2Mex - Cartoon Boyfriend

Released on April 18, 2015, Cartoon Boyfriend does not present itself as a logical follow-up in a linear discography trajectory. It is a selection of unreleased and rare tracks gathered into an album that functions less like a traditional studio record than as a sonic archive. This compilation brings together 18 songs covering varied periods and spaces, offering a window onto the underground production scene of Los Angeles. The absence of an identified label reinforces the impression of an object circulating in alternative circuits, far removed from usual commercial logic.

A collective writing at the heart of the project

The major particularity of this album lies in its collaborative density: 14 of the 18 tracks it comprises feature a credited guest appearance. This approach is not merely an accumulation of appearances, but it structures the very writing of the record. Each collaboration seems aimed at enriching the message without diluting the identity of the main project. The production, described as "true underground hiphop," serves as a unifying backdrop for these disparate voices.

Chasing the Rays feat. Maiselph

This collaboration figures among the major features of the project, inscribed in a logic where each guest brings their own imprint to the track. The mere mention of this name is sufficient to anchor the song within the collaborative ecosystem that the album proposes.

Gardens of the Grotesque feat. Blaq Tongue Society

Following that is Gardens of the Grotesque, a track welcoming Blaq Tongue Society. This presence marks another step in this constellation of voices, each collaboration adding a layer to the album's sonic fabric. The track fits within the continuity of a project where the diversity of collaborations is its guiding principle.

Bet Away Your Soul feat. Sophie Pfister

Bet Away Your Soul, for its part, features Sophie Pfister. This third confirmed feature illustrates the method of building the album: each track welcomes a different voice, contributing to the explosion of sonic perspectives without threatening overall coherence.

War feat. The Visionaries

The track War introduces a broader collective dimension with the presence of The Visionaries. This collaboration marks a pivot toward a group approach, recalling the rapper's roots within the collective formations he is part of. The track thus serves as a link between the solo universe and ensemble work.

Further down in the tracklist, Cool With Me appears in its Deeskee remix version, featuring Candy's.22. This track demonstrates that the album incorporates not only vocal collaborations but also reinterpretations of previous works, further expanding the range of possibilities offered by this record.

The track "Drug of Choice" features two guests: Pigeon John and Xololanxinxo. This double presence illustrates the project's ability to accommodate multiple voices simultaneously on a single song, multiplying sonic textures within one track.

The track "Right This Wrong" welcomes Rakaa Iriscience from Dilated Peoples, inscribing a collaboration with an emblematic member of the New York collective in continuity with this compilation.

The track "No Need" brings together three guests: LMNO, Life Rexall, and Declame. This triple presence shows that the album does not just rely on binary collaborations but also explores configurations with multiple voices on a single song.

Among the tracks featuring guest artists, "Dead Deer Diary" appears as a piece of the puzzle without credited collaborators, offering a moment of introspection or solo within this sonic mosaic.

"You Can Bring Me Flowers" returns to collaboration with the presence of GermFree. This track confirms that featurings are not scattered randomly but follow a logic that gives rhythm to the entire album.

The track "The Simple Life" sees the participation of The Black Orchid, adding another voice to the project and contributing to this progressive accumulation of different sonic identities.

"Bright Lights" welcomes Onry Osborne in a track that continues this approach of gathering various voices around the central project.

"Can't Get With Us" features Riddlore, now the principle that every track can serve as a platform for a specific collaboration.

The album concludes with "The Texas Song," a track that closes this compilation of 18 tracks uniting a diversity of guests and sound snippets.

This review concludes on the idea that Cartoon Boyfriend functions less like a traditional studio album than as a sonic archive, where each track contributes to building a coherent musical universe despite the diversity of origins.