Chance the Rapper - Acid Rap

You know you live in slightly sad times for music when you go and read a couple of comments about Chance the Rapper, a man who, by any definition, is relatively new on the scene and just starting to pick up praise and support, and finding prissy little bitches like this:

he'll probably get a lot more listeners following a tour opening for Macklemore...ugh, why God, why? 

Whilst the ready availability for "just some guy"'s thoughts is just an easily ignored phenomenon of the internet age, and a large portion of internet discussion is held by disingenous people just seeking argument for their own entertainment, it's a little discouraging that rappers with even a smidgen of success - and when your free mixtapes are sold on Amazon by bootleggers you can call yourself pretty much there - are subject to the most scrutiny.

A rare case where the real name is better than the moniker; Chancelor Bennett's second mixtape (following 2012's 10 Day, which I admittedly haven't yet listened to) comes at a point where the guest spots and collaborations are rolling in. He's already worked with Childish Gambino, Ab-Soul, Snoop Dogg and fellow Chicagoan Twista, so by all means this is a future prospect to get excited by. It's terribly predictable to make the comparison but a recent example of a stellar mixtape preceding a potential 10/10 album? There are a few elements of Kendrick here. So what makes Chance stand out?

Immediately the sounds of Acid Rap are soulful, harmonious and classic: 'Good Ass Intro' and its host of vocalists are a gorgeous backdrop (borrowed from Kanye's intro to his 2nd Freshmen Adjustment mixtape) for some incendiary verses from Chance. He flips between self-assured and the playful firestarter - almost literally, he says he's putting "matches to gas leaks" of his current explosion, and makes the subtle claim that "this your favourite fucking album and ain't even done". The tape's title would have you believe this is an album predominantly concerned with drug use, and the 'Pusha Man' would seem to confirm that, with its rejection of the Matrix's "red pill/ got a blue and a handful of Advils", but its hidden track 'Paranoid' is more preoccupied with his rising fame and conflicted desire to stay faithful to his hometown. He vows "ima still watch my bros" but prays "for a safer hood when my paper good". He lambasts US media coverage of Chicago's murder rates ("Where the fuck is Matt Lauer at? Somebody get Katie Couric in here/ Probably scared of all the refugees, look like we had a fucking hurricane here") but wants compassion, not more outsider shock-motivated coverage. Even when discussing his own personal experiences with Chicago, though, he doesn't come off as preachy: on 'JUICE' he admits he "ain't really been myself since Rod [a friend of Bennett's] died", but then goes on to say "I ain't scared of the booth / All you can do is spit a verse of the truth".

In spite of all of this, Acid Rap feels anything but heavy. Tracks like 'Cocoa Butter Kisses' and their innocent, childlike melodies (and indeed memories - Rugrats, Fairly Odd Parents and Chuck E. Cheese's get mentions here) give the record a light and fun mood. He continues to play on his own status as a school rebel (the motivation behind debut tape 10 Days' name - his length of suspension from school) on 'Lost' as he flirts with a girl ("ooh your mama hate me/ Daddy wouldn't let you if he ever met me"). Guest Noname Gypsy plays the tearaway, rejecting her psychiatrist's prescriptions in favour of spending time with him (high or not). The romantic elements of the record can even be cute and poppy: take the piano and saxophones of the interlude 'That's Love'. Even on 'Everybody's Something' you can get some vague impression of why Macklemore would be a viable supporting slot with its messages of self-worth. 

There is one real low moment on the record for me, though, and that's Childish Gambino's perpetual sort of ironic "I'm a comedian and I'm doing rap? Ain't that weird!?!?" shtick - when really his rhymes and jokes are pretty juvenile at best - bringing down an otherwise solid 'Favorite Song'. Even with the nasal, grating hook of 'NaNa' it pales by comparison, and by the end sounds like infectious meowing. The majority of the album sounds meticulously arranged and almost narcotically-sublime, though, so maybe it's just sticking out like a sore thumb. Take tracks like 'Smoke Again' and 'Acid Rain' - again, both irreverent drug-taking tracks - the
productions could not really be tighter. In 'Chain Smoking' we're treated to probably the tape's 5th Michael Jackson reference, which makes you suspect if there's something about Chicago rappers worshipping him (but then, who didn't?) Chance explains away his drug use as some kind of unspoken, unexplained - almost divine reason ("That's why I pray to the dear Lord, God know who he be/ truth be told he juiced me, introduced me to the lucy leaf" - perhaps an interpretation of biblical reverence for all of God's creations). Finally, if we can be treated to a touching, personal parent-rapper phonecall/voicemail at least once a year, that would be nice. Outro 'Everything's Good' is indebted to Chance's father, and it's a touching moment.

The album has a perfect, summery vibe about it that gives hip hop a classic, loveable niche in amongst all the trash-talking (see: everyone who felt the need to respond to that Control verse) and bragging. The productions and Chance's flow are the strongest tools in his repertoire here, and where a couple of verses and guest spots slightly hinder that, there're 10 more ready to put you back on track. All in all, it's enrapturing, and one of the most exciting breakthroughs in a long time.

Rating: 9/10
Highlights: Pusha Man; Acid Rain; Cocoa Butter Kisses; Good Ass Intro; Chain Smoker; Lost
Avoid: Favorite Song

Artwork Watch: Best of 2013.
For fans of:  Andre 3000; Ghostface Killah; Kendrick Lamar
Up next: AlunaGeorge