4 out of 5

Label: Strange Famous Records (US)

Producer: dan le sac, Yila

Bi-polar.  I’m sure it could describe Mr. Pip, it also describes my listening experience with ‘Angles.’  For every track that whips you into a frenzy, there’s one that makes you feel a bit silly.  For every awesome beat, there’s a poppy one that makes you question what kind of hip-hop you’re listening to.  Far be it from me to want something to be pigeonholed, and for sure part of the whole dan le sac / Pip packaged deal is that you’re getting something a bit shapeless and shifty, but the “this is awesome!” to “what’s the next track…” feeling is a bumpy ride, making those awesome singles that you heard – ‘Beat That My Heart Skipped’ and ‘Thou Shalt Always’ stick out as almost uncomfortable sore thumbs, Pip’s heavy accent not as charming but rather mashing the words together to slip out a clever turn of phrase, the blippy beat too back-packy to match with some of the references dropped.

But a surprise is in store.  Normally artists front-load their discs with material, or it doesn’t change enough during the course of the listen that you’re totally on board when things start, but halfway through your ears tune out.  Interestingly, ‘Angles’ pivots around – natch – its title track, a dark and moody tune that marries the sometimes too honest (and thus nigh cringe-worthy) lyrics with a really bleak story around the concept of how every tale has a million points of view.  The sequencing is interesting because it differs depending on the version of the album you have – the UK version positions one of those two big singles on either side of Angles, whereas the US version puts them up front, saving Angles for the latter quarter of the album.  I can’t help but wonder how that would affect the mood of the album.  I have the US version, on which ‘Angles’ gives way to a similarly themed ‘Magician’s Assistant,’ which, listened to on its own feels a bit preachy, but makes absolute poignant sense when paired with Angles, then end, bleakly, openly, on ‘Waiting for the Beat to Kick In…’

The trick here is that this downshifting in the last few tracks suddenly throws everything before it into a different light, and immediately hitting play again ties Pip’s “just wanna have some fun, ya’ll” spoken word bit at album’s open into a true wake up, back to the poppy beats.  You’ll start to cringe again, maybe when the Radiohead sample plays (even though it’s a great song), maybe during the self-conscious breakdown on ‘Development’ (even though said breakdown is wicked smart and charming), but it all seems like part of the oeuvre – truly, as you have to listen to the whole album to get the whole picture.