#3
The Heist by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
“On some Malcolm Gladwell/David Bowie-meets-Kanye sh*t.” That somehow manages to both oversimplify and perfectly sums up this debut from Seattle rhymer Macklemore and producer Ryan Lewis. A rapper that relishes in his artsiness without ever sounding like he’s forcing his way, Macklemore’s nimble rhymes name-check everything from Basquiat to same-sex marriage. In many ways, he’s exactly the kind of rapper you may expect to come from as notoriously-liberal and arts-friendly a city as Seattle, but that’s not to say he’s predictable. And his introspective nature is amplified by Lewis’ production chops; which give musical settings varying from digital and dense to organic and sparse. One of the year’s best debuts.
