Review: Freddie Gibbs & Madlib - Piñata
[Madlib Invasion; 2014]
Rating: 7.5/10
By Sam Kayuha, Contributor
To the hip-hop underground community, Madlib might as well be Dr. Dre. His years as a producer have yielded classic results--his collaboration with MF DOOM, Madvillainy, is widely considered to be one of the best hip-hop albums of all time, and his turn as a rapper on The Unseen remains a cult favorite.
For his latest project, Madlib and Midwestern rapper Freddie Gibbs come together for the collaborative album Piñata. This is not the first time the duo has worked together: three well-received EPs from the duo have raised anticipation for the full-length over the past three years.
The two come from very different worlds--Gibbs is a street rapper who draws from his experiences on the mean streets of Gary, Indiana, and Madlib is a Californian and one of the most innovative and experimental producers of all time. Piñata works because it delivers classic Freddie Gibbs raps in a brand-new, interesting format.
The album intro “Supplier” features movie and television samples and gives a basic message of Gibbs’ influence in his music: “If you have to step on 10 people to get a dollar, then you step on 10 people.” “Scarface” puts Gibbs’ gruff voice in the forefront before sliding into a smooth guitar lick played behind a sample of a sermon.
“Deeper” draws from a beautiful string sample while Gibbs gets his romantic side out--or as romantic as he can muster. Gibbs’ ode to that sticky icky, “High,” features the catchiest hook on the record and a guest verse from another marijuana aficionado, Danny Brown, at his most unhinged (although his vocals are strangely low in the mix). Raekwon makes an unsurprisingly great appearance on “Bomb,” while the beat to “Shitsville” is almost anxiety-inducing, as Gibbs spits about life in the gutter.
“Uno” rocks possibly the best beat on the album, and, if it’s possible, Gibbs gets even realer than he does on the rest of the record. Odd Futuremembers Domo Genesis and Earl Sweatshirt pop in on jazzy slow jam “Robes,” and “Knicks” continues the great use of soul samples on Piñata.
Piñata may not stand the test of time like some of Madlib’s other classics, but it is a very solid album that will cement Gibbs as one of the best rappers currently in the game. Gibbs proves that being an independent hero is just as good as being able to stand on the right side of Jeezy, his former label boss.
