Aesop Rock – “Blood Sandwich” (Singles Going Steady)

Chris Ingalls: The follow-up to “Rings”, this next track from the new Aesop Rock album, The Impossible Kid, continues the momentum. This time he’s reminiscing about his two brothers, spitting out nostalgia with countless pop culture references while menacing keyboard samples swirl around him and a killer beat doesn’t quit. If the rest of the album sounds as good as these first two tracks, this could be Album of the Year material. [9/10]

Pryor Stroud: Lofted over ambient electro-chiming, a serpentine guitar riff, and a grinding, dynamic beat, Aesop Rock’s lyric in “Blood Sandwich” is tinged with both playful irony and deep-seated conviction. The record-scratching chorus hook is particularly memorable here, but the track as a whole also leaves its mark; all-in-all, Aesop paints a cryptic, acid-tongued hip-hop narrative through intricate wordplay and an effortlessly dexterous rhyme scheme. [7/10]

Jordan Blum: I admit that this is the first song I’ve heard from this artist (well, as far as I know). I’ve always been curious about him though, and this video/song doesn’t disappoint. The ambiance behind the vocals is affective yet disturbing, which makes the home movie clips feel troubling and mysterious. There’s a Lynchian quality to it, and the music incorporates enough diverse timbres and changes to make it intriguing throughout. Of course, the lyrics are wonderfully confessional and profound. I definitely want to hear more from Aesop Rock. [9/10]

Emmanuel Elone: Normally, Aesop Rock is more focused on his witty lyricism and quick-paced flow than making a catchy hip-hop song, but “Blood Sandwich” has both. Lyrically, the song deals with memories in Rock’s past, from playing baseball to watching his brother argue with his mom as to whether or not he could go to a concert. Like most Aesop tracks, the topic may seem uninteresting or mundane, but his vocal delivery makes his stories entertaining nonetheless. However, what’s really surprising is that “Blood Sandwich” has some great drums mixed in with Rock’s DJ scratches, and the result is that the production is almost as great as the emcee, which is quite an accomplishment when you’re talking about Aesop Rock. [7/10]

Chad Miller: A lot of the time, I’m asking myself why I should care about these stories. I don’t see any of them being particularly interesting or even meaningful to anyone who isn’t Rock. On the bright side though, he does manage to throw a few clever lines into each anecdote. The song is pretty pleasant to listen to as well. [6/10]

SCORE: 7.60