– THE MILITARY COUP –

BROCKHAMPTON’s Iridescence was hands-down my favourite album of last year. But when a band follows up such an outstanding record with yet another inside the space of a year, that always rings alarm bells.

Fortunately, if any group is going to have enough members to sustain quality against such prodigious output, it would be Kevin Abstract’s crew.

The band once described as “gay, black, white, DIY, ambitious, all-inclusive, and would-be pop stars” are a 13-strong Texan rap collective with a creative hive-mind that generates more buzz than a swarm of ladies sex toys.

DEARLY DEPARTED is fifth album GINGER’s undoubted emotional core.

Abstract has said of the album in general that, while the music may be lighter in tone than on previous records, the lyrics often deal with “trash, anxiety, depression… all that stuff”.

Never more so than here.

And while Matt Champion and Joba’s verses touch upon the loss of their grandparents, there is no doubting that it is the final contribution – that of Dom McLennon (pictured) – that steals the show.

Rumoured to be a shot at departed BROCKHAMPTON vocalist Ameer Vann (thrown out of the band over rumours of sexual abuse) McLennon’s verse is a mixture of thinly-veiled references to his former band-mate and further criminal allegations.

It all reaches its conclusion when the rapper shouts; “it’s not my problem anymore / That’s just where you stand / That’s just who you are / That’s your cross to bear / You could talk to God / I don’t wanna hear, motherfucker”, throwing microphone and headphones to the ground in the process.

In the accompanying video (above) we see McLennon repeatedly pushing and hitting the camera until it malfunctions several times. It is a visceral display of violence that embodies the caged animal and enraged beast that McLennon embodies through his brilliant yet brutal performance.

GINGER is out now through RCA Records.

MORE FROM THIS WEEK’S MIX

BREAD CLUB: HOT MESS
TINARIWEN: KEL TINAWEN
KNEEBODY: SPECTRA
SUDAN ARCHIVES: CONFESSIONS

P.S. You can find all of the tracks reviewed above in the 45 Revolutions per Minute playlist below or click to access the 45 RPM Playlist on Spotify itself.

If you like what you hear (or even if you don’t), please engage in dialogue with me @45rpm_Reviews on Twitter. And, if you’d like to receive updates weekly, please subscribe to the email list to get these recommendations sent to your inbox weekly.

– SV –