My favorite artist, Aesop Rock just put out a new album, albeit a side project with producer Tobacco, known as Malibu Ken. As a self proclaimed Stan of Aes, I’ll try to remain fair on this review.

Going into this, I didn’t know too much about Tobacco. My taste mostly lie in the boom bap-Brooklyn-bass in your face beats. This album is more of a lo-fi/electronicly/high pitch at times alternative to that which was actually pleasantly surprising. It paired well with Aesop’s flow and rhyme schemes. Coming off what I believe is Aesop Rock’s best album to date, The Impossible Kid (maybe my favorite album in the last ten years,) I was a little nervous about him being able to live up to it. Looks like I had nothing to be nervous about. Although it may not touch the previously mentioned TIK or some of his other earlier work, it doesn’t have to. It is very entertaining in itself!

I think very highly of the first track Corn Maze. In fact the second verse might be the best I’ve heard penned in the last (place arbitrary number here) year or 2. It rolls into track 2, Tuesday. Although I don’t have anything professionally to say about it because I’m not a professional, it’s a very fun track and easy to listen to. With someone with severe ADHD, the next song or 2 turned into background music over my thoughts but I got sucked back in with the end of Sword Box (track 4) and keeps me entertained through Dog Years (track 5.) Track 6, Acid King, proves why Aes is the greatest story teller disguised as a rapper since maybe Slick Rick. A true story about Ricky Kasso, self proclaimed acid king, who kills a friend who stole a couple bags of drugs from him, is a masterpiece in my dumb humble opinion. The album finishes up with four more enjoyable songs, 1+1=13 probably being my favorite out of said 4.

If you’ve never heard of Aesop before this write up (wtf man!!!) then I would suggest some of his other work such as The Impossible Kid, Skelethon, Float or Beastiary (with Rob Sonic as Hail Mary Mallon) but Malibu Ken will still be enjoyable and will definitely not turn you off from becoming almost as big a fan of Aesop Rock as me. Almost

7.9/10 for Aesop Rock and TOBACCO are Malibu Ken

Wait, is that Kareem InMike Hunt’s music?! Bah God, it is!!

And what’s that?! It looks like Bosa Deez Nuts is joining him. This is INSANE!!!

You ever think about what your “walk out” song(s) would be? Well these most likely would be mine and I’m never ever gonna have a chance to use them again so just deal with it for now……

Welcome to Championship week boys!!! I just so happened to make it to both the MIPPA and MIPPA Dynasty finals (and another finals in a Yahoo league nbd.) Apologies in advance but, yes, I do need to gloat a little. The MIPPA league is one of the hardest fantasy football leagues I’ve been apart of. The scoring is a little different, the roster is a little different, and the strategy is a little different as well. Draft picks go flying at the trade deadline, weeks could be lost by your QB taking a sack or two, and am I going to get away with only having one good RB all year because I can start a WR at the slash position and count my PPRs? Well I’m gonna try dammit!

This week is a little tougher with no Thursday night game to look forward to but Christmas comes a little early to us lucky few this weekend. It’ll give me a chance to check then recheck then triple check my lineup. Good luck to Fahey and Sylvia (and whoever is playing in the first annual Hooters Invitational for Losers.) Let’s get after it this weekend!

-Justin