For
Freddie Gibbs,
Alfredo follows the
Madlib collaboration
Bandana, whereas it adds to a prolific 2020 for
Alchemist, landing after
The Price of Tea in China (another meeting with
Boldy James, featuring
Gibbs) and
LULU (an EP with
Conway the Machine, featured herein). The concise and highly concentrated set also picks up where the L.A.-based
Gibbs and L.A. native
Al left off with
Fetti, their summit with
Curren$y. Headier and more reflective than that 2018 release yet laced with some drums with churn and bump beneath
Gibbs' double-time wit, it reinforces the reputations of both artists in the hip-hop underworld. Whether
Alchemist transmutes glacial boom-bap and trawling acid nightmares or spiritual soft rock and tear-jerking soul,
Gibbs makes it all work to his benefit. He gets his deepest and most confessional over the ghostly lurch of "Skinny Suge," accepting of a vengeful fate and lamenting his place in the supply chain that led to his uncle's overdose death. At the same time, he's still not above florid enumeration of his gains, comparing his lifestyle to that of the Chicago Bulls during Michael Jordan's rookie season, taunting hometown police, or observing his influence on a younger generation of rappers. In one verse of "Baby $hit" alone, he's toilet training his son, manufacturing dope for his clients, and philandering with visiting "ball-player baby mamas" who are in town while their men play the Lakers. There's a specificity to what the pair create here that makes some of the guests seem like outsiders.
Rick Ross' presence is unnecessary, and
Tyler, The Creator, however vital, is miscast. Conversely,
Griselda's
Conway the Machine and
Benny the Butcher enter the world of the top-billed artists with a more compatible mix of grievous realism and opulent fantasy. ~ Andy Kellman
![Midnights [Jade Green Edition] [Edited]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0602448247032_p0_v3_s90x140.jpg "Midnights [Jade Green Edition] [Edited]")
