ALBUM/MIXTAPE REVIEW: Death Grips- Government Plates

There’s a wide range of opinions on Death Grips, the Punk-Hop group from Sacramento. Some love their abrasive sound and “I Don’t Give a F*ck” attitude. Others loathe their childish antics and very unorthodox sound. I mean, music aside, I’ve found their behavior over the past few years to at least be somewhat entertaining (Though incredibly douchey). The way they present themselves is just as spontaneous and unnerving as the music they make. The release of their latest album/mixtape, Government Plates, follows this through. Almost out of nowhere, they dropped this with little to no warning for free on the internet, which made for quite an interesting Wednesday afternoon.

Like all three of their projects before, Government Plates is a loud and abrasive affair. But, once again, they’ve tweaked their sound to bring something new to the table. After the dark and brooding nature of NO LOVE DEEP WEB, this album is a frantic and production driven work that once again sees the band pushing in a new and fresh direction. Even though my praise for NO LOVE DEEP WEB was, at best, rather lukewarm, I still felt that they could deliver something astounding if they put a little more time into it. Government Plates isn’t a landmark in experimental Hip-Hop, but it’s probably their most consistent and well executed projects yet.

The opening track, the obnoxiously titled* You might think he loves you for your money but I know what he really loves you for it’s your brand new leopard skin pillbox hat, is one of the most vicious and devastating tracks I’ve heard this year. The synthesizers sound absolutely hungry and empowered, while Zach Hill’s drumming absolutely shines. MC Ride’s delivery is loud and angry, but it’s not as overbearingly self-centered as it was on NO LOVE DEEP WEB. Death Grips have always done a great job with album openers, but this might be their strongest effort yet.

While NLDW seemed focused on MC Ride’s antics and anguish, Government Plates turns the tables and puts more emphasis on the production work, which yields fantastic results. Here, Ride’s vocals tend to meld into the music more like an instrument, becoming a piece of a whole rather than the “MC Ride & Death Grips” sound from NLDW. The strong production work has songs swirl around in intoxicating synth loops and brooding bass drops. The vocal modulation on songs like Anne Bonny comes across as less gimmicky and more purposeful, with Ride melting into the sound rather than standing in front of it. The punchy synths on This is Violence Now sound like explosive lasers, and there’s even some dance beats in there for good measure. Plus, there’s some really great drumming from Zach Hill all over this record, and he takes a lot more prominence than I’ve heard before. Death Grips have a lot of great ideas, and luckily these ideas never overstay their welcome.

Death Grips manage to make a lot more good moves than bad on this latest project, with shorter track lengths and more succinct songs. A lot of great songs here stay under 4 minutes, and that keeps everything fresh and moving along. It’s as if they took the brooding sounds from NLDW and put them into the shorter form that made The Money Store so great. The first half of this record (Much like the first half of The Money Store) speeds through like a bullet, and it’s some of the most engaging and enthralling stuff you’ll hear this year.

The later half finds the sound leaning more towards production than MC Ride, which manages to be at least interesting. While the beats on songs like Feels Like a Wheel and I’m Overflow are monsters, the usage of MC Ride on these tracks comes across as being slightly underwhelming. However, the sweet electronic dance and energy on these tracks make them at least good, even though they could use some more Ride.  Big House is another track on the back half that puts production in the forefront. The beginning focuses on this vicious, almost electronic psychedelic, sound, but it falls into this loud bass driven sound halfway through that is absolutely mind boggling. Even though the second half isn’t as in-your-face as a lot of their past work, it’s some of the easiest to listen to (and pleasant) stuff that Death Grips have done to date.

Now, like every other Death Grips album, there are certain ideas that don’t entirely work. The ghastly guitar that plays during the verses of Birds is an absolute vibe killer and sounds more comedic than frightening. Some of the clashing on Feels Like a Wheel with the modulated vocals and the monotone synths don’t exactly work either. However, there are many more moments of brilliance on this record that more than make up for those less developed ideas.

The trance nature that comes in and out that contrasts with the loud bass drops (Most vividly illustrated with Whatever I Want (F*ck Who’s Watching)) is incredible. That track feels like vicious waves of the ocean during a hurricane, lashing against the beach and then pulling away. It’s a weirdly beautiful song, that manages to be simultaneously ethereal and abrasive. Unlike any of their past stuff, there are some subtle moments where you can get lost in the breathtaking nature of the song, or feel like your literally standing in front of a great wall of synthesizers. Even though their’ antics may be tired, clearly their ability to make interesting and provoking music is not. Despite the poor mixing throughout the tape, the music is engaging enough to make this problem easy to overlook. Death Grips are still abrasive and loud, but Government Plates takes their sound to places they’ve never been taken before. People may be mad that they canceled a lot of appearances earlier this year, but clearly those cancellations weren’t for nothing.

Summary: Government Plates is a return to form for Death Grips following the half-baked NO LOVE DEEP WEB, with succinct songs, fantastic production, and a new found confidence that proves these guys are not just flashes in the pan.

Choice Cuts: You Might Think He Loves You…, Whatever I Want (F*ck Who’s Watching), This Is Violence Now (Don’t Get Me Wrong)

Leftovers: Feels Like a Wheel

B+

You can stream the entire thing below.

*NOTE OF CORRECTION (11/15/13): Yes, the song’s title are Dylan lyrics. No, that doesn’t make the length of the track’s title any less obnoxious.