PitchforkArms: Aesop Rock Ranked Redux

cylinder 08.05.22	Aes is so hard to rank. He’s just so consistent, and he’s got these two different eras that are so different from each other, I almost feel like each era should be ranked separately lol. So, tough to argue with a ranking, but I gotta say, I feel like you got Malibu Ken a little high and Float a little low. Float is an underground masterpiece imo, I even prefer it to Labor Days for its variety in the music and the overall grittiness of it
PitchforkArms 08.05.22	Malibu Ken is that high because I think it has 2 or 3 songs that I go back to more often than most. I agree on the eras. Do you see it as Appleseed/Earthworn - Labor and then None Shall Pass - present? I've always thought of it as 3 eras, tbh. Up through labor days is Early Aes, then up through Impossible Kid is the middle era (more rhythmic flow compared to the more legato and loose flow of the early stuff), and then the 3 most recent releases where they've all had a bit more trippy/weird to them, especially on the production side (Spirit World, Malibu Ken, Garbology). What say you?
cylinder 08.05.22	I see. Personally, I wouldn’t have included Malibu Ken, but I do see why other fans might. It is basically an Aes album, just not ~technically~ , haha I see it as Earthworms - None Shall Pass and then Skelethon - the rest. I see what you’re saying though about the sound of the 3 most recent releases. I think I lump them all together because Aes’s performance is pretty similar on all of them, flow-wise. (And that’s why I prefer the earlier era, a lot more variety in the flows.) I see the later era basically as when he modernized/trimmed down a bit for wider appeal, and I think everything from Skelethon onward has that in common. My fave of the later era is probably Garbology, I find the music a lot more engaging on that one than any of the other later albums. But I think that only makes sense with Blockhead on production
PitchforkArms 08.05.22	I hear ya. I'm not sure I see the jump stylistically between NsP and Skele as much as I see it between Labor & NsP.
cylinder 08.05.22	That is a good point, Labor Days and None Shall Pass do sound pretty different from each other. But NsP was still Def Jux, and I think Skelethon sounds even more “modern” than NsP, which was befitting of the 5 years in between and the label change to Rhymesayers. There’s no wrong answers, just interesting to see how other fans view his amazingly consistent discography. Honestly, I’m just stoked to find another fellow Aeshole, he’s easily one of my most played artists too. I just finished listening to SWFG before seeing this list, haha.
combustion07 08.05.22	Interesting ranking. You've got one of my favorites last. Think Bazooka Tooth falls right below Labor Days as the favorite for me. I had no idea Malibu Ken even existed so I'll have to check that out
PitchforkArms 08.05.22	@cyl - yes sir! Lots of discography to explore and lots of yet to be discovered intricacies even in the stuff I'm hyper-familiar with @combustion - Malibu Ken is him w/ TOBACCO. It's got a bit of an acid trip electronic feel with Aes doing his think. It's definitely more playful than most releases. I'm higher on it than most. Tuesday is one of his best songs ever. What about Bazooka Tooth draws you in most? What are your least favs of his?
DarkSideOfLucca 08.05.22	I agree with 1 and 2 but where is Hail Mary Mallon, my dude? That album fucking owns. Also, people dont like 4? 4 is a fucking straight banger. One of my all time favorite artists right here.
PitchforkArms 08.05.22	READ THE LIST DESCRIPTION BOZO! lol I didn't include HMM because Rob is half of that project lyrically. I think Bestiary is super dope. Killjoy by Rob Sonic feat Aes is an alltimer for me, too. I feel like the Malibu Ken didn't get the warmest reception ever on here. It grew on me extremely heavily over the summer it came out, though.
DarkSideOfLucca 08.05.22	Reading is for nerds, do I look like a goddamn nerd to you, PUNK?
ConcubinaryCode 08.05.22	Not a bad ranking tbh. Labor Days will always be my no. 1 I think but IK is also a solid pick. I really don't care about Malibu though and that'd be toward the bottom. Still need to give Spirit a proper listen, it just didn't gel with me at the time. LD>NSP>Garbo>TIK>Float>Skele>MfE>MK>BT
PitchforkArms 08.05.22	Lot's of Garbo love. Like to see it. Labor Days used to be my no 1 for years. Barely supplanted.
LeftyMcRighty 08.05.22	No HAIL Mary Mallon?
LeftyMcRighty 08.05.22	Otherwise I agree with your list order. Impossible Kid is near perfection.
PotsyTater 08.05.22	Woof
Mort. 08.05.22	meow?
Kompys2000 08.05.22	Solid ranking, been forever since I listened to any of these in full but top 4 are all good shit
Veldin 08.06.22	Shoutout to Appleseed
Pheromone 08.06.22	1 >>>>>> 4 >>> 2 >>>>>>>>>>br /> the rest
PotsyTater 08.07.22	Impossible Kid is the hot topic of hip hop records
MusicGator9185 06.13.23	Can't argue with one and two.
Butkuiss 06.13.23	No Uncluded?
