Woolly Reviews: Aesop Rock - The Impossible Kid (Album Review)
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- čas přidán 3. 08. 2024
- In this edition of Woolly Reviews The Granddad talks about the new album from legendary underground emcee Aesop Rock entitled "The Impossible Kid"! The album is out now!
Buy "The Impossible Kid" on Vinyl/CD/MP3 at:
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Blood Sandwich: Aesop is the middle child, his brothers are the bread.
+Dmitry Timroth Thank you, this hit me in the face!
I thought of it as since they're all brothers and are together, there blood mixes together and is connected. Like meat on a sandwhich, but in this case it's blood.
dude call me stupid but if i wasn't for this i wouldn't figure out why the title xD
nice catch :)
TC TC Dmitry is right when the chorus says "the 1 the 1 the 2 the 3 is talking about the 3 brothers
Aesop Rock is a true artist.
+robert anders and this album is a work of art itself
Why'd you eat that leaf?
This comment works really well with your display picture.
+Woody Phillips It makes it so dramatic
hey Kirby..
I've got it all figured out, I'll help you figure it out. You need to know that after his best friend Kamu ('Mu) Tao died of cancer, he kinda lost it. He divorced his wife, and asked her to take the keys da. He became a hermit and almost died from tetanus after cutting himself on a rusty can in a foot-later of trash covering his floor. He then moved to a barn in the Washington State woods, where he made this album.
Mystery Fish is about his old lifestyle in a lower-class neighborhood, and how different his life is now. Rings is about his failed art careers. Lotta Years is about how his creativity was stunted as a kid by religion, and he's blown away, and made a little jealous. Dorks is about why he left San Diego to go to the barn in the woods. Rabies is about how much he loves the woods compared to city-life. Supercell is about how it was hard to leave the people he liked in the city despite how good the forest is for him. Blood Sandwich is a shout-out to his brothers with
(Cont. here) stories from their childhoods. Get Out of the Car is him reminiscing about the last 8 years and how his life got so out of control. Shrunk is a description of his average visit to his therapist. Kirby is a song about his cat, Kirby. TUFF is a song describing his downward spiral and the realization of how much he ruined his life. Lazy Eye is a darkly comical and self-aware track about his music career while he nerds-out in the lyrics (us nerds just have do let our nerdiness out every now-and-then). Defender is about being a part of the neighborhood watch and checking the area for dangerous animals while also having a lot on his mind. Water Tower is about finding a bird that his cat killed and getting philosophical about it while contemplating death and depression, what they mean,what they create, how they've affected him, and how death creates life. Molecules is about his life up-to this point, and the third verse is about how he feels at this very moment.
+joey sands This was a great break down, Thanks, yo.
+ZenEnemy no problem. I've been listening to Aesop since Music for Earthworms was making its way around my area and attracting attention. I've gotten really good at understanding him by now, and since this album is the least opaque in his discography, it's really easy to get what he's talking about. If I can help other people get it, I'm happy to do so.
dope breakdown king
I agree this is Aesop's most transparent and succinct album to date, yet for me, it's still crept into the top five of his discography. It is by no means any less sophisticated, abstruse, enigmatic, or elusive than his earlier work, rather it's beautifully camouflaged in topicality and personal connections making it a bit more intimate, which I appreciate at this point in his already legendary career.
This album is his best imo. His vocal production was mixed real good.
Aesop Rock is by far the best white rapper and possibly the best rapper in my opinion.
+PixelPerfect28 MF Doom
I think Aesop is even better than Doom. I like Doom but i don't think he's as skilled a writer as Aesop
PixelPerfect28 Fair enough
i think its a close tie between aesop rock and slug. a close 1-2. also love OneBeLo
I like Atmosphere, i really do, but i find his writing quite simple.
As eclectic as Aes is, he comes across as a normal dude.
So true.
Kurt Costigan The dude struggles with depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, and a lot more fucked up shit. That's not really normal.
I'mAGrayRock Does that make me fucked up?
I doubt you legitimately were diagnosed with any of those disabilities, but ok.
I'mAGrayRock It was a joke man.
