Review Summary: twerking at the slam gig.
The Mona Lisa. The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Einstein's theory of relativity. The creation of life itself. What do these things have in common, you ask? Well, for starters, they all pale in comparison to
The G Code. To let this beautiful monstrosity gather dust in the MOMA or a science textbook would be a waste of potential though. No, this bad boy belongs aboard a NASA funded time capsule spacecraft to hopefully one day be intercepted by aliens. It would be the perfect work of art to represent our species and intimidate any potential interstellar adversaries.
To be honest, I thought I was going insane the first time I laid eyes on this album cover. There have been many bands over the years who have co-opted the stylings of chopped 'n' screwed southern rap artists for purely aesthetic reasons in an effort to be quirky and ironic, so with a solo cup full of skepticism and morbid curiosity, I hit play. I can't even begin to describe my delight when I discovered that Peeling Flesh actually go far above and beyond justifying their visual aesthetic. It only took a minute and a half for the album to hit me with the opening verse of E-A-Ski's "Blast If I Have To" played over a salvo of brutal slam riffs. I was elated. I’ll admit, this intro might be one of the more awkward examples of the slam-rap synergy in motion, but it is quickly followed up by a certified club banger that brings the entire house down. "Shoot 2 Kill" absolutely rages with a barrage of evil riffs, double kicks and gutturals before a classic 90s Memphis rap sample begins to loop over a feast of palm mutes and pinch harmonics. It’s stupid fun, but it’s executed so well. Just when you think it’s coming to an end, the breakdown kicks back into gear at a slower pace, with the same vocal sample pitched down a couple octaves. I didn’t know whether to bust it down and shake my ass, or crowd kill the drywall in my apartment, but I was sold. And the party is only getting started.
One of the sly ways in which Peeling Flesh manage to get a leg up on
actual rap mixtapes is by savouring some of their downright tastiest moments for the interludes. “Skin Blunt (Interlude, Pt. 2)" might be the crowning point of the entire album just for the way those bone chilling xylophone (?) notes start to drip down over a disorienting flurry of chopped up vocal samples and metallic riffing. You'll feel like the Kool-Aid Man just busted through your wall and drop kicked you into the Twilight Zone.
The G Code just has such a great sense of humour. There are tons of little moments during this album that will make you chuckle, like the Gundam sample in the title track, or those hilarious Ninja Turtle skits that were dredged up from the depths of youtube. But even without all the superfluous garnishes, there is still a mighty competent slam record underneath, with fantastic riffs and disgusting vocals that will surely satisfy your lust for obscenity. The drums are top notch as well, with tons of double kick and sharp snare hits to massage your perfectly smooth brain. All the samples simply inject a bit of good natured fun into the experience, and elevate the album into more of a cultural spectacle.
Peeling Flesh have taken the crown of hip-hop-metal integration by dangling the entire nu-metal scene by its ankles and shaking the lunch money out of its sorry little pockets. The DJ record scratches on "Perc 3000" and "Full of Lead" are just their way of rubbing dirt in the wound.
The G Code is definitely a "love it or hate it" type of album, but regardless, you have to at least respect Peeling Flesh for committing to the bit and paying homage to their geographical region in an authentic way instead of just using the aesthetic for irony's sake. Hell, they even put out an entire slowed down "Crunk Edition" of the album for the real sippers out there. Oklahoma might be more than a stones throw away from Houston, but it's still the South.
