3 out of 5

Label: Lakeshore Records

Produced by: I. Bavitz

With the opening theme of ‘Corner Store’ established on Aesop Rock’s soundtrack to Bushwick, there’s still an unanswered question: given that the song’s organic, raw groove and slow roll beat could be an instrumental from Skelethon, is this what an Aes score will be – tracks where he doesn’t rap? As good as the beat is, it’s a somewhat defeating thought.

Thankfully, as the tune goes along, you can hear the emphasis on mood as opposed to looping to support verses; the track is quite atmospheric and involving (and instantly head-bobbing). Confidence in AR as a score-er increases with the next tune, Mashed Potatoes, which ditches the hip-hop beat for a roving, emotive, crawling guitar line.

So Mr. Bavitz can definitely craft a soundtrack. Alas… what is it a soundtrack to?

While I don’t want to directly criticize an album that I’m listening to separate from its film – especially, heh, a film I haven’t seen! – it’s hard to sync Rock’s soulful, moderately poppy beats with what appears to be a thriller. Instead, Bushwick’s music (separate from visuals) is vaguely suggestive of something sci-fi or retro horror, but even here, Rock’s blending of Skelethon earthy beats with almost synthwave electronica (and, towards the end, notes of Impossible Kid‘s glitch) confuses the mood. It works on its own, and let’s assume it works as cued in the movie, but if we view it as a standalone concept album – it’s harder to parse, not so much for genre (like it could work for a Panos Cosmatos movie, at a stretch), but for tone, as it mimics moodiness but with an ultimately lighthearted vibe.

As an album, it’s also fairly limited: the theme pops up in multiple forms, then there’s a more fast-paced variant (that morphs into the Impossible Kid example), and several, minute-long ambient synth warbles. The exceptions to this still tend to be a bit repetitive, and lack punch as singles, but they are at least well sequenced throughout to break things up. So the album is ultimately a quality listen, it just doesn’t cross the line to being cinematic, nor is it rich enough to qualify as a full-on album.