Let me rephrase. He talks about mundane things from a unique perspective. "Normal" people can still relate to a song like Shrunk or Get Out The Car. We've all got issues, life is a struggle for most.
I relate to this intro.
"🎶They will chop you down, just to count your rings....Just to count your rings. 🎶" That song really hit me.
Water Tower is about death, what I got was that his cat brought him the bird as a present (why he refers to it as being wrapped in a bow), as cats do. On another note, that song broke me because as he explores the theme of death he discusses a suicide attempt of his own and I just...want him to be okay, goddammit
Yes the song has a very deep meaning and metaphorical description of death. Aesop always has been good at hiding the true meaning in plain sight. I hope he's doing better too because I know he's dealt with mental health issues for many years.
Ever since the beginning of his career he's been making amazing music. His flow and phrasing is so good. He has so much style. If you haven't given Float, Labor Days, and None Shall Pass a good listen I highly recommend it. None Shall Pass is nothing but bangers.
7:25 Yeah that's what I love tho.. Just be listening like 4 years later and suddenly "OHHHH!"
I love it.
Yeah that's what an Aesop project is about. Finding out these intricate rhymes after so long which also gives it hi replay value.
alright my dude. subscribed.
Laughed so hard at the 4 year gap Aesop tactic, you nailed it! Subscribed after this review, keep it up.
+Joeri Jager Thanks man! Glad you enjoyed the review! Welcome to the channel!
Same lol. Doesnt get much better than Aesop
If it weren't for Rap Genius I would have no idea what anything he says means lol
haha
Theres a few straight forward tracks but he's a treat to listen to he makes you think
Pudding had done a study about lyrics in hip hop and who has the most diverse lyrics. Aesop stood way out ahead of anyone else with 7,392 unique words used among his first 35,000 lyrics. The next closest was GZA at just over 6,400 (only his solo albums used in the study)
Anyone interested peep the study through the link
pudding.cool/2017/02/vocabulary/
i wish he would work with el-p again
+Laverle Dugger Yeah that would be dope!
GranddadRDLR yes indeed
+Laverle Dugger Dunno, el-p was dope 15 years ago.
+thewirah1 el-p is dope now run the jewels is dope
RTJ sounds contemporary, while his stuff with Company flow and Cannibal Ox was light years ahead of the game.
Great video, loving the captions that appear out of nowhere. Earned a sub.
+Hussein Abdel Galil thanks man!
the best part about Kirby is that I have a cat named Kirby
Your Intro got me, I am subscribed. Good job.
Thanks! Welcome to the channel!
"Aesop Rock For Dummies" lol! So True!
+Mark Greiner lol I'd definitely buy it
Hey, man, i just wanna say that i appreciate what you're doing here. I watched at least one album review before this...and i just want to say that I have never been compelled to watch many album review before now and thay don't know shit, or mean anything to me, but anyways... You almost hit the nail on the head for what this album meant to me. I am still unravelling(sp?) all of the meanings of this album (especially what they meant to me), but you, sir are dope and i DIG this album review. Keep doing what you're doing, dawg...real shit
+Smitty Goon thanks man I appreciate that!
I love this album and I love Aesop, some of the themes and concepts he had on here were so dope and Aesop did great on the production too
+David Rowe Yeah this album is fantastic. Beats, rhymes, concepts everything is on point here. Aesop really brought it on this one.
Great review!
8:42 this little expository rant is hilarious; had me laughing out loud
One of my favorite parts of the review haha
Good to see people talking about Aesop, one of the dopest to do it. And your a funny dude haha I subscribed.
+Kevin Ruta Thanks for the sub man. Welcome to the channel! Aesop is one of the best so he always gets love from me. Thanks for watching!
You are hilarious man...
I love this album as much as Aes himself.
His unique wordsmithing and topics really make him what I love about it
+Alexander Bastow thanks man! Yeah this album is too good. Aesop is amazing
Only honest reaction to Aesop I've seen today and the narration is well done. Keep it up.
totally agree!
Can't wait to see him perform this live!
