7/10

Earl Sweatshirt's third studio album 'Some Rap Songs' looks to be the latest in a new trend for hip-hop artists of late. Much like Vince Staples' newest collection 'FM!', 'Some Rap Songs' is a brief yet captivating selection of his latest work that seems to fit somewhere between an experimental EP and a full-length album. Although with fifteen tracks to its name, its 25-minute runtime means that much of his new material only sits as a couple of minutes long, and acts more as a release of small ideas that aren't fully developed or finished off yet.

Yet despite its unusually short experience, 'Some Rap Songs' still manages to showcase the rapper as one of the more proficient and groundbreaking artists currently working today. Much like his last studio record 'I Don't Like Shit, I Don't Go Outside', this new release sees him adopt a far more diverse direction than most others in the scene, and aim to create an album of interesting and left-of-centre rap singles that take on short bursts of energy in order to fix the focus on the MC rather than any of the production surrounding him.

It may be an odd listen for the casual Sweatshirt fan, but most certainly feels like the best path for him to take his sound this time around. A short yet engaging release that manages to continue his experimental thread without letting any filler take up too much time. It may not have everything we were looking for when it comes to his usual intentions, but definitely adds a very interesting chapter to his repertoire.