Hip-hop artist Aesop Rock and producer Tobacco have come together under the name Malibu Ken, and released an album under that name. The duo joined forces in order to create some new and outrageous music. Malibu Ken incorporates some of the best lyrical flow and funky beats, which leave the listener at an awe. The 10 track album is pretty quick to listen through and it's super easy to keep on repeat.
Aesop Rock (Ian Bavitz) is a recording hip hop artist based in Portland, Oregon. He uses his musical talent of playing instruments such as the guitar, bass guitar, keyboard, and sequencer, as tools to drive his unique sound forward. He is currently a member of The Weathermen, Hail Mary Mallon, The Uncluded, and Two of Every Animal. Bavitz' name derives from a character that he played in a movie, whereas the "rock" portion came from "just from throwing it in rhymes."
Not too much is known about Tobacco (Thomas Fec) due to him leading a very private lifestyle, and his pop band Black Moth Super Rainbow rarely does an interview. Based in Pennsylvania, he works with analog synthesizers other pre-digital instruments to create a unique sound that grabs the listeners attention. He has also worked with other artists such as Beck, and Demon Queen. Fec claims that the name "Tobacco" came from the Tobacco man in the movie Redneck Zombies which freaked him out as a child.
Malibu Ken starts with one of the most well-known tracks "Corn Maze" in which a fat 808 beat plays, while the keyboard twinkles its keys, and Aesop raps about being the "weekly news Batchild". The lyrical flow of this song is outstanding and creative, while the lyrics "The phone ping form a pillow fort in a corn maze/I don't have a horse in your war games/I don't even really like horses/I like wild orchids and neighbors with wide orbits" show how Aesop bases each next line with a similar rhyming pattern to the one before. Before the chorus Aesop will say a line such as "I go to bed stoned" and follows it with the repeating verse "I got some walls up". This is my favorite song off the album due to how quickly both artists are able to grab the attention of the listener, and keep their attention. Far too often an artist will get the listener's attention, yet be unable to maintain it.
The next track "Tuesday" is another one of the most well-known tracks on the album. Changing up the beat, Aesop's lyrics reflect grime and dirt which paints a picture for what life is like to the character on the cover art. Due to the character's rancidness, the listener can understand why lyrics like "I'm bunions and contusions, bumps, lumps, and bruises/Discoloring, and other things I cant reach with a loofah" are included. I loved the chorus and how he repeats "its just another Tuesday" because it represents just another day in the life of Malibu Ken.
"Save Our Ship" is the last well-known song on the album, yet I feel like there are multiple songs that are better including "Dog Years", "Acid King", and "Suicide Big Gulp". The reason for this is because I felt like "Save Our Ship" didn't offer anything different than the last songs that were played, whereas "Dog Years", "Acid King", and "Suicide Big Gulp" all show different perspectives of this grotesque character Malibu Ken.
Overall, I really enjoyed this album and collaboration of these two talented artists. Malibu Ken is grimy, dirty, grotesque, and smelly (from what I can gather). Yet its all these things put together that tell an amazing story about who this person is and why they are this way. I definitely look forward to listening to each artist more, as well as their Malibu Ken persona. I also loved how this album didn't over saturate itself with repetitive raps songs. Each song on the track-list (other than "Save Our Ship" brings something new and fun to the listener, making the whole experience of this album awesome. Malibu Ken received a rating of 8.5 out of 10 and I would definitely buy this album on vinyl.