I admit Aes can be a little hard to understand sometimes, but for Impossible he really simplified his rhyming. He said in some interview he wanted to stop relying on his lyrical dexterity as a crutch so much and instead just open himself up. There aren't many songs on this album whose meaning is hard to decipher, everything is fairly straight forward. Lotta Years and Dorks prolly my favorite.
+dagrimmreepa agreed. I was able to understand this album a loy easier than previous aesop albums.
2 minutes into this review and I had to sub.
Rings is killing it right now. Great review, man.
+CrispyMWHC Use to draw, hard to admit that i use to draw. Yeah man that song is crazy dope!
Maan, this is the perfect Aesop review. You hit all them nails on they heads.
Lets not forget how hard "Lazy eye" goes that fucking baseline is 18+
Agree! That baseline is just so funky and nasty!
The intro was worth a like on its own -- nothing but truth lmao. Thanks for the review
Dope review brother glad you get it
Thanks!
His music is super stimulating to the brain. I found Aesop like 5 years ago, he's my mentor for my music.
one of my favorite albums to come out in this decade. There's too much to talk about and you went over just about all the reasons i love this album. My top three are Dorks, Rings, and Defender. I also am glad to see some love for Molecules which i thought most reviewers unfairly hated on. Great review.
Thanks man! It was one of my top albums of the year. Still give it a few spins from time to time.
first video ever watched... best first sentence I've ever heard ....I draw and shit .... immediate subscription I haven't even watch what you said I just paused it cause I'm laughing and subscribing .... Rings is something deeeeeep art shit
+Dennis myers Thanks man! Glad you liked the video. Welcome to the channel!
Your intro to this video is what made me subscribe. Lol
+Jake Morgan G Thanks lol. Welcome to the channel!
Very well said. This is the best Hiphop album in the past 10 years in my opinion
Good review man
Appreciate it!
its my favrout aesop album yet, shit sounded so dope, good review.
+thousandcanine thanks man! It's also my favorite from Aesop. Still play it on the regular
you come off as intelligent and humble in this reaction. Authentic in your lack of pretentious assessment. I'm still trying to figure out the meaning of these tracks as well
Appreciate it! I try to keep the reviews as honest as possible. Thanks for watching!
I think this is by far his most easily digestible album.
Yeah. In terms of writing and content and artistry (so like all the important stuff) Aesop Rock is undeniably head and shoulders above 99.99% of rappers. Actual depth in his bars. in fact his bars are so deep you never stop digging.
Aesop is a master lyricists and I agree he's in the upper echelon when it comes to writing and content. Just trying to break down a verse from him is an experience in itself. Definitely one of the best
dope review, subbed, but imo this is his most straight forward album it terms of understanding the overall idea on most of the songs
Agreed. Super clear in comparison to other albums.
Aesop fan for 19 years. I understand everything he says. You learn his language over time. Lazy Eye is about his health. His mindset in the face of health challenges. His opening line. "My spirit animal comes between pretzel rolls." Chicken. To me he says "From a state of being nervous."
I listen to this album at least once a day! He nailed this one! Buy it.
I seen him in Minnesota on his tour. This album kept up with his persona. Rhymesayers kept him and Hail Mary Mallonw/ Rob Sonic is a gem. He is authoritative when it comes to beats and ryhmes. He is the best around!
I've seen his show a few times and he always kills it. Rhymesayers has done good by Aesop. Everything he's dropped with them has been amazing.
Thanks to this review.....I subbed.
Appreciate it! Welcome to the channel!
Really impressed by your vocabulaire..
Dope album for sure.....Great review, cracked me the fk up. thx
Thanks man!
7 secs into the video and I subscribed. Sometimes you have to put in a bit of work to expand your mind. Contemplation is a beautiful thing.
Thanks! Welcome to the channel! And yes it is.
Aesop Rock is one of the best lyricist rapper, that enhances a deeper understanding of vocabulary and beats
Yeah man he's in the upper echelon when it comes to lyricism
HELL YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!! good review.
+Scott Scheiten Thanks man!
+Scott Scheiten Thanks man!
Thank you! Yes. Thank you for an honest review.
