ALBUM REVIEW: Hemlock Ernst – Studying Absence

Tygr Rawwk Rcrds

Released: 16.10.24

For those in the know, Hemlock Ernst – the rap moniker of Future Islands frontman Samuel T. Herring – usually evokes Kerouacian lyrics kicked over jazzy breaks, recalling the heady witticisms of Aesop Rock circa ’01. Although this latest offering totally eschews soulful boom-bapery for angular soundscapes, the bars remain as incisive and freewheeling as ever, steeped in autobiographical cryptograms that veer from aporia to indubitability and back again.

Rooted more in industrial rhythms and abrasive staccato than actual melodies, Studying Absence presents Herring at his most ambitious, riding roughshod over brooding and sometimes unhinged beats without being subsumed by the bangarang. What holds it all together, though, is a quiet ferocity paired with an exultant attitude when you least expect it.