Review: Death Grips’ The Money Store

Death Grips: The Money Store (Epic)

“I’ve Seen Footage”

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This February, Epic Records signed Sacramento-based aggro-rap trio Death Grips in a WTF? move that caused an industry-wide double-take. As if fearing for its own major-label life span, the trio subsequently announced two new albums to be released within the year, the first of which — The Money Store — drops today. As Death Grips’ follow-up to last year’s acclaimed mixtape Exmilitary, its first official debut finds MC Ride, Hella drummer Zach Hill, and producer Andy Morin once again crafting one of the most out-there, if not polarizing, hip-hop releases of the year.

The album’s opening track, “Get Got,” immediately sets the tone for the record, sending a message to the listener that this is not your average hip-hop production. Ride trades in his signature shout-raps for malfunctioning-machine-like delivery, layered over spasming synths. “I’ve Seen Footage” is, quite possibly, one of the more accessible tracks on the album, channeling Salt-n-Pepa’s “Push It” as though it were produced by aliens.

As a whole, The Money Store might be as heralded for its shock value and general strangeness than its production value. It’s an album that challenges its listeners to like it, assuming that they survive a full spin.