Blockhead Delivers New EP 'It’s Only A Midlife Crisis If Your Life Is

Blockhead Delivers New EP 'It’s Only A Midlife Crisis If Your Life Is Mid'

Written by: Sterfrii

The producer powerhouse Blockhead is back with a new EP hilariously titled It’s Only A Midlife Crisis If Your Life Is Mid. This comes only a few months on the heels of his latest studio album, Mortality Is Lit! and serves as another incredible addition to his discography. There’s close to 20 albums at this point, let alone all the other EP’s and what not. If you’ve never had the chance to heavily dig into his work I highly recommend it.

Tony Simon aka Blockhead shows off a variety of styles in his work including eccentric hip-hop-style sampling. I’m sure hailing from New York played a heavy role in his music career and path. I was familiar with Blockhead’s work with Aesop Rock over the years, but as I did a little more research on the Blockhead project I found out more about his involvement with classic legendary hip-hop over the years dating back to 2000 and earlier.

For instance, he is credited on a few tracks from rapper Cage’s Hell’s Winter project, a somewhat niche artist and album but it’s still yet revered by tons of hip-hop heads as a classic. Then on the other side of the production spectrum, you’ve Blockhead’s remixes and collabs with more “electronic” artists like Emancipator and Poldoore.

Shifting focus back to the new EP, It’s Only A Midlife Crisis If Your Life Is Mid – It feels like Blockhead is showing off at this point with how many timeless tracks and projects he can put out. Even though it’s just 6 songs, they take you on a perfectly curated sonic trip. I also would highly recommend following him on Instagram for some of the most hilarious gems and funny posts in general.

“Oh Deer”

“Oh Deer” serves as a perfect introduction to the EP. There’s a few different progressions, each adding more and more emotion to this mini journey of a track. It’s reminiscent of a few different styles between hip-hop and jazz with slight electronic elements in the mix. His sampling style on this one and just in general is worth highlighting – it’s familiar and never ceases to be creative in the approach.

U Don’t Have to Call, Squirrel

In true Blockhead fashion, there’s a smooth layering of samples amongst some extremely tasteful breaks and boom bap drums. I like how he weaves in and out of the different focal points of this one between the vocals, bass, sax, etc.

Captain Save the Work

Just like the first two tracks, this one spans over five and half minutes. It’s a bit slower from the start and has a few relatable vocal samples including one of a woman singing “I don’t know what to do!” There’s a bunch of glistening, starry synths to carry out the end of the song.

The War On Hugs

Definitely feels like the EP is coming to a climax by the time it gets to “The War On Hugs.” There’s a haunting string line that loops and is super pronounced all throughout the first soundscape. As the track progresses there’s a notable change in emotions and energy. It’s obvious by this point in the project that the flow of this EP is perfectly executed.

We All Chillin’ and Shit

This is one of my personal favorites on the project. It reminds me a lot of the Lipphead collabs between Blockhead and Eliot Lipp. By the ways it flips up about halfway, you’d think there was shifting time signatures or something. He definitely captured the essence of “chillin’ & shit” with this addition to the catalog.

That Olde Timey Sorcery

And wrapping up It’s Only A Midlife Crisis If Your Life Is Mid, we’ve got “That Olde Timey Sorcery.” It’s got an almost medieval vibe at parts, complete with catchy chants and a bit of magic ear candy. I honestly think this one is notable for how many styles and sounds fit together in an undeniable head-nod groove.

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