Review Summary: This is a 13 or 14-year old rapper who is breaking the rules and cliches of hip-hop -- a 20-song epic album that's musical, lyrical and paradigm-busting -- with some amazing beat producers (Purpdogg, Marvin Cruz, Raro, etc.) and features (Gangsta Boo, Esk
20 songs deep, fresh and innovative with a variety of intriguing beats and features, this would be an accomplishment for any hip-hop artist -- but the difference here is that this Nine Callisto is around 14 years old.
There are bangers here -- like Very Dark with Eskay and Chris Travis -- and Run Up On Me featuring Gangsta Boo, who's on her best game with Marvin Cruz delivering a wicked beat like an infectious barrage of Joe Frazier body shots that won't quit.
Dig a Grave -- a dark scary tune produced by Big Los that whips out a double-feature from Yoshi and Infinite -- this one sticks with you like a great horror flick. Check out Fright Night later on in the album to carry that theme all the way through.
On the musical side, Please Get Better and the title track, Antisocial pull down old school R&B as their baselines.
On the lyrical side, there's Tempest, I Don't Play With and All Day (with Black Smurf).
Some of the beats are truly experimental -- Effort This, Winner Circle and Golden Boy epitomize that spirit.
There's a good dose of cloud rap influence throughout as well, with some Shaolin Monk musicality from Raro, and some minimalist bass-heavy thumping from Nick Lewis.
Antisocial is so broad, fat and unwieldy that it's tough to categorize. How did this kid get all of these incredible producers and features on the album?
It all comes together bravely and without care for convention -- like a big ol' Christmas tree with so many interesting dispirit ornaments; and not without some lightbulbs that are on the fritz too. But like a video game with numerous Easter eggs and a lot of sheer replay value, you'll spend a lot of time soaking up this epic construction of next generation hip-hop.
