Music’s changing. It always has. That’s the way it’s always worked. Yet, many ardent music listeners are working their hardest not to receive the news. But that doesn’t change a couple of facts – there is potential for great artistry, theoretically, in any genre, and, yes, some things will just always sound good in the right combination.
Errol Eats Everything is part of that ongoing change. Sure, rap and hip/hop have been the predominant commercially successful genres for the last 25 years. But the lyricism of great rappers could call to mind Bob Dylan or Leonard Cohen. The cartoonish presentation of Errol Eats Everything might make you think of Ramones. And why wouldn’t the boasting and bravado bring to mind hardcore bands like Cro-Mags?
The fact is that on this self-titled album, Errol Eats Everything throws the kitchen sink at it. Yes, the beats are a mix of classic hip-hop and new, radio-friendly sounds.
But it’s the lyrics and the flow of the vocals that are the real focus here. And, indeed, the closest musical relations to Errol Eats Everything are the greats MF DOOM and Mos Def.
In fact, the running order of the songs and spoken word parts brings to mind 1990s hip-hop releases designed as musical theatre. The intro “The Inauguration” drops you into current times of trouble, while “Kingdom”, with its gentle funk groove and samples of militant speeches, allows Errol Eats Everything to position himself as a fighter against the “philistines” of the modern era.
Fans of old-school hip-hop will enjoy the production choices on tracks like the “NRG,” an ode to the streets of Brooklyn, and the anti-racism of “Ballad of the Brutes.”
And while Errol isn’t a tribute act by any means, it’s worth asking yourself if things have meaningfully changed since the protest rap of the 90s that the artist channels here.
If you listen to the Isaac Sawyer-featured “Don’t Matter None,” a track about police brutality or “Round N Round,” the hookiest number on here, the world Errol sees is just as dangerous and vile as it ever has. Words of advice from the rapper? Educate yourself, and then try doing the same with the others around.
There are more funk-inspired, old-school beats and vintage wisdom on tracks like “Be Out!” or the love-gone-wrong of “Fly Girl.” But, lyrically, Errol takes the opportunity afforded by the digital album format to deliver something akin to a full-length diary of his life.
Where does it leave us? By the end of this midnight trip through the dark streets of New York City, Errol is scarred, as described in “Automatic Traumatic,” determined as can be heard on the soulful chants of “Stand Your Ground” and even hopeful as the final track “Grateful” reveals.
But who is this mysterious rapper, really? “Errol Eats Everything” shares as much as it hides. The rapper’s got a few stories to tell for sure but ain’t quite ready to repent just yet.
The times are changing, and music is changing along with it. But, through it all, quality old-school rhymes have the same effect that they always did.
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