Recess reviews: 'Culture' by Migos

Migos is not a joke. That’s the main takeaway from “Culture,” their stunning, vital new album. The group, composed of members Quavo, Offset and Takeoff, built their sizable empire on hits like “Versace” and “Fight Night” that condensed rap into a series of viral, meme-able catchphrases built for club chanting, and they’ve been nigh-on inescapable among rap fans since a breakout 2013. The intervening years saw a rise of imitators aping their staccato flow and hazy beats, and subsequent songs like “Look At My Dab” prospered more as memes than effective songcraft. Commercially and critically, they never reached the same meteorite heights as their initial onslaught—until now. “Culture” is an album that cements Migos’ status as more than a joke; they’re the best rap group out of Atlanta since OutKast.

Ironically, the genesis for Migos’ blazing moment rests on the back of “Bad and Boujee,” currently the #1 song in the country due to memes stemming from its catchy chorus (sing it with me: “Rain drop/drop top…). While the meme is sticky and fun in the way all good memes are, Offset’s determined rapping is “Bad and Boujee”’s major coup. Usually the Robin to Quavo’s Batman, he’s never sounded better. Migos’ strength has always been in its command of flow and intricate wordplay; no rapper can make syllables sound like their cascading over one another like Quavo. On “Culture,” Offset and Takeoff match their leader bar for bar, and the results are excellent.

Every track on “Culture” could have been the single. The beat selection is impeccable, with Atlanta standbys like Zaytoven, Metro Boomin and Purps putting in career best work. The best song on the album, the Nard & B and XL produced “T-Shirt,” builds an unearthly gospel choir out of Quavo’s moans filtered through a vocoder. The way his voice snakes through the backing track is nothing short of mesmerizing, punctuated by snappy punchlines like “Never been a gopher, but I always been a soldier.” Other highlights include “Call Casting,” the Travis Scott-featuring “Kelly Price” and “Get Right Witcha,” which makes being put on hold with Migos sound like the most fun thing ever.

Above all, “Culture” sets a new rap (pardon the easy pun) culture, where beats that curl like smoke out of a fireplace mingle with sharp flows and choruses that demand chanting. Migos has made a masterpiece that builds upon all of their previous musical foundation, a rap album that demands to be played everywhere but above all never forgets the craft of wordplay.