No problem!
BEST ALBUM 2016...PERIOD
Also hes an Amazing Paint thus all the painting metaphors on "Rings"
Granddad's list
1. Rabies
2. TUFF
3. Lazy Eye
4. Water Tower
5. Molecules
It's "paint no rules on the water tower" the idea being that the water tower is tall and overlooking the town. Painting "no rules" is a rebellious message to the citizens
+Jeffrey Scheraga ah I went back and listened and I hear it now. Makes more sense haha.
+GranddadRDLR yeah isn't that bad ass though!
This album on vinyl sounds amazing
I'm late but I appreciate anyone who recognizes Aes.
I am only a minute into this vid and this guy gets it.. Takes a few hundred listens before you kinda get some of the lyrics.. some, not all... I love fucking Aesop! Good shit bro, nice vid.
Thanks man! Aesop is one of the best hands down. Appreciate you checking out the video!
smash that motherfuckin like button
i love all his works,i get Everyline,its leftfield Hip Hop,BRUH think of his lyrics as a Salvador Dali Paintings.....
Rabies is about moving out to the sticks and getting used to all the things you take for granted in a city not working (radio cutting out, 'maps' not working or being up to date), not sure about that one dog/hyperion lines though.
Tuff is about the older, grittier new york hip hop that he learned to rhyme from and drew inspiration from starting to die off in favor of a more formulaic rap style that is common now ('effectively reducing his behavior into data')
Lazy eye is about him getting older and accepting things not working as well as they used to. Basically he starts to feel old and out of shape but is ok with and getting used to it. Also having fun with his nerdy hobbies that are outdated by current standards
You got most of water tower, but he's chanting "paint no rules on the water tower", basically go do something rebellious.
He isn't impossible to understand. You just have to listen. Current music has dumbed down people to were they have no vocabulary or brain power, so when Aesop uses big words people don't understand what he means when he says things like "holding the graphite" when he means pencil.
+Alpha Six the vocabulary isn't necessarily the difficulty with me, rather his cryptic way of putting words and verses together. But yeah a basic listener could be thrown off by Aesop's extensive vocabulary so that would add to the confusion.
+GranddadRDLR yeah, not necessarily the vocab but the train of thought in some of his stuff is so hard to decipher. So cryptic.
Liam Fisher sometimes. I still feel like a lot has to do with the over simplification of modern rap
+Alpha Six Try to understand None Shall Pass
A lot of it he don't understand himself. It's abstract rap and he was on a lot of drugs at the time but as an mc myself I pretty much get what he is saying but after years of listening closely to lyrics I can understand pretty quick.
If you're into Aesop, try Jam Baxter. The guy's like Aes's British counterpart, only with a nastier, darker and more depraved overtone.
85% of it makes sense with awesome metaphors he does say some crazy shit like on think differently , he said alligator fade away
This album is amazing it’s art Aesop rock is art I really love this album
Yeah it was one of my top albums of that year and he just dropped a new video that's dope also. Hope we get a new album soon!
Did a review of it myself, that shit is lit as hell!
You can't try to understand a genius, sometimes you just need to enjoy the Picasso of rap music. Aes challenges your mind like all the best artist! Much love!
Paint no rules on the water tower
that opening line is golden
you have really good production quality
+Diet Dr. Pepper Fan Club Thanks!
You should check out Rittz's new album when it drops Friday, singles have been bangers so far
A lot of the album is still pretty dense, but a decent portion of this album is surprisingly straightforward for Aesop. Lotta Years, Rings and Blood Sandwich are understandable on a first listen. Shrunk's first verse makes no sense till you realise he's filling in a form with funny answers, but the other 2 verses aren't too metaphorical. When you understand that Dorks is about the rap industry, the song makes sense. And so on. Granted, it's still way more metaphorical than most albums out there, but it's a far cry from some of his older stuff.
IMO The Impossible Kid is Aesop's most refined work yet. He's taken the vivid imagery and wordplay from his previous work and distilled it into a form that doesn't sacrifice clarity. He's managed to make his work more accessible without dumbing it down, and that's no mean feat.
