There’s a common misconception that any artist who’s been labeled “nerdcore” doesn’t actually care about hip hop, it’s merely a means to an end for them. The truth, however, as it is with most things, is much more complex. There are certainly a few nerdcore artists and fans out there that have helped perpetuate that stereotype, but there are just as many, if not more, that are true hip hop fans and artists that just happen to be nerdy. If you’ve been following Mikal kHill of ThoughtCriminals, you’ll know that he falls into the latter category and is a truly talented emcee. If you need evidence, look no further than buy product.

This album started out as a writing exercise for kHill. He had taken some short beats from Romero Shaw, who he had worked with on his solo album dust., and wrote short, hardcore raps on subject matter suggested by Twitter followers. He was so happy with the way that the songs started to turn out, he decided to flesh things out a little and release it as an album. The result is a short album that plays like an old mixtape, with the beats cycling through at a quick rate while kHill is forced to relate stories in short, intense bursts. Most of the beats are bangers, too, with a couple of exceptions. The opening track, “Vs.,” is the one I feel the most conflicted about, in that it samples the main theme from Super Mario Bros., which I feel is just a little played out in terms of sampling and remixing. On the flipside, I’ll be damned if I don’t still love that song, and kHill’s rhymes on the track are still good. My favorite song on the album is “Blow Up,” