Today, I am reviewing the new collaboration by Indiana rapper Freddie Gibbs and critically acclaimed producer Madlib, Piñata. It is a massive understatement to say I have been excited for this album. I literally could not wait for it. The reason for this is pretty obvious: Gibbs is an excellent MC, Madlib is an excellent producer. Both of these guys have made a positive impact on the rap game; Gibbs has released several great projects, and Madlib, well known for his 2004 collaboration album with MF DOOM, Madvilliany, has a reputation has a creative, forward-thinking producer. Now, this dream collaboration is finally happening. Will Piñata deliver after all the anticipation?
On all 17 tracks here, Freddie Gibbs brings toughness, energy, and he just sounds like a thug. He has one of the most recognizable voices in rap because of how raspy and raw it is. He will immediately catch your ear when he starts rapping because of his awesome delivery. There is not one moment on Piñata where I feel like Freddie Gibbs is boring on the mic. This guy is an incredibly talented MC. He has many different flows that he uses, but he always manages to stay on beat, which is no easy feat considering how dense the Madlib beats are. Lyrically, Freddie Gibbs will consistently spit lines that stay in my head, and his lyrics are just so memorable. He has a lot of topical tracks on this album, with Knicks (basketball), High (weed song), Lakers (ode to Los Angeles), and Harold's (a chicken spot in his hometown). Gibbs will always have you listening hard to what he has to say. He even devotes one track, Real, to dissing Young Jeezy, in which he sounds aggressive as ever. On the song Shitsville, Gibbs goes ridiculously hard, riding the beat with ease, flowing quickly, and angrily delivering the hook. I love the way he raps on this song, and it is one of my favorites on the album.
One thing I was extremely anxious to hear on this album were the features. I can safely say that they came through on this album. Starting with Danny Brown, who is fittingly on the song High, he brings so much to the track, rapping in the upper register of his voice and flowing with insane speed. Ab-Soul fit the song Lakers perfectly, and he sounded good on that smooth production. Freddie Gibbs didn't just work with up-and-comers on Piñata, though, as hip-hop veterans Raekwon and Scarface kill it on Bomb and Broken, respectively. Gibbs has Odd Future representatives Domo Genesis and Earl Sweatshirt on the song Robes, and they both have solid verses, especially Earl, who brings his signature wordplay and laid-back flow. The most R&B influenced track here is Shame, where BJ the Chicago Kid beautifully sings the hook; this song is undeniably the smoothest on the album. Finally, a major highlight was the monstrous posse cut, Piñata. First, I will give credit to Domo, G-Wiz, Casey Veggies, Sulaimon, and Mac Miller. These guys all had nice verses and made this a good posse track, but two verses here really stood out, and were miles better than all those: Gibbs himself and Meechy Darko. Gibbs had a crazy delivery here, and just sounded furious. It was awesome. Meech was my favorite verse on the song, just because it was Meech doing what he does best. He sounded eccentric, wild, and threw his voice everywhere. I can definitely say he had the best feature verse on Piñata. The features on this album were perfectly selected and I enjoyed each and every one of them.
Now, it is time to show love to the genius behind all these songs: Madlib. His production on this album was stellar. I thought every beat on this album was unique and forward-thinking. Plus, they all sounded clean, smooth, and polished, It really felt like Madlib worked hard on these beats and made sure they sounded perfect. Every single instrumental sounded different on this album, and each one went for a different vibe. Robes and Shame worked soulful samples into the beat to create something relaxing and delightful. On the other end of the spectrum, Scarface and Shitsville were both high-energy, commanding beats that matched Freddie Gibbs' aggression on the tracks. I appreciated some of the old-school beats here, because they were throwbacks, but with modern twists. Knicks, Broken, and Piñata were all examples of this. Madlib also incorporated some crazy synth sounds on this album. Songs like Deeper, Uno, and Bomb all had some wacky synthesizers that sounded like something I had never heard before, but they had this cool, chilling, vibe that I really loved. There were two beats in particular, though, that stood out above all the others because of how amazing they sounded. The first is Thuggin. This song had an incredible string riff that came in and out of the track and it just sounded pristine. It came together with some soft drums to make something very light and peaceful, but it also had energy to it. It was a fantastic beat. My favorite instrumental here is Harold's. This beat was beautiful. The high energy claps made the beat a major head banger, and the main synth was just amazing. This beat was so upbeat and happy, and I could listen to it all day.
Freddie Gibbs & Madlib- Piñata
+Gibbs sounds focused, aggressive, and raw; all while having fun
+Some awesome storytelling tracks
+Features added a lot to to the album, and were perfectly selected
+Madlib's production was smooth and every beat sounded incredible
+Insane variety in the beats
+Gibbs and Madlib have undeniable chemistry; great pairing
Best: Harold's, Thuggin, Deeper
Worst: None
Freddie Gibbs & Madlib- Piñata
9.7/10
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