Emotionally and thematically there's a bit of everything on this album. Grief and loss, childhood nostalgia, isolation, aging, savage attacks on the music/rap industry, struggles with mental health. He tackles it all with humour, honesty, introspection, passion... just a masterpiece of an album.
I enjoyed Hot Dogs even more than most of the songs on Impossible Kid, maybe his most poetic work yet, so it seems Aes is still on an upward trajectory. The only question is: just how much better is it even possible for an album to be? Can't wait for his next release so I can find out.
You're really funny mate cool video
I do think that this is one of the easiest to understand aesop rock album but it's still amazing, like a more polished version of Skelethon
+Un loco con mucho tiempo thanks man! And yeah I agree with you
LMFAO: the intro was too precise an observation.
this is so funny to watch, this is exactly how i try to explain Aesop to people. I'm so excited about it and love it so much, but when you try to explain it you don't really know what to say other then "its fucking amazing, just trust me!"
I think this album is actually a bit easier to understand lyrically. Sick album btw
I agree with your top 5. Hard. But rabies was about getting older. And how being alone kind of forced him into understanding that.
Tuff was about going crazy before going to see his current shrink for sure.
Lazy eye was about his disconnect. His message to the world, after spending so many years being himself. His own pearl to cast, in essence.
Water tower was...well...about fatalism. Not about a bird, essentially. Just that death itself is kind of the point of life. It's a strange realization, but I get it. Maybe you have to have been suicidal once to get a grasp, i guess.
Molecules- well....we're two years in and I'm still figuring it out, but I think you got mostly right. That it's mostly about how that 'death' led him to realization.
You make it seem so hard to understand what he's taking about, I agree with that for every other album he's ever done but not this.
I would say it takes a couple listens but it ain't that hard to figure out.
+Nick Ogden i agree some songs are quick to figure out as well as the general theme but others will take multiple listens and then overall when you listen to the album in its entirely there's no way you're gonna pick up on every single meaning of every song quickly. At least that's most people for aesop albums.
+GranddadRDLR
Either way its still an incredible album, probably best album that will come out this year.
That was a pretty good analysis of molecules, i was concinced that song was about literally nothing 😂
+Jake Ybarra lol it took me awhile figure that much out. Aesop is playing with minds like it's nothing haha
dont forget lice 1 and 2
the verbal equivalent of a doodle for aes
It comes with age and traveling and experiencing some of the same shit. I got everything but that's cause were the same age and I've lived in Arcata skated Zorlacs and understand what he's talks about, cut from the same vine ~Life experiences from livin mang
syrup is my favorite
Sick pre-intro.
I've been waiting to watch this video forever. I can't keep watching vids that don't love this album. So happy to find common ground.
+gqfiend aaaaaaand your top five aren't mine! None! How cool?!?!?
+gqfiend thanks!
The track on the beginning of Water Tower is Latin, not Spanish. You STILL ain't figured Aesop out yet.
I still ain't either, tho.
Is there really a difference in post-colonial America? The description of South Americans(for lack of better term) as Latin is no more divorced from truth and origin than 'spanish'.
short explanations to each song by Aesop Rock himself: facebook.com/AesopRockWins/posts/1018915581491122
yessss. get him the recognition he deserves lol
any news on my tape
Shout out to O-Solo's voice
man, if i could sum up this album in one line it would be like this...ahem " DOPE DOPE DOPE upon DOPE DOPE"
+Smitty Goon lol agreed!
I definitly think this is his greatest album and I'm only 5 songs into it.
The intro on Water Tower is latin, not spanish.
I think he had no features bc he mentions living in a barn a lot in his songs and music videos, meaning exactly what you think it means
+ScareynotHarry Yeah and besides. He really didn't need any features on here so it worked
.... Most of his stuff is metaphors and references to older books/stories/legends/mythology/ ect...ect but he uses them to describe his life and struggles in a lyrically, and introspective way it may be (if your not well versed in older novels/poems/ ect...ect...) hard to understand the point he is trying to convey. That being said.... Easily (at least for me) top five hip-hop/rap lyricist in the game at this point.