Doris… Day is nigh

Preview: Earl Sweatshirt – Doris

Published on July 19th, 2013 | Jamie Steiner

Having announced the release date for his second album Doris earlier this week (August 19th in case you’re interested), Earl Sweatshirt has now also posted up a video for “Hive”, a sinister, bass heavy track featuring regular OFWGKTA contributors Vince Staples and Casey Veggies.

Befitting the aural atmospherics, the video is suitably unnerving, twisted and surreal, as if an entire neighbourhood has been converted into a cluster of haunted houses. And two Alsatians humping behind a chain fence (dogs that is, not French exhibitionists).

It’s the third video to emerge since Earl began work on the album, following in the footsteps of “WHOA” and the similarly impressive “Chum”. Since showing such promise on his debut Earl, the Odd Future member with the biggest forehead has progressed immeasurably both lyrically and from a songwriting standpoint, attracting a lot of talented musicians along the way (Pharrell, Flying Lotus and RZA to name but a few).

It’s all shaping up to be one of the releases of the year and if the live footage of some of his other tracks are anything to go by, Doris is going to be one of the darkest records to have ever been released at the tail end of summer. It may have been a long winter for Earl fans but the sun is rising and with it one of the new and most important stars of hip-hop (for want of more accurate categorisation).

GOLF WANG.