Rating: 4/5 stars
Formed out of the fascination of old comic books, the work of underground hip-hop collective Czarface feels like a bizarre cross-section of classic boom-bap and old Saturday morning cartoons. Consisting of rap duo 7LES (7L and Esoteric) and Wu-Tang Clan member Inspectah Deck, the group has been quietly producing a solid discography, with the vintage and dusty aesthetic of each album making their work seem almost stuck out of time.
Their first record, the self-titled “Czarface” released in 2013, was easily one of the most overlooked albums from that year, with the intricate sampling and smooth, well-written verses matching the same kind of quality that classic records like “Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)” brought to the table. Czarface’s work also brought to mind the work of MF Doom, especially his career-defining album “Madvilliany,” with skillfully stringing together samples of dialogue from both old TV and movies. It felt like a match made in heaven when “Czarface Meets Metal Face” was announced, a collaboration that was guaranteed to leave old hip-hop fans’ mouths watering.
The opener, “Take Your Medicine,” immediately sets the tone, with cartoonish voices babbling over an evil, ominous instrumental. “Meddle with Metal” follows up as a track that comes firing out of the gate with the exact kind of quality that fans were expecting. Inspectah Deck and MF Doom trade lines back and forth like hardened veterans, as their unmistakable flows sound effortless over a steady, marching beat packed with vinyl scratches and distant horns. “Forever People” is one of the most consistent tracks Czarface have made so far, with a bouncing groove that makes it worth playing over and over again. Esoteric pulls out the line, “and ride benches my mind’s bright, yours is dense like Mike Pence’s,” taking a not-so-subtle jab at the Trump administration. MF Doom’s bars are lyrically dense as usual, as he surgically places three to four rhymes into each line. His topics are all over the place, but for the most part , they revolve around how he is still a force to be reckoned with in the rap game.
Chicago native Open Mike Eagle makes an appearance on the track “Phantoms,” where the 37-year-old has a tongue-in-cheek verse about how he fought a ghost in his apartment but admits that he is bad at telling stories because he “wasn’t really dead.” His wordplay is topnotch, with his last album, “Brick Body Kids Still Daydream,” putting him shoulder to shoulder with the greats. “Bomb Thrown,” the first single released from the album, is an uplifting track with a chopped-up sample of a female singer that complements each verse perfectly. It was a good choice for a leading single and still stands out as a highlight.
The album’s low marks are where the mixing is questionable, especially during MF Doom’s verses. His low, raspy voice can be very hit or miss depending on what instrumentals it is paired with, and a great example of where this can go horribly wrong is on the previously mentioned track, “Phantoms.” The listener can barely make out what he is saying, as dizzying synth patterns take up all the energy. “Nautical Depth” is another track that has a similar issue, and this can really throw off a lot of listeners who are new to MF Doom’s sound. His lyrics are otherworldly, so being able to understand what he is saying is 90 percent of his appeal.
This is one of the most solid rap albums of 2018 so far and is definitely worth a listen. It is refreshing to see titans in the rap game not ready to slow down just yet.
Image from CZARFACE via YouTube.com
