Earl Sweatshirt has come a long way as both a person and an artist in the last 10 years since the release of both “I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside” and his EP not found on traditional digital service providers, “Solace.” Both are seen as great projects that fascinate audiences in the abstract hip-hop scene with choppy samples, distressed piano tunes and grungy, noisy vocals that scratch the listener’s ear. These projects come from a different Earl, a soul that seems to have hit rock bottom, reaching from the pits of his being to create such music. A conscience that sounds like it is fixing to give up, barely able to form full sentences for the listener.
The first time I listened to “Solace,” I was in a pitch-black room. I did it to truly experience the atmosphere that I was told the project works to create. In this dark room, I was hypnotized by what sounded like a piano severely out of tune, but what felt like the cold concrete floor of a prison of shame and hopelessness, I could feel myself sinking into a bottomless abyss. Although I was just on my bed, that is the atmosphere that Earl Sweatshirt’s music is able to transport you to.
10 years later, that same guy has made a new album titled “Live Laugh Love.” Anyone who has been following the work of the Los Angeles-raised MC knows that his growth is nothing new or any type of surprise. A former member of the music group Odd Future, known for its DIY approach to just about everything, Earl Sweatshirt’s whole career has been characterized by growth and innovation. It blossoms on this forest-like project that just screams green.
Earl Sweatshirt has joked in interviews before that if he was not a music artist he would have made it to the NBA, so it does not come as much of a surprise that “Live Laugh Love” opens with a song titled “gsw vs sac,” named after two rival NBA teams both based in Northern California. Still littered with multiple other sports references, “gsw vs sac” is a laid-back track, personified by its instrumental carried by a funky sample you can just recline your seat to and enjoy. Earl’s delivery sounds so casual, and at times it sounds like he is on the verge of bursting into laughter.
But I am most impressed by the album with songs like “Tourmaline.” The song is a standout because of how Earl bends his words around the beat, almost like his voice is an extra layer of percussion. The production is muddy but intentional, giving his verses room to breathe without ever feeling incomplete. It feels like one of those songs you will not catch everything on the first listen. Earl makes you rewind, rewind and rewind again.
“Heavy Metal aka Ejecto Seato” follows up like the name suggests: chaotic and raw. The song takes more of a lo-fi approach, with distorted samples that feel like they were pulled straight from a busted cassette deck. Earl has always thrived in discomfort, and this track is him leaning into the noise without ever losing his footing. It is loud, grimy and full of energy that shows he can still tap into his darker side without getting swallowed by it.
Then there is “Exhaust,” maybe the most vulnerable moment on the record. Earl sounds a bit weary here, but still standing tall, almost like he has a sense of hope for the future. The verse is stripped down, the instrumental is skeletal and it works. It is Earl reflecting without pretending to have all the answers. That honesty, that refusal to package his pain neatly, has always been what makes him special.
Overall, “Live Laugh Love” feels like a victory lap for Earl Sweatshirt. It does not sound like someone clawing out of the abyss anymore. Instead, it sounds like someone who has lived in the abyss, mapped it out and then walked back into the sunlight with the knowledge that he can survive anything. Earl is not trying to prove anything to anyone at this point. He is making music that sounds good to him, and that freedom bleeds through every track.
This might not be Earl’s most accessible project, but it is one of his most complete. He has found a way to merge the raw pain of his past with the humor, wisdom and looseness of who he is now. “Live Laugh Love” is not just a clever title, it is a statement. After all these years, Earl Sweatshirt can still laugh a little.
