Aesop Rock: None Shall Pass

None Shall Pass, the first full-length album in four years from inimitable rapper Aesop Rock, delivers more amusing rhymes via unique flow. Under the guise of flippant themes, Aesop, aka Ian Bavitz, examines some weightier subjects that come with hitting the “point of no return” that is thirty years of age.

“Bring Back Pluto” is more than an ode to reversing the dwarf planet’s new status, as the chorus — “All I thought of was the cloven hooves / then had to clip clip clop over the woven roofs / with a nose for commotion and stolen goods / now tell me: what the fuck am I supposed to do?” — speaks to an entirely different issue. Aesop’s scattershot lyricism doesn’t exactly make his subject matter clear, but he employs an appreciated metaphor in discussing the plight of the ninth planet being bullied by the other eight.

The album’s production, mostly handled by longtime collaborator Blockhead and Aesop himself, is a deft combination of samples and instrumentation that incorporates copious scratching, post-jazz loops, and tweaked vocals. All of that, including the spazzy, high-pitched chorus, reverberated guitar, and walking electronic riff of the title track, makes None Shall Pass an excellent hip hop album.

However, it’s Aesop’s magnificent style — one that makes reference to R. Crumb, Orville Redenbacher, and a yeti on a roof rack — that brings us back for more.

- Scott Morrow

Aesop Rock: www.aesoprock.net
Definitive Jux: www.definitivejux.net