I'm sorry, Sims.
I'm sorry I slept on your amazing, unparalleled masterpiece - Bad Time Zoo.
I'm sorry I ever questioned the work you put forth, delaying the album until it was perfect, giving valid reason for any push back it might have had.
I'm sorry for not being a better person, in the wake of the material you put forth. You're the kind of artist who puts out a body of work and the audience realizes their own shortcomings as a result. It's just that good. It's that well put together.
I first covered Sims in my week-long Doomtree Diatribe earlier in the year, wherein I wrote about his under-appreciated False Hopes 14 rather than jump on the band wagon that was rolling in on the heels of his second major release. Turns out I should have been paying better attention. While I was making an impassioned plea for the masses to listen to his stealth endeavors, everyone else was busy being blown away by what the artist is truly capable of.
Bad Time Zoo is the kind of album you use in text books to illustrate just what exactly is artistic growth. As amazing as Lights Out Paris was, it was well worn by the time his official sophomore release debuted. What the world received was the lyricism and insight of one of the most thought-provoking and hard working mc's out there. The working title had long been in the public eye as 'The Veldt' which set the tone conceptually for an animalistic endeavor. The final title of 'Bad Time Zoo' establishes more of a manic, stampeding and vital soundscape, one whose life force feels like a zoo run amok in the face of an oppressive society. The opening salvo of 'Future Shock' shows Sims to be all too aware of the isolating world we create with our omnipresent tech, while subconsciously summoning more human times with it's chanting and pounding drums. The sweaty worry of 'Burn It Down' feels frantic and inescapably energetic, pulsing with rhythms that grab you and shake you to wake you from your slumber. 'One Dimensional Man' brings to light the vapid air of the upper-middle and upper class' attempts at saving the world, one banquet benefit at a time.
Showing a broadening of sound, 'When It Rolls In' stands out as a game changer for the artist. Producer Lazerbeak creates a brooding, haunting soundscape for Sims to run wild in. In what may be a first, Sims actually sings a bit on the track, whose poetry has never been more affecting. I would be remiss, though, not to mention the lava-banger that is the formerly eponymous track 'The Veldt', where the two create a melting world of animals out to get you, lurching one bleeding beat at a time. I've honestly not heard anything quite like it in a long time, even from anyone in the Doomtree crew.
Sims' intelligence has the rare gift of making the audience feel sheepish for a lack of aid to society. I know I come away from spins of this album with a bit of languishing guilt, knowing I walk to my office with the mindset of being the best person I can be. His lyrics bring light to the world we live in, for better or worse. I'm grateful that I can work to do the good things I can, but being a good spouse and responsible citizen simply isn't enough. What I struggle with, though, is what to do with that guilt - what does Sims want from us? How do we save the world, then, if not by being more aware of what we do?
Perhaps I'm looking too deeply at this issue. Whatever your take is on this album, you can't deny it's craft. Immaculately assembled, Sims has set the bar staggeringly high for anyone else in Minneapolis, let alone the world of independent hip hop. Step up your rap game, kids - Sims is loose.
I'm sorry I slept on your amazing, unparalleled masterpiece - Bad Time Zoo.
I'm sorry I ever questioned the work you put forth, delaying the album until it was perfect, giving valid reason for any push back it might have had.
I'm sorry for not being a better person, in the wake of the material you put forth. You're the kind of artist who puts out a body of work and the audience realizes their own shortcomings as a result. It's just that good. It's that well put together.
I first covered Sims in my week-long Doomtree Diatribe earlier in the year, wherein I wrote about his under-appreciated False Hopes 14 rather than jump on the band wagon that was rolling in on the heels of his second major release. Turns out I should have been paying better attention. While I was making an impassioned plea for the masses to listen to his stealth endeavors, everyone else was busy being blown away by what the artist is truly capable of.
Perhaps I'm looking too deeply at this issue. Whatever your take is on this album, you can't deny it's craft. Immaculately assembled, Sims has set the bar staggeringly high for anyone else in Minneapolis, let alone the world of independent hip hop. Step up your rap game, kids - Sims is loose.
