Review Summary: clipping. defy expectations by not reaching them.
clipping. is one of the oddest hip-hop names of this decade. There’s one rapper in it, Daveed Diggs, who just recently won a Tony for portraying two characters in a musical about Alexander Hamilton. The other two members teach sound design, and provide incredibly experimental beats to lay the foundation for every track they make. A song from 2014, Get Up, is mostly comprised of an alarm clock, with Daveed’s rapid flow matching the tempo and ferocity of the harsh sound. They’ve also made a 10-minute ‘outro’ to an earlier album where the only words present were “get money” repeated hundreds of times, with stereo separation causing the song to morph wildly over its duration.
Their music has not only been interesting for the last several years, with a different style every release, it has also always been incredibly fun and exciting, at least for me. This EP, Wriggle, is the first release from clipping. that fails to fulfill the “fun and exciting” portion.
Every major clipping. release has had a song called ‘intro’ on it, and Wriggle maintains that trend. However, this is the weakest intro out of three they’ve made so far. The first one had roaring noise blasts between Diggs’ pumped-up verses. The second one had ear-piercing shrieks with Diggs’ voice over it. This new intro is a plain verse over a field recording of a freeway, and fails to bring anything complex to the table, although it does mark the first time clipping.’s eponymous catchphrase “It’s clipping, bitch” has ever been cut off. The act of taking this identifying phrase and replacing the last word with harsh noise tells the listener that this EP will be unlike anything the band has put out previously.
The following song, Shooter, is a major disappointment. clipping. has always been pushing the boundaries of what hip-hop could be, but Shooter never even tries to do that. The beat behind it wouldn’t sound out-of-place under Iggy Azalea’s voice, and the lyrics are utterly boring. “Killing is the best medicine, diagnosis/Got death on his breath, halitosis” Lines like that give this song a rushed feel, like Diggs was just piecing phrases together to make every line have some sort of joke. The penultimate track on this EP, Hot *** No Love, also feels rushed, with a borderline trap beat that never tries to be interesting and lyrics that are just unnecessarily repetitive (“more head, more head, more head, more head, more more wet”). It’s also defying every quality clipping. has been known for in the past. Sure, trying to change up your M.O. is a good thing to do with your art, but their fanbase appreciated the deep lyrics and complex instrumentals on each release. Hot *** No Love has neither of those, and we don’t need another graphic sex song to over-saturate modern rap and hip-hop.
There are highlights on this EP, though. The title track manages to keep a harsh atmosphere while also utilizing unique rhythms. It’s reminiscent of a footwork song, which is something clipping. hasn’t really tried to do before. This track is an example of the trio trying something new on this EP and having it pay off. The track Back Up also adds some interesting flair to the release, with two guest verses from two different rappers showing up before Diggs comes out with his verse. The tracks Wriggle and Back Up seem to be the only tracks on the EP that have long-lasting replay value. They’re extremely catchy, but unfortunately, they are the only two tracks on here that bring the Wriggle EP any kind of complexity or entertainment.
Deathbomb Arc has confirmed there will be a new album from clipping. later this year, so there is still hope. This release does show that there’s still a spark of creativity in clipping., but two thirds of the EP is either downright boring or unimaginative. Let’s hope the level of artistry on some songs here carries over to their next release, and the fat trimmings stay behind.
