-jackets
And robes. Huddled in brackets that blacken the average globe
Xenophobe, loathe to modify the fly, feel this...
I carve a notch in my wall for every stall
every fifth mark slants diagonal to symbolize your downfall"
Before you can even catch your breath or digest the dense 5 minute lyrical barrage though you're thrown head first in to the albums next highlight. To this day I'm still not exactly sure how Aesop managed to get the Legendary Percee P to feature on his debut album (TWICE!), but I'll be damned if the two don't make an absolute perfect pairing. The most shocking part though? Aesop actually manages to outshine the absolutely stellar Percee P verse over the haunting vocal samples on "Wake Up Call". Ace drops some of the best one liners of his career and offers the best quotables of the album
"Are you fat cats or lab rats?"
"My mic stabs white flags and drag trembling
Devil skin-wearers through the terrors of compliance
Once the day turns night, senoritas suck the woody like termites
And wonder how they got labeled dick-hungry damsels in distress "
The other Percee P collaboration is "Coward Of The Year Remix" which features a surprisingly catchy hook and may be the most radio friendly, traditional track Aesop has ever made. Both mc's stand on fairly even ground this time around and display absolute mastery on the microphone. The only real true sign here that this is Aesop's debut comes in the form of his songwriting; namely the hooks. A good majority of them are simply oddball, interesting samples that are looped. This is a fairly common tactic used by many amateur artist when getting their start in the Underground, and while it can create some great songs and add to the atmosphere, more often than not it's used to mask the lack of songwriting experience and can come across somewhat lazy and stale.
The only other hint that this is an debut, and possibly the only real flaw on the album, is obviously the "Live On 89.9FM Nighttrain". It's a live, on-air recording from a rap cipher that featured Aesop along with a number of other artist. Thankfully only Aesop's parts are featured here, but it doesn't change the fact that the poor radio quality hurts the flow of the album, and the fact that Aesop recycles his verse from "Wake Up Call" is crippling, especially when positioned so close to that track. It's somewhat baffling why Ace decided to just drop that song right in the middle of the album and essentially ruin the momentum he had created. It would have much better been served as a hidden bonus track tucked away at the end of the lp. As it is though it sticks out like a sore thumb, and being perfectly honest could have been done without completely.
Amateur missteps aside the album is still a pleasure to listen to, and longtime fans would be doing themselves a favor by tracking this down. True it does borrow heavily from the Wu-Tang sound, and essentially the production sounds like many other albums from that time period; especially New York albums, but Aesop himself is so startling different it almost doesn't even matter. As soon as his vocals touch the beat the song is transformed in to something you've never heard before. It's not the perfect debut, and Aesop would release better albums later in his career. But as a debut lp? It's impressive to say the very least. It's no wonder that Aesop would remark a full 5 years later on his 2002 Daylight Ep: "(So why they blaming you for the cats that sleep while the earth turns?)/Yeah I had em' up all night praying I'd re-release Music For Earthworms"
Pro's
-Aesop is a fully formed, impressive mc right from the get-go
-Percee P on two songs!
-The album is vintage New York
Con's
-The production isn't anything you haven't heard before
-"Live On 89.9FM Nighttrain" is sorely misplaced and ruins the albums momentum
-The songwriting is somewhat weak and sample driven hooks are used to mask it.
Overall - 3.5/5
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