"Cementing themselves as titans of the genre, Gibbs and The Alchemist are an unstoppable force," writes Thirty Three RPM editor Alex Thompson
We're only halfway through 2020 and Freddie Gibbs may have just released the album of the year. For the second year in a row. His slickly produced Madlib collaboration Bandana was one of the best rap projects of 2019, adding to an already bulletproof back catalogue and pushing him further into hip hop stardom. Freddie Gibbs is slowly amassing one of the most consistent back catalogues in hip hop and proving himself to be one of the best in the game. With Alfredo, this is only reinforced.
Where Bandana fused vintage, boom-bap influenced tracks with more modern rap bangers, Alfredo feels a lot more vintage in its aesthetics. A lot more classy. From the tinkling pianos of 'Scottie Beam', hazy soul samples of 'Look At Me' and gentle drum and guitar loops on 'Something To Rap About', LA producer The Alchemist cooks up some luxurious instrumentals. Beats feel slick and refined, gentle at times but always complimenting Gibbs' machine gun flows. It feels like what Westside Gunn's last album was trying to achieve, but didn't quite manage - to create a sort of luxurious mafiosa rap album. It's no surprise that part of the merch drop was a mafia themed comic book featuring the duo as the protaganists - this album has a truly cinematic quality.
This elegance shouldn't turn away your ordinary hip hop fan, however. Across the album, Freddie Gibbs flexes his rap skills by delivering some brilliantly slick flows, clever punchlines and painting some bloody, violent and coke fuelled images with his lyrics. On tracks like 'God Is Perfect', Gibbs flows with a precision and speed that is just incredible. His breath control must really be something because the way he flows on this track is ridiculous, fast and smooth but always with character and that Freddie Gibbs charm. His vocals perfectly compliment the smooth, vintage instrumentals and, on tracks like 'Baby $hit', his flow perfectly cuts and weaves around drum grooves and choppy samples. There's also a lot of love and affection in these tracks, family, being a father and relationships feel more prominent than in previous albums.
Features are excellently chosen and perfectly fit the tone of the album, whether it's the rich and smooth tones of Rick Ross on 'Scottie Beam', boom-bap flavour and violent narratives of Benny The Butcher on 'Frank Lucas' or the braggadocios bars of Conway The Machine on 'Babies And Fools'. Even the "Maybach Music" adlib sounds classy, unlike some of Ross' own tracks where it just seems a bit naff. Tyler, The Creator also delivers a standout verse, his booming and menacing delivery suiting the elegant instrumental surprisingly well. All of these features serve to compliment Gibbs, never stealing the spotlight but all bringing their own unique flavour to each track.
At 10 tracks and only 35 minutes, even the tracklist feels refined. There's no flab, no track that feels out of place or moment that feels like it should have been left on the cutting room floor. With the sheer volume of music out at the moment, and how many albums are just too long, I appreciate the punchy brevity of this.
This is an absolute home run of a hip hop album and, while it could have taken a few more risks, is easily up there with the albums of the year. It's certainly my favourite. Cementing themselves as titans of the genre, Gibbs and The Alchemist are an unstoppable force on this album. From the luxurious and surprisingly refined instrumentals to the excellent features and smooth bars of Freddie Gibbs, this is a rap album that explores wealth, violence, addiction and love with a cinematic quality.
9.5/10
Alex Thompson
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