El-P: I'll Sleep When You're Dead : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Smart, intense and more underground than a sewage line, El-P (a.k.a. El-Producto) is the face of independent rap -- one version of it, anyway. Like most of his catalog, I'll Sleep When You're Dead sounds like a hip-hop version of a Philip K. Dick novel, all mysterious, dystopian beat poetry. El-P's rhymes are fierce and sometimes cryptic, and "Drive" offers something like a thesis statement: "My generation is carpoolin' with doom and disease." El-P never met a groove he couldn't murk up, and Dead is long on synths, grinding sound effects and chopped-up break beats. Some of the beats are very good: "Run the Numbers" rocks, and the clattering funk of "EMG" is something Ghostface should jack for a mix tape. If you're into nodding your head and scratching your head at the same time, Dead is for you.

CHRISTIAN HOARD

(Posted: Mar 20, 2007)

News and Reviews

How to Play This Album

Click the play button.
Register or enter your username and password.
Let the music play!

No commitment.
It's FREE.

Track List

Play All

Your Turn

Give us your review of I'll Sleep When You're Dead

Review 1 of 1

3of 5 Stars

Really good stuff for the most part. Great beats, great lyrics. His flow is good, the only thing I noticed was sometimes the beat and flow didn't mix too well. However, it was a pleasant surprise to find him working with Trent Reznor. If you want to hear the future of hip-hop, pick this one up.

Mar 31, 2007 03:49:27

Previous Next