Review Summary: A revealing snapshot, obscured by spiderwebs and dust
It's difficult to look back at Lil Peep's output since his tragic death without a slightly rose-coloured lens. The stark emotionality, complacent vibe and yearning imagery has been afforded a glaze of poignancy in the years since his passing, and there is perhaps a greater understanding now of the character he channelled through his releases. Angsty, confessional and confrontational, Lil Peep's legacy is well established, and Castles II, an EP project between himself and Lil Tracy, definitely conforms to the expected tropes, but with a sprinkling of dynamism to take the edge off the usual maudlin, self-deprecating focus. Sadly though, the slightly expanded musicality struggles to gain much ground against the tirade of self-flagellatory lyricism, and although occasional glimpses of character are allowed to shine through amidst the miasma of vehemence, Castles II isn't really able to do a great deal except tread water during its short runtime.
The lyrics and flows are nothing beyond the mediocre standard of other releases by the artist, and are produced with that familiar washed-out vocal distortion that colours his trademark drawl. The interplay between the vocal and the music itself actually bolsters the project somewhat, as the slightly more gothic sense of cavernous despair is paired with the beat loops and instrumental motifs to create a reasonably likeable sound. The hazily anthemic stylings of 'witchblades', with its dreary concept and looped piano hook is mildly diverting, even if the subpar rhymes distract from the intention somewhat. Conversely, 'your favourite dress' is an overproduced mess, with poorly mixed melodies and tangled melodic lines that struggle to get a leg-up against the booming bass. The repetitive vocal motif in the main hook causes additional distraction, but the fleeting moments of minimalism here and there manage to garner brief flashes of interest. 'dying out west' and 'past the castle walls' are actually decent tracks, even if the expectedly cliché sentimentality is a little full-on. 'past the castle walls' especially, in spite of its underwritten verses, has a likeable guitar hook, and a suitable rhythm that pairs pleasantly with the earnestness of the lyrics. It feels genuine, and manages to be quite affecting, in spite of the mediocre quality of the bars.
Castles II, as a bitesize chunk of Lil Peep's typical emo-rap, is a solid little diversion thanks to its fleeting length and fairly varied musical stylistics. Even though this alone is a substantial improvement over many of his other projects, it is still weighed down by the lachrymose drone that serves as the vocal, and, as always, the quality of the lyricism leaves a lot to be desired. There are moments of genuine heart, and the insight into Lil Peep as an individual, especially when he laments upon mortality and his own cynicism, is quite stirring and sombre. Unfortunately, this transient profundity is consistently undermined by the manner of its delivery, and by the nature of the musicality itself. It's languid, slender, and far from his worst project, but it is all edge; bitterness, sentimentality and misanthropy of the most juvenile kind.
