It’s been a long time since Das Racist, a fact that I’m a little surprised Heems seems to know so well. LAFANDER has him more mature both as a person and as a musician and the development is excellent.
Right off the bat, “Stupid Dumb Illiterate” is great stuff. “I speak the mother tongue / but I’m illiterate / I’m an idiot / but only just a little bit” is excellent work. He does great work with his heritage throughout. The closing verse to “Sri Lanka” has some tremendous Hinglish and the call of “cricket” behind the line “swing the bat like I’m going for 6” is hilarious.
This is a New York album through and through (shout-out Jalen Brunson, Cubes did you wrong) and Heems stays eclectic throughout. “Bukayo Saka” has both of the coldest one-liners in the album; “Only right wing I acknowledge is Bukayo Saka” and “kill my cousin for the throne like in the Mahabharata.” Look at those references and look at how hard both lines go and you’ll get what this album is.
The heavy references are very reminiscent of Das Racist but they miss a lot less here. “My dough nuts / Ich bin ein berliner” is excellent. Heems’ flow is also better than before. He stays nimble throughout and maintains a relaxed swagger throughout.
It’s really helped by Lapgan’s excellent production throughout. He draws from much more than your average producer and his record collection is immaculate. The lofi, laid back production plays well against Heems throughout, especially in the vocal production in “Kala Tika.”
There are some issues with the album. Some songs drag, some jokes don’t last as long as they need and there’s no really killer song in the album. It’s a good album though and one that only Heems could have made. It’s unique and it’s fun and it’s very New York.
Top Five Records 