In the past, Aesop Rock has fascinated and impressed with their technical flow, breakneck word cascades, around-the-corner metaphors and sophisticated storytelling. These strengths are still present on the New Yorkers’ tenth album, but this time »Integrated Tech Solutions« adds more relaxed rap passages, a loose concept that could be summarised as a critique of modern technocracy and, above all, some really convincing self-produced beats. On »Infinity Fill Goose Down« there’s funky bass and guitar interplay with sprinkles of synth and scratched vocals, while the mellow single »By The River« features gently dabbed jazz horns. »Aggressive Steven« contains some exciting twists and turns, although the bass is guttural throughout, and on »Pigeonometry« cooing pigeons really do set the rhythm. Alongside the misrepresentation of techno-speak in the intro and the assertion that he loves rivers, pigeons and his grandmother, there are countless references to pop culture, from Star Wars to Watchmen. Their new work proves that Aesop Rock still love wordplay and a finely balanced sense of language, including a varied soundtrack.
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