What sophomore slump? The A$AP Mob leader took his time for the follow-up album to his smash debut and delivers another modern hip-hop classic. There is no denying that Long.Live.ASAP has joints, but Rocky himself has said that he’s moved on from the overtly “mainstream” (minus “1 Train,” of course) aspects of recording. For the second album, there are no compromises, and Flacko puts out a “deeply curated affair” full of hazy brilliance that’s reminiscent of his earlier, edgier aesthetic that first put him on the rap map. A quick look at the liner notes —-Danger Mouse, Mos Def, Joe Fox (who Rocky discovered in London), UGK, Lil Wayne, Juicy J, Mark Ronson, Emile Haynie, Hector Delgado, Kanye West, Rod Stewart, Future, Schoolboy Q just to name a few—- alone speaks for the quality of At.Long.Last.A$AP. Add on top Rocky’s keen sense for the “luxuriously swampy” sound that has proven to be the most effective backdrop for his born-in-Harlem-but-influenced-by-the-world-and-beyond verses, we have an undeniable 18-tracker that’s puts the rapper on a level above his contemporaries. This is the official 2xLP pressing that comes house in gatefold sleeves. Includes picture insert…

• gatefold sleeve
• picture insert
• music label: Polo Grounds Music 2016

reviewed by donut savage 08/2016