Atmosphere
Fishing Blues
Album Release Date: August 12th, 2016
"Perfect" is one of my favourite songs from Fishing Blues, the 8th full-length album from reliable HipHop group Atmosphere. The track is frontman Slug's poetic discourse about balancing his flaws and failures with his virtues and accomplishments. Poignant lines emerge amidst humble self-reflections: "You can change your name and still live in the past / Daddy was the face on a package of Zig-Zags". Rhymes like this will surely resonate with a certain working class/hippie/counterculture demographic, and show why Atmos has gained the following that they have. I myself remember, as a kid, thinking that the Zig-Zag man was somehow modeled after my own dad, but have never heard the sentiment expressed in a song until now. Mixed in with Slug's earnest musings, "Perfect" also features hints of his other typical characteristics—sarcasm, humour, self-deprecation—with lines like "I'm a feminist / I'm also a misogynist".
Slug (birthname Sean Daley) is the MC half of Minneapolis-based Atmosphere, with DJ/producer Ant (Anthony Davis) completing the duo. They emerged in the late 1990s as key figures in a network of underground recording artists who went on to become independent HipHop giants, the likes of Aesop Rock, Sole, Buck 65, and Sage Francis. All have deservingly achieved considerable respect in their own right, but Atmosphere in particular have gained widespread acclaim—from artists as disparate as HipHop legend KRS-One and popular country rocker Lucinda Williams. While artsy and abstract at times, Atmosphere skillfully command a refined balance between creativity and accessibility. Slug's steady, polished rap style manifests witty wordplay, innovative rhyme patterns, and captivating storytelling. And Ant has long been one of the best beatmakers around, as effectively crafting soulful, emotionally resonant melodies as he does head-bobbing party jams. On Fishing Blues they continue to display aspects of what has made them a winning combination for years, while also treading into new terrain.
Solid album opener "Like a Fire" is the album's most upbeat track, with a unique "dum ditty dum dum" vocal-loop beat and a chorus telling us to "Run wild like a man on fire / Get live like a roof on fire / Make love like a world on fire / Burn out like a fire". Next is "Ringo", with a simple organ beat emulating cartoon or video game music and a refrain of "Everybody wanna be a falling star"—presumably referencing Ringo Starr. And so immediately apparent is Slug's ever-growing infatuation with aging music stars; a category into which he himself qualifies, turning 44-years-old a month after the album release.
Themes of aging and/or burning out are increasingly pervasive in Atmosphere's recent albums. Their excellent previous release Southsiders (2014) showcased a refreshing brand of mature HipHop, with adult introspection comfortably replacing the rambunctious temperament that sometimes laced their earlier work. But as Southsiders showed Slug secure with getting older, on Fishing Blues he occasionally comes off as approaching a midlife crisis. Atmosphere's emotionally honest music has earned the label "emo-rap", with a measure of irony complementing sincerity. As much as Slug displays intelligence and sensitivity, he can also be brash and vulgar—a self-aware carouser with likeable everyman qualities. But as he shifts towards generally mellow, family-oriented ruminating, his attempts at cheekiness are less effective, and his self-degrading witticisms less endearing or funny than they used to be. The preoccupation with growing older is a bit much, embodying something that might be labeled "dad-rap" (indeed, Atmosphere's official Twitter handle was DADMOSPHERE@atmosphere) with increased emphasis on subjects of husbandhood, fatherhood, and fears about staying relevant in HipHop (for fans interested in hearing Slug expound on such fears, check out the 2015 documentary film Adult Rappers).
But the album's not without topical and textural variety. On "Pure Evil", Slug raps from the 1st-person perspective of a corrupt cop. In a similar vein, "Seismic Waves" addresses environmental concerns, materialism, and police brutality. Atmosphere has never really been overtly political, so I appreciate their intent here as they explore meaningful new ground.
On another note, "Next to You" candidly details a lecherous Slug coming home drunk, only to find his pregnant wife fast asleep. It's a bit too much information, as Slug's oversharing attempts earnestness and humour that he's captured more skillfully elsewhere. MF Doom and Kool Keith contribute on "When the Lights Go Out", yet another metaphor for dying, or falling off in the music industry, or both. With a slow, sparse beat, it's one of many songs that contribute to the album’s overall downbeat vibe—in attitude and sound. "Chasing New York" has a dope soul groove, featuring longtime Atmosphere collaborator Aesop Rock in a poetic reflection on gentrification, and other subjects. Among the best songs are the smooth "Won't Look Back" (featuring Kim Manning), which furthers the theme of aging and looking back on life, as does "Still Be Here"—a great example of Atmosphere's potent emotive qualities.
Fishing Blues might be one of Atmosphere's more understated endeavors, but it still has some awesome moments. And a lesser Atmosphere album means having maybe only 5 or 6 exceptional songs out of this one's total of 18, whereas on their best albums nearly every track shines. But the low points are never that low. The truth is that despite Slug's fears, Atmosphere is a rare group who've never fallen off—never burned out, never gone pop, never sold out. In September 2016 I attended my sixth Atmosphere performance and it was perhaps the best I've ever seen them. So while the challenges of aging are a focus of Atmosphere’s music of late, it certainly hasn't prevented them from continuing to show—after some twenty years on—that they’re still one of the most solid HipHop acts around.
• Nik Dobrinsky / Boy Drinks Ink
September 30th, 2016