Saying that rapper
Busdriver is a mash of
Danny Brown,
Wu-Tang Clan, and
Frank Zappa doesn't get at how avant and prickly the man can be. Fans rightfully think that he wears those qualities quite well, and with
Perfect Hair, they have an album to advocate it, as a handful of approachable numbers help to give context for all the free jazz rhyming and bumpy musical riding throughout. With
Aesop Rock and
Danny Brown on the assist, plus Brainfeeder regular
Jeremiah Jae on production, the grinding manifesto "Ego Death" is the main attractor, barking out
Busdriver's modus operandi
Death Grips style ("I slip militant mantras between my cries and gripes") while offering an uplifting hook to hang on (a repeated "We can make this better" is the chorus) plus a quotable that would make both
Lil B and
Kool Keith jealous ("Duck boy shit is quacktastic"). The bright beat
Kenny Segal puts under "Eat Rich" might actually be malfunctioning, and yet
Busdriver's "I'm so hungry man, I could eat the rich" is so universal it should be a T-shirt. Then there's "King Cookie Faced (For Her)," where silly, mocking, and pointed lyrics shoot shots at macho stances and bad romances over what sounds like
They Might Be Giants having an electro jam on acid. Easy enough, and yet numbers like "Retirement Ode" and "Bliss Point" bury their treasures in angular sounds, brittle beats, and ever-changing melodies, requiring much more "effort" from the listener. Still, this is rich and delicious.
Perfect Hair contains all the usual reasons
Busdriver is wonderful, just with a little more sugar baked in. ~ David Jeffries