Lil Ugly Mane
Oblivion Access

Last in the series of albums under this name, Oblivion Access takes the rap formula that has imposed itself over the last 5 years to the extreme; the kind, to be clear, that relies on wonky beats and a crooked, subdued rap style. A school that can be said to have been born, I believe, correct me if I'm wrong, ironically and as a mockery with the early albums of Lil B, who draw from the ignorant delusions of rather ignoble characters like Lil Wayne, then first sharpening the weapons of irony and later, of the youthful malaise of the '10s, now present in a hundred thousand rappers who can also boast relevant hits.

Ugly Mane starts from the same steps, takes flight between Bandcamp and other independent sites, offers about the same things, but always remains under the radar in the scene, also due to a substantial annoyance in accepting recognition for what has been achieved. This is, among other things, a key to understanding the album, which as stated represents the most refined outcome of this style, at least speaking of the rapper's production: in the album, the horrorcore influences of the first part of the production are drowned in a literal sea of effects. A nice feature is using the rap as "another channel of the mixer," susceptible to heavy manipulations and interspersed with really varied samples.

Musically, we're in the realm of the sonic debris of the noisiest and most experimental rap, think Oktopus, for example, atmospheric scraps that marry power electronics delusions, glitchy beats with so much echo that they destroy any semblance of groove, an underground imagery but with excellent production behind it. Vocal samples that wash over numerous hi-hats. A formula not new, which can please but no longer surprise, almost always accompanied by a lazy off-beat rap, full of spleen. And here is the breakthrough that makes the album truly beautiful: Lil Ugly Mane bursts into these sleepy bases with decisiveness and a lot of anger, as if fighting against the experimental molasses of the music, driven by a rare urgency for these introspective style rap albums. His sharp flow, very white, like Eminem, tears the track apart and creates a really suggestive contrast. The bleak themes of the album clash with reticent bases, and everything crashes into an ironic rage, but in its own way damn serious: "I got bad news/ Nothing really changes/ We just wander aimless." A very bitter mood, deep disillusionment that even invests the artist's own output (as mentioned this is the last album under this name, now he has started a new collaboration, unfortunately quite banal), as can be seen in the last refrain: "What's it all mean/ What's he saying when he says it?/ What's the underlying topic?/ What's the motive in the message?", sadistically beaten up by various effects. But even: "But what if he was bored and there was no between the lines/ It was a way to pass the time, he liked the way it rhymed." Between taking the piss and true suffering. If he were lazy he'd fall heavily into self-pity, but instead, the tone is pissed off, a real fight against a lack of meaning that at the same time is admitted—or maybe it's me over-interpreting and this is just another depressed rap album.

Resilient Nihilistic Rap.