Untitled (stylized as untitled) is the debut EP by

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

rapper

Hodgy Beats Gerard Damien Long (born November 9, 1990), better known by his stage name Hodgy (formerly Hodgy Beats), is an American rapper, record producer and music video director. He is best known for being a founding member of the hip hop collective Odd F ...

, member of hip-hop collective

Odd Future Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All, better known as Odd Future and often abbreviated as OF, was an American Hip hop music, hip-hop Musical collective, music collective formed in Los Angeles County, California in 2007. The original members were Ty ...

. It was released on February 24, 2012. It is Hodgy Beats' first solo release since his 2009 debut mixtape, ''

The Dena Tape ''The Dena Tape'' is the debut mixtape by American rapper Hodgy Beats. It was self-released on July 7, 2009. It is also the first solo project from any Odd Future member, with its only predecessor being '' The Odd Future Tape''. It stood as the ...

''. Announced on February 20, 2012, the EP was released on the 25th of the same month. The project features production by

Juicy J Jordan Michael Houston III (born April 5, 1975), known professionally as Juicy J, is an American rapper and record producer. Originally from Memphis, Tennessee, he is a founding member of the Southern hip hop group Three 6 Mafia, established i ...

The Alchemist An alchemist is a person who practices alchemy. Alchemist or Alchemyst may also refer to: Books and stories * ''The Alchemist'' (novel), the translated title of a 1988 allegorical novel by Paulo Coelho * ''The Alchemist'' (play), a play by Be ...

and

Flying Lotus Steven Ellison (born October 7, 1983), known by his stage name Flying Lotus or sometimes FlyLo, is an American record producer, Disc jockey, DJ, filmmaker and rapper from Los Angeles. He is also the founder of the record label Brainfeeder. Flyi ...

. Lyrically the record deals with thoughts about self-reflection, the contemplation of death, and a struggle with drugs. The EP received mostly positive reviews from

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...

Background

The EP was announced on Hodgy Beats' official

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

account on February 20, 2012, and was released five days later. Unlike in their previous records, Odd Future did not contribute in the production, and Hodgy is the only person to rap on it. The song "Higashi Loves You" is the instrumental to "Somebody (Loves You)" by Plies and was produced by Rodnae. Producers Juicy J, The Alchemist and Flying Lotus all contributed beats to the project. The release of the EP served as promotion to Odd Future's debut album ''

The OF Tape Vol. 2 ''The OF Tape Vol. 2'' is the debut studio album by American hip hop collective Odd Future. It was released on March 20, 2012, by Odd Future Records and RED Distribution. It serves as the sequel to their debut mixtape, '' The Odd Future Tape'' ...

'' which was released on March 20, 2012.Batton, Carrie (2012-02-21)
Odd Future Share Tracklist and Three New Album Covers

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog. Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...

. Retrieved on 2012-02-24.

Composition

Album opener "Bullshittin'" was produced by

Three 6 Mafia Three 6 Mafia is an American Hip hop music, hip hop group from Memphis, Tennessee, formed in 1991. Emerging as a horror-themed underground hip hop group, they would eventually go on to enjoy mainstream success. The group's 1995 debut album ''Mys ...

's Juicy J, and features a murky bassline with a calming vibe. The track is inspired by the sound of

southern hip hop Southern hip hop, also known as Southern rap, South Coast hip hop, or dirty south, is a blanket term for a regional genre of American hip hop music that emerged in the Southern United States, especially in Atlanta, New Orleans, Houston, Memph ...

