Skelethon
Studio album by
Aesop Rock
ReleasedJuly 10, 2012 (2012-07-10)
GenreHip hop
Length55:10
LabelRhymesayers Entertainment
ProducerAesop Rock
Aesop Rock chronology
None Shall Pass
(2007)		 Skelethon
(2012)		 The Impossible Kid
(2016)
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic79/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
BBCfavorable[3]
Consequence of SoundB[4]
Drowned in Sound9/10[5]
HipHopDX3.5/5[6]
NME6/10[7]
Pitchfork Media8.2/10[8]
PopMatters[9]
Spin7/10[10]
Tiny Mix Tapes[11]

Skelethon is the sixth studio album by American hip hop artist Aesop Rock. It was released through Rhymesayers Entertainment on July 10, 2012.[12]

Music

The album is entirely produced by Aesop Rock himself.[13] Guest appearances include Allyson Baker, Hanni El Khatib, Rob Sonic, Kimya Dawson, Murs, and Blueprint.[14] The album's artwork was done by Aryz.[15]

Aesop has described death as a recurring motif on the album, stating:

It felt like everything around me was dying: people, relationships, all plant life in my apartment, you name it—it's dead. That's where the Skelethon title came from, and imagery associated with shit dying is prevalent. That said, I don't think there are many "sad" songs. It's more just like "ahhh I'm exploding"—I want it to sound urgent.[16]

Release

Music videos were created for "Zero Dark Thirty",[17] "ZZZ Top",[18] and "Cycles to Gehenna".[19] A music video for "ZZZ Top" features the martial arts master Patti Li.[20]

The album debuted at number 21 on the Billboard 200 with 14,000 copies sold in its first week.[21] It has sold over 52,000 copies as of April 2016.[22]

Critical reception

At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, Skelethon received an average score of 79% based on 27 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[1]

It was listed by HipHopDX as one of the "Top 25 Albums of 2012".[23]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Leisureforce" (featuring Allyson Baker and Hanni El Khatib)4:43
2."ZZZ Top" (featuring Allyson Baker)4:15
3."Cycles to Gehenna"4:00
4."Zero Dark Thirty" (featuring Rob Sonic)3:21
5."Fryerstarter"3:28
6."Ruby '81"2:33
7."Crows 1" (featuring Kimya Dawson)4:19
8."Crows 2" (featuring Rob Sonic and Murs)2:30
9."Racing Stripes" (featuring Kimya Dawson)3:23
10."1,000 O'Clock"3:58
11."Homemade Mummy" (featuring Rob Sonic)2:46
12."Grace" (featuring Hanni El Khatib)3:38
13."Saturn Missiles"3:37
14."Tetra"4:41
15."Gopher Guts"3:58
16."Dokken Rules" (deluxe edition bonus track; featuring Rob Sonic[24])3:59
17."BMX" (deluxe edition bonus track; featuring Blueprint and Rob Sonic[24])3:34

Charts

Chart (2012) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[25] 21
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[26] 1
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[27] 5

References

  1. 1 2 "Skelethon by Aesop Rock". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  2. ↑ Jeffries, David. "Aesop Rock - Skelethon". AllMusic. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  3. ↑ Kennedy, Adam (2012). "Aesop Rock - Skelethon - Review". BBC. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  4. ↑ Freed, Nick (July 17, 2012). "Aesop Rock – Skelethon". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  5. ↑ Thomas, Sean (November 23, 2012). "Aesop Rock - Skelethon". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on September 17, 2016. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  6. ↑ Cooper, Roman (July 18, 2012). "Aesop Rock - Skelethon". HipHopDX. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  7. ↑ Cashmore, Pete (July 8, 2012). "Aesop Rock - 'Skelethon'". NME. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  8. ↑ Weiss, Jeff (July 10, 2012). "Aesop Rock: Skelethon". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  9. ↑ Small, Colin (August 27, 2012). "Aesop Rock: Skelethon". PopMatters. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  10. ↑ Reeves, Mosi (July 10, 2012). "Aesop Rock, 'Skelethon' (Rhymesayers)". Spin. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  11. ↑ Rag, Ben. "Aesop Rock - Skelethon". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  12. ↑ Horowitz, Steven (July 10, 2012). "Aesop Rock "Skelethon" Album Stream". HipHopDX. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Q&A: Aesop Rock Worked Harder Than Ever for Sixth Album, 'Skelethon'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2017-01-15.
  14. ↑ "Aesop Rock Announces Album Details | Pitchfork". pitchfork.com. Retrieved 2017-01-15.
  15. ↑ "Juxtapoz Magazine - ARYZ for Aesop Rock "Skelethon" Album Cover". Retrieved 2017-01-15.
  16. ↑ Cohen, Ian (May 16, 2012). "Aesop Rock - Interview". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  17. ↑ Norwood, Charlie (May 1, 2012). "Video Premiere: Aesop Rock, 'Zero Dark Thirty'". MTV. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  18. ↑ Suarez, Jessica (June 29, 2012). "Aesop Rock Gets Revenge in "ZZZ Top" Video". MTV. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  19. ↑ Weiss, Sam (August 22, 2012). "Video: Aesop Rock "Cycles To Gehenna"". Complex. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  20. ↑ Eakin, Marah (June 29, 2012). "Today in music videos: Aesop Rock calls on kung fu master Patti Li for "ZZZ Top"". The A.V. Club. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  21. ↑ Kaufman, Gil (July 18, 2012). "Frank Ocean's Channel Orange Album Sales Land Him At #2". MTV. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Upcoming Releases". Hits Daily Double. HITS Digital Ventures. Archived from the original on April 13, 2016.
  23. ↑ "HipHopDX's Top 25 Albums Of 2012". HipHopDX. December 26, 2012. Retrieved July 26, 2012.
  24. 1 2 "Skelethon (Deluxe Edition) by Aesop Rock". Bandcamp. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  25. ↑ "Aesop Rock Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
  26. ↑ "Aesop Rock Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
  27. ↑ "Aesop Rock Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
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