MiloRuggles 06.13.23	Nice! Pretty close to correct by my eyes. 3 and 5 should be lower and 7 and 8 should be higher. I'll give you a strong 7 to a light 8 on this thing
cylinder 06.13.23	Shoutout to Appleseed [2] prob my favorite Aes release I see a lot of Aes fans that love The Impossible Kid, but I just cannot get into it besides Lotta Years and Dorks. Am I missing something? Just seems so samey to me
Butkuiss 06.13.23	Honestly I feel like Float gets underrated a lot; I love the dusty sounding beats. Definitely a postcard from a bygone era of hip hop production.
cylinder 06.13.23	^agreed hard with this. A quintessential postcard of that era
cylinder 06.13.23	And why does Garbology still seem so overlooked? I wonder if it’s because it was marketed as Aes x Blockhead instead of just Aes. Which is funny because Blockhead produced most of Float and Labor Days too, lol. It’s a shame because Garbology is so, so good. I think it’s his best since None Shall Pass. And it’s an Aesop Rock album the same as any other rap album produced by someone who isn’t the rapper lol
PotsyTater 06.13.23	Bruh
PitchforkArms 06.13.23	@pots - bro bro u know how I be, c'mon mans, it's like our only hiphop incongruity lol @everyone esle. After another year-ish of continued fandom, Garbo & Skele have both shot up rapidly and NSP has gone down a fair bit. Garbo has some absolute gems and is a real treat of some of the most odd and compelling beats & production (thanks, Block) with some of his more accessible, relateable, and consistent, vocal deliveries & lyricism @cyl - very surprising that you're not much into TIK. I would recommend re-listening to the Get Out of The Car and Shrunk. Car is probably his most personal and vulnerable track ever, and then Shrunk is a bop with what I think to be his best lyricism and storytelling.
PotsyTater 06.13.23	I tried to listen to impossible kid once and it sounded like hot topic core to me but maybe that album art was just bleeding into my experience too much
90m80s 06.13.23	u forgot Uncluded
cylinder 06.13.23	Pots have you heard Garbology?
cylinder 06.13.23	@PitchforkArms always willing to give Aes more time haha, tbh I haven’t heard TIK nearly as much as his other late-era ones, so maybe it just hasn’t sunk in fully yet. Ima really dig into the whole album again soon and I’ll watch out for those tracks in particular. Thanks man
unclereich 06.13.23	Alex Pardee art is lame agreed, still shamelessly love Aesop's earlier catalog
PotsyTater 06.13.23	@cylinder no I haven’t
Kompys2000 06.13.23	I do vibe with a lot of the sorta structureless lyrical miracle stuff on the None Shall Pass t/t, mystery fish etc but the aes tracks that really stick with me are mostly more on the tangible side- "Rings" has so many great little details that build out the like emotional reality of having an interest or hobby that falls by the wayside over time. I enjoy how unambiguously it's about what it's about, feels very focused and "songwriter-y"
Kompys2000 06.13.23	Still need to check garbology all the way through I was having a hard time with some of the beats
PotsyTater 06.13.23	I’m definitely more interested to hear more blockhead produced Aesop over self produced aesop , I hate his self produced shit
cylinder 06.13.23	“I hate his self-produced shit” I feel you on that tbh. He’s got a long way to go on that front. But yeah you should check Garbology sometime, the beats are fresh af. And most of the songs are super fun, besides a few darker ones
PitchforkArms 06.13.23	Pots you might actually like it if you give it a more forgiving shot. I know you're def not into lots of those dudes of his ilk, though, (Aes, Slug, Atmosphere, white dude esoteric sad poet boys). As I said to cyl, Shrunk is an all-timer for me on all fronts. Amazing imagery, delivery, hard af beat, etc. That is usually a decent indicator of the "yay-nay" litmus test. @cyl - get on it, dude! Let me know what you're feeling in more detail if you end up pouring through it sometime soon. Always down to chat that record... @Komp - yeah the beats on it are definitely odd. I don't think any of my all-time Aes songs are on the record, either, but it is still very consistent and has a lot of really really good tracks.
PitchforkArms 11.21.23	It's been a year+ and I've changed my mind a lot on some of these..... I'd section these up into tiers now... The Impossible Kid Labor Days Skelethon Malibu Ken Spirit World Field Guide Integrated Tech Solutions Garbology Float None Shall Pass Earthworms Appleseed Bazooka Tooth
gschwen 11.21.23	FYI: I saw that he's on the new Blockhead record; its weird that spotify has him tagged but doesn't show up on his page
cylinder 11.21.23	Appleseed that low is a crime. Like come on, it’s at least better than Earthworms
PitchforkArms 11.21.23	@cyl, TBH yeah it's probably more like the tier above with Float and NSP
Drifter 11.21.23	impossible kid might be the worst album of all time but float is great
onionbubs 11.21.23	ive only heard the last three albums and like spirit world field guide the most pretty easily but hes still kind of annoying on it lol
cylinder 11.22.23	Float is amazing yeah, way better than any of his new stuff