. "Cookie Coma" was produced by The Alchemist, and contains a jazzy beat, with lush horns and upright bass. The style of production is inspired by

boom bap Boom bap is a subgenre and music production style that was prominent in the East Coast during the golden age of hip hop from the late 1980s to the early 1990s. The term "boom bap" is an onomatopoeia that represents the sounds used for the b ...

production, with prominent sounding drums. Hodgy ponders his own morality on the track, with self-reflective lines such as "I’m too legit for life, I should get a grip and die, Fuckin’ take a trip and fly, and never come down". "Lately" has a

nursery rhyme A nursery rhyme is a traditional poem or song for children in Britain and many other countries, but usage of the term dates only from the late 18th/early 19th century. The term Mother Goose rhymes is interchangeable with nursery rhymes. From t ...

sounding hook, produced by Flying Lotus. "Samurai" contains a melodic funky beat courtesy of Jonti Danimals. "In a Dream" offers a more calming canvas for Hodgy's rapping, with its haunting vocal sample. The song features abrupt guitar chords, and Hodgy muses lyrically over a tale of his first love. "Lamented" echoes the work of the late Detroit producer

J Dilla J, or j, is the tenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its usual name in English is ''jay'' (pronounced ), with a now-uncommon varia ...

. "If Heaven Is a Ghetto" has a relaxed beat, with Hodgy contemplating the concept of death. Album closer "Higashi Loves You" is a slow burner composed of 1980's inspired keys, skittering hi-hats, and a smooth aesthetic. The composition features Hodgy lamenting over his past with drugs.

Reception

's Jordan Sagent viewed that the EP "isn't blowing the doors off of anything, but plenty of rappers have trouble releasing records this tight and thematically consistent, and ultimately, Hodgy makes his name and money with

MellowHype MellowHype was an American hip hop duo from Los Angeles, California, that consists of rapper-producer Hodgy (Gerard Long) and producer-rapper Left Brain (Vyron Turner). Both were members of hip hop collective Odd Future. They have released two ...

, and that group has shown no signs of slowing down."

Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features in-depth coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly Exclaim! print magazine publishes 7 ...

's Gregory Drakes praised the track "Lamented", writing that the "strangely interesting production still amazes", and "for those who are still a bit weary about Odd Future, Hodgy Beats' Untitled EP is good appetizer even for the ficklest consumers." Jo Fuertes Knight of ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' commented that while the record "probably won’t set the world alight", he called it an "accomplished project, resonating with crackly stoner soul and genuinely thoughtful lyrics – and a reminder that far from the teenage Tumblr caricature, Odd Future are still making some of the most exciting, accomplished music of our time."

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several award ...

's Corban Goble described the EP as "probably the best set of tracks the Odd Future camp has squeezed out since, like, ''

Goblin A goblin is a small, grotesque, monstrous creature that appears in the folklore of multiple European cultures. First attested in stories from the Middle Ages, they are ascribed conflicting abilities, temperaments, and appearances depending on t ...

''."

Sputnikmusic Sputnikmusic is an American music community website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites. The format of the website is unusual in that it includes both professional and amateur c ...

's Sobhi Youssef stated that Hodgy had matured as a performer, improving both his flow and beat selection, though noted that the EP offered very little replay value, and that no track "really stuck out". Drew Malmuth of Pretty Much Amazing wrote that "considering all the dreck out there it’s hard to gripe too much about a hip-hop release with good production and lyricism that has bursts of real quality", though mused that the project sounded "distinctly underdeveloped in comparison to top-tier hip-hop".

Track listing

Personnel

Credits for ''Untitled EP'' adapted from

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

. *

– producer *

– primary artist *

– producer *

Jonti Jonti Danilewitz (born ), known mononymously as Jonti, is an South African-Australian electronic and alternative hip hop record producer, composer and songwriter. He is signed to Stones Throw Records and Future Classic. He was also a touring mem ...

– producer *

– producer * Thelonious Martin – producer

References

External links

Untitled EP
at

DatPiff DatPiff is an online audio distribution platform that was launched in 2005. It is headquartered in Pennsylvania. It specializes in hip-hop, rap, and urban music. The site was founded in the spring of 2005 by Marcus Frasier. It is owned by Media ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Untitled EP 2012 EPs Hip hop albums by American artists Odd Future Records albums Albums produced by Juicy J Albums produced by Flying Lotus