One of the freshest and boldest-sounding rap albums in recent memory, Atrocity Exhibition is a sonic swirl inspired by the work of Talking Heads and Joy Division that nonetheless sounds like nothing else from the past or present. Named after the Joy Division song, the record finds Detroit's Danny Brown at his most unfiltered — almost unrelentingly grim and completely engrossing — a hallucinatory portrait of a rapper staring down the wreckage and rewards of career success with unflinching honesty.
The production is a wild collage of laser-beam guitars, gym-teacher whistles, creaking vocal samples, and air-raid drones, assembled by frequent collaborator Paul White alongside contributions from Evian Christ, The Alchemist, and Black Milk. Beyond the wired mix of post-punk anxiety, splintered techno elements, and haunting soul samples, it's Danny Brown's rhyming ability that ultimately sees the LP flourish — his voice shifting between desperate mania and razor-sharp wit across 15 tracks of dementedly danceable, deeply personal rap music.
The guest list is a murderer's row: Kelela lends ethereal vocals to the murky "From the Ground," B-Real of Cypress Hill delivers the languid hook on "Get Hi," and Earl Sweatshirt, Kendrick Lamar, and Ab-Soul convene for the ominous album standout "Really Doe." The album received widespread critical acclaim, earning an 85 on Metacritic, and was widely considered a masterpiece — a landmark that rewards repeated listens and continues to reveal new depths long after the first spin.
One of the freshest and boldest-sounding rap albums in recent memory, Atrocity Exhibition is a sonic swirl inspired by the work of Talking Heads and Joy Division that nonetheless sounds like nothing else from the past or present. Named after the Joy Division song, the record finds Detroit's Danny Brown at his most unfiltered — almost unrelentingly grim and completely engrossing — a hallucinatory portrait of a rapper staring down the wreckage and rewards of career success with unflinching honesty.
The production is a wild collage of laser-beam guitars, gym-teacher whistles, creaking vocal samples, and air-raid drones, assembled by frequent collaborator Paul White alongside contributions from Evian Christ, The Alchemist, and Black Milk. Beyond the wired mix of post-punk anxiety, splintered techno elements, and haunting soul samples, it's Danny Brown's rhyming ability that ultimately sees the LP flourish — his voice shifting between desperate mania and razor-sharp wit across 15 tracks of dementedly danceable, deeply personal rap music.
The guest list is a murderer's row: Kelela lends ethereal vocals to the murky "From the Ground," B-Real of Cypress Hill delivers the languid hook on "Get Hi," and Earl Sweatshirt, Kendrick Lamar, and Ab-Soul convene for the ominous album standout "Really Doe." The album received widespread critical acclaim, earning an 85 on Metacritic, and was widely considered a masterpiece — a landmark that rewards repeated listens and continues to reveal new depths long after the first spin.
