Skelethon | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | July 10, 2012 | |||
Genre | Hip hop | |||
Length | 55:10 | |||
Label | Rhymesayers Entertainment | |||
Producer | Aesop Rock | |||
Aesop Rock chronology | ||||
|
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 79/100[1] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
BBC | favorable[3] |
Consequence of Sound | B[4] |
Drowned in Sound | 9/10[5] |
HipHopDX | 3.5/5[6] |
NME | 6/10[7] |
Pitchfork Media | 8.2/10[8] |
PopMatters | [9] |
Spin | 7/10[10] |
Tiny Mix Tapes | [11] |
Skelethon is the sixth studio album by American hip hop artist Aesop Rock. It was released through Rhymesayers Entertainment on July 10, 2012.[12]
The album is entirely produced by Aesop Rock himself.[13] Guest appearances include Allyson Baker, Hanni El Khatib, Rob Sonic, Kimya Dawson, Murs, and Blueprint.[14] The album's artwork was done by Aryz.[15]
Aesop has described death as a recurring motif on the album, stating:
It felt like everything around me was dying: people, relationships, all plant life in my apartment, you name it—it's dead. That's where the Skelethon title came from, and imagery associated with shit dying is prevalent. That said, I don't think there are many "sad" songs. It's more just like "ahhh I'm exploding"—I want it to sound urgent.[16]
Music videos were created for "Zero Dark Thirty",[17] "ZZZ Top",[18] and "Cycles to Gehenna".[19] A music video for "ZZZ Top" features the martial arts master Patti Li.[20]
The album debuted at number 21 on the Billboard 200 with 14,000 copies sold in its first week.[21] It has sold over 52,000 copies as of April 2016.[22]
At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, Skelethon received an average score of 79% based on 27 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[1]
It was listed by HipHopDX as one of the "Top 25 Albums of 2012".[23]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Leisureforce" (featuring Allyson Baker and Hanni El Khatib) | 4:43 |
2. | "ZZZ Top" (featuring Allyson Baker) | 4:15 |
3. | "Cycles to Gehenna" | 4:00 |
4. | "Zero Dark Thirty" (featuring Rob Sonic) | 3:21 |
5. | "Fryerstarter" | 3:28 |
6. | "Ruby '81" | 2:33 |
7. | "Crows 1" (featuring Kimya Dawson) | 4:19 |
8. | "Crows 2" (featuring Rob Sonic and Murs) | 2:30 |
9. | "Racing Stripes" (featuring Kimya Dawson) | 3:23 |
10. | "1,000 O'Clock" | 3:58 |
11. | "Homemade Mummy" (featuring Rob Sonic) | 2:46 |
12. | "Grace" (featuring Hanni El Khatib) | 3:38 |
13. | "Saturn Missiles" | 3:37 |
14. | "Tetra" | 4:41 |
15. | "Gopher Guts" | 3:58 |
16. | "Dokken Rules" (deluxe edition bonus track; featuring Rob Sonic[24]) | 3:59 |
17. | "BMX" (deluxe edition bonus track; featuring Blueprint and Rob Sonic[24]) | 3:34 |
Chart (2012) | Peak position |
---|---|
US Billboard 200[25] | 21 |
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[26] | 1 |
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[27] | 5 |