Earl Sweatshirt’s Exhaust: Strength Through Hip Hop

Earl Sweatshirt is back with a record that is part vibes, part unforgiving self-introspection, part pick up hoops and part hip hop history. His track Exhaust is the new record Live Laugh Love in a nutshell. You have a play on a 2 Chains hook…back when Drake and Kendrick were on the same track. You have some life lessons and some lyrical mastery. I have always loved Earl Sweatshirt and it’s great to see him constantly evolving.

Musically, this track is all vibes. There is this cool late 60s / 70s soul vibe that is punctuated with some cruising synth and vocal loops…I’m not sure what the sample is yet. The track itself has a beachy vibe and a bit of a 90s West Coast It Was a Good Day vibe. There is not a ton to the beats and music, but the flow is amazing and really suits Earl Sweatshirt’s textured and effortless vocal as he smoothly glides over every beat.

Lyrically, the track hits on a few aspects of the record. Sweatshirt is moving beyond beating himself up and overanalysing what got him to where he is. He’s a father and it isn’t about him anymore. He seems to be at ease with his past, “At the end of the day / It’s really just you and whatever you think / I’m airmailing you strength.” What you think is your problem and I’m not responsible for what you think of me, I’m secure with who I am…but I’ll send you some strength so you can move on. I love the message behind that and how Sweatshirt can still fit in some amazing writing: “No amount of sugar gon’ to help with the taste” and “Preparing for the fight, go to church if you scared or you frightened.” His delivery is still fire and how he can effortlessly drop bars and sail in and out of the beat is sonic witchcraft.

Earl Sweatshirt has been on the hip hop grind since he was a teenager. He always had bars that hit hard and seemed genuine. I always felt that his writing was coming from a personal space…whether that is from an emotional place, a socially active place, a space that loves hooping or a place that loves hip hop. If you are an Earl Sweatshirt fan, you will love this record.

Listen to Exhaust