Paraffin (album)
{{short description|2018 hip hop album by Armand Hammer}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{Infobox album
| name = Paraffin
| type = studio
| artist = Armand Hammer
| cover = Paraffin - Armand Hammer.jpg
| alt =
| released = {{Start date|2018|07|13}}{{cite web|url=http://backwoodzstudioz.com/product/armand-hammer-paraffin-vinyl/|title=Armand Hammer - Paraffin (Vinyl)|work=Backwoodz Studioz|access-date=January 13, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190113160427/http://backwoodzstudioz.com/product/armand-hammer-paraffin-vinyl/|archive-date=January 13, 2019|url-status=live}}
| recorded =
| studio =
| genre = Hip hop
| length = {{Duration|m=46|s=58}}
| label = Backwoodz Studioz, PTP
| producer = {{hlist|Elucid|Small Pro|August Fanon|Messiah Musik|Willie Green|Kenny Segal|Ohbliv}}
| prev_title = Rome
| prev_year = 2017
| next_title = Shrines
| next_year = 2020
}}
Paraffin is the third studio album by American hip hop group Armand Hammer. It was released via Backwoodz Studioz in 2018.{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/news/7-albums-out-today-you-should-listen-to-now-troye-sivan-eminem-big-red-machine-more/|title=7 Albums Out Today You Should Listen to Now: Troye Sivan, Eminem, Big Red Machine, More|work=Pitchfork|first=Michelle|last=Kim|date=August 31, 2018|access-date=January 13, 2019}} Originally released on vinyl only, the album was later released digitally, on cassette (by PTP),{{cite web|url=https://www.tinymixtapes.com/news/ptp-releasing-armand-hammers-paraffin-cassette-hosting-immigrants-rights-racial-justice-benefit|title=PTP releasing Armand Hammer's Paraffin on cassette, hosting immigrants rights, racial justice benefit tonight|work=Tiny Mix Tapes|first=Samuel|last=Diamond|date=August 28, 2018|access-date=January 21, 2019}} and on CD.{{cite web|url=https://fxckrxp.bandcamp.com/album/paraffin|title=Paraffin {{!}} FXCK RXP|work=Bandcamp|access-date=June 1, 2019}}
Critical reception
{{Album ratings
| rev1 = Pitchfork
| rev1score = 8.1/10{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/armand-hammer-paraffin/|title=Armand Hammer: Paraffin|work=Pitchfork|first=Paul A.|last=Thompson|date=September 5, 2018|access-date=January 13, 2019}}
| rev2 = Spectrum Culture
| rev3 = Stereogum
| rev3score = favorable{{cite web|url=https://www.stereogum.com/2014033/armand-hammer-paraffin-review/franchises/status-aint-hood/|title=Armand Hammer's Paraffin Is A Disorienting Rap Masterpiece|work=Stereogum|first=Tom|last=Breihan|date=September 12, 2018|access-date=January 13, 2019}}
}}
Nathan Stevens of Spectrum Culture gave the album a 4 out of 5, saying: "It's terrifyingly easy to get lost in Paraffin thanks to a penchant for beat switches and smoggy beats rolling into each other." Paul A. Thompson of Pitchfork gave the album an 8.1 out of 10, calling it "a record that's uniquely attuned to the political, physical, and ethical realities of 2018 without being weighed down by its pop culture arcana or its attendant industry concerns." Tom Breihan of Stereogum wrote: "Like a lot of the best albums of 2018, Paraffin is an extended meditation on what it's like to be black in America — a place that's always been hostile to blackness and that's finding ways to make that hostility even more obvious."
It was placed at number 4 on Stereogum{{'}}s "10 Best Rap Albums of 2018" list,{{cite web|url=https://www.stereogum.com/2025261/best-rap-albums-2018/franchises/2018-in-review/|title=The 10 Best Rap Albums Of 2018|work=Stereogum|first=Tom|last=Breihan|date=December 7, 2018|access-date=January 13, 2019}} number 65 on PopMatters{{'}} "70 Best Albums of 2018" list,{{cite web|url=https://www.popmatters.com/best-albums-of-2018-2622492661.html?rebelltitem=6#rebelltitem6|title=The 70 Best Albums of 2018: 65. Armand Hammer - Paraffin (Backwoodz Studioz)|work=PopMatters|first=Jared|last=Skinner|date=December 10, 2018|access-date=January 13, 2019}} and number 28 on Bandcamp Daily{{'}}s "Best Albums of 2018" list.{{cite web|url=https://daily.bandcamp.com/2018/12/13/bandcamp-best-albums-of-2018-40-21/|title=The Best Albums of 2018: #40 – 21|work=Bandcamp Daily|first=Philip|last=Mlynar|date=December 13, 2018|access-date=January 13, 2019}} It was also included on The A.V. Club{{'}}s "Best Hip-Hop Albums of 2018" list,{{cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/the-best-hip-hop-albums-of-2018-1830834044|title=The best hip-hop albums of 2018|work=The A.V. Club|first=Clayton|last=Purdom|date=December 12, 2018|access-date=January 13, 2019}} as well as Pitchfork{{'}}s "Best Rap Albums of 2018" list.{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-best-rap-albums-of-2018/|title=The Best Rap Albums of 2018|work=Pitchfork|first=Sheldon|last=Pearce|date=December 18, 2018|access-date=January 13, 2019}}
Track listing
{{Track listing
| extra_column = Producer(s)
| title1 = Sweet Mickey
| extra1 = Elucid
| length1 = 2:29
| title2 = Rehearse with Ornette
| extra2 = Elucid
| length2 = 4:24
| title3 = Dettol
| extra3 = Small Pro
| length3 = 2:32
| title4 = No Days Off
| extra4 = August Fanon
| length4 = 2:59
| title5 = Fuhrman Tapes
| extra5 = {{hlist|Messiah Musik|Willie Green}}
| length5 = 3:14
| title6 = Hunter
| extra6 = Elucid
| length6 = 4:23
| title7 = Alternate Side Parking
| extra7 = {{hlist|August Fanon|Kenny Segal}}
| length7 = 2:30
| title8 = If He Holla
| note8 = featuring SKECH185
| extra8 = August Fanon
| length8 = 3:34
| title9 = Black Garlic
| extra9 = Ohbliv
| length9 = 2:03
| title10 = VX
| extra10 = Elucid
| length10 = 2:53
| title11 = Vindaloo
| extra11 = Messiah Musik
| length11 = 3:55
| title12 = ECOMOG
| extra12 = {{hlist|Messiah Musik|Kenny Segal}}
| length12 = 3:51
| title13 = Bob Barker
| extra13 = Elucid
| length13 = 2:21
| title14 = Sudden Death
| extra14 = Messiah Musik
| length14 = 2:29
| title15 = Root Farm
| extra15 = {{hlist|Messiah Musik|Elucid}}
| length15 = 3:21
| total_length = 46:58
}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{AllMusic|class=album|id=mw0003235195|label=Paraffin}}
- {{Discogs master|1408390|Paraffin}}
{{Armand Hammer}}
{{Authority control}}