Written Before Listen
JPEGMAFIA has to be one of the freshest artists in modern hip hop. His blends of hip hop, industrial and electronic is the best combination since Death Grips. He is also completely different from Death Grips too. He is a self-produced artist with a unique rapping style. I loved his previous two projects and I hope LP! Is in the same realm. With that being said, let’s get into it.
Production
JPEGMAFIA is not your usual producer/rapper, More specifically producer, A lot of his production Is dense, hard-hitting, and quirky. The sampling is very eclectic as his library is very widespread, his drum choices are left turns on their own as his kicks pound, his snares clip, and his percussion just add that perfect layer of bounce and oddity. Some people do a lot with a little or a little with a lot, and Peggy is easily the latter in the best way possible.
Technicality
I don’t think Peggy gets the credit he deserves from the lyrical standpoint. His cadence vault is big and his lyrics are always in tip-top shape. Another thing about Peggy is that he’s super straight to the point where it’s kind of funny at points. He’s an “edge lord” to some and a dominant species to others. Songs like “God Don’t Like Ugly”, “🔥” and “Hazard Duty Pay” where Peggy takes all concepts aside and goes all out on the one-liners. I will also have to mention the diss track, “REBOUND!”. That song right there has to be the hardest diss track of 2021 as verses 4 and 5 are directed towards Armand Hammer. Especially Elucid. I would say that Elucid should respond but luckily they squashed it. On “OG!”, Peggy brings a new edition version of an old-school flow and he goes OFF. Alongside these lyrical gems, JPEGMAFIA is a very skilled flow-creator as nearly all of the flows he creates on this album are over the limit.
Genre-Bending
As you can see from the previous sections, Peggy is a hip-hop artist, but Peggy is just too much of a music listener to be just a hip-hop artist. Alongside the electronic influence on the production, he takes different styles of different aesthetics and eras. The song “End Credits” is Peggy going full metal over a 3/4 beat. “Thots Prayer!” Is an R&B cut and multiple tracks take influence from Chillwave, Neo-Psych, and Vaporwave as the tracks are cloudy. I also love the effortless blends of Memphis Rap and Reggae on the tracks “Are U Happy?” And “Rebound!”. As you can see, Peggy is far from a one-trick pony. He’s eclectic, smart, and understanding of what he’s capable of.
The “Offline” Version
The big thing about this album is the two different versions that dropped. The online version includes songs that were already released in 2020. Those songs are “Bald!” And “Cutie Pie”. The offline version is around 5 minutes longer and has more new songs. “Hazard Duty Pay” is classic Peggy from front to back and the beat is fantastic despite the sample being uncleared. Despite being slightly over a minute, “God Don’t Like Ugly” is powerful with the 69 seconds it lasts. The one-liners, the minimal beat, and the placement of the album are perfect. Despite “💯” being an instrumental, it makes the album more complete and cohesive. “Dikembe” is a song that samples the same song that Dilla sampled on “Runnin”, but it’s trappy this time around. Peggy also knows how to flow over it effortlessly too. There are also the last two tracks “DAM! DAM! DAM!” And “Untitled!”. One has a hilarious sample of the legendary “DAMN! DAMN! DAMN!” food review and the other is just a great closer for the album. Other slight changes are that “End Credits” is a little shorter, “What Kind Of Rappin Is This?” Has an extended outro and “Thots Prayer” is slightly longer. As you can see, they are different from one another. I enjoy the offline version a lot more, and I know that I’m not alone on that.
Cons
Uhhhhh….I mean I wasn’t super big on “TRUST”, That’s about it though. Peggy just doesn’t miss.
Verdict
JPEGMAFIA is one of the best artists in current hip hop and he solidifies that with this album. In my opinion, this is his best, and I loved Veteran and loved Cornballs. Peggy just knows how to craft singles, craft albums, and move in a forward-thinking direction.
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