Andrew Milicia

The double EP is called Godspeed/Brain Dead. Godspeed/Brain Dead is Andrew Milicia. Andrew Milicia is all raspy and Philly and delicious. Milicia's east-coast gravel is music to my smooth, freshly-shaved West Coast ear holes. On GodSpeed/Brain Dead, Andrew Milicia seems whole-heartedly unconcerned about whether or not you like him. And that makes me love him, because he's sounds untethered, so raw, and alive.

The project is split into two halves: Godspeed, and Brain Dead respectively.

Brain Dead leans heavily on that shit-talk braggo steez that makes the East Coast the sneering face sucking on its teeth of rap music. Tracks like "Cheesesteaks" and "God Damn" are both witty and snarling.

Brain Dead makes me want to kick it with Andrew Milicia. I'm not 100% sure which emcee kicks off, "Smoke & Mirrors" featuring Esh and Three, but I got all wet for this lil truthism: "Abracadabra, presto, change-o / watch me flip up the same old, same old / most rap makes me wanna drink Drain-o / seems mad small, we're all fucking the same hoes…" It's these kind of banal observations spun on their head and made ILL, that makes me want to find out where Mr. Milicia lives, force him into my car and make him eat tacos with me.

This is that strap on your backpack, cock that cap, strap on the shell toes, and step into the Syffal Time Machine because Brain Dead sounds, at its heart, like one of those dirt hustle tapes you'd cop outside after the show. But then you realize that there isn't a tape hiss and the bass actually hits. And it sinks in that this isn't some lo-fi wool to be pulled over the eyes of the consumer, but a calculated move.

The second EP, Godspeed skews more conscious and emotive. Everyman anthems like "Work" featuring Reef Tha Lost Cauze are fists-up and eyes-shining. The emotive mental commentary of songs like "State of Mind" and "Sinking Ship," with their spacious production and piano samples.

These are the songs that make me feel like Milicia and I might be more similar than we'd ever admit in person: "Put on the beat, this is real life / trying to disguise what I feel like…" from "Sinking Ship." Lines like that make me want to find out where he lives and bring a handle of Jameson and a carton of cigarettes.

This is that sit on your fire escape and people watch all the pointlessness. It's removed. But underneath those heights, there exists a unquenchable desire to be a part of it all. To wave at the old man. To help the mother with her groceries. To dance in an open fire hydrant. Godspeed makes you draw the blinds, put on your headphones, retreat to the shelter of your shell, and ignore the world.

Godspeed/Brain Dead are two qualities EPs. Andrew Milicia probably could have stretched these out over the span of a year. But I'm pretty sure he's beyond that kind of strategy, so frustrated with the state of listening audiences, he'd rather smash you over the head, stand over your moaning face, and shove his whole shit down your throat, stand back up, and walk away like nothing ever happened.

And I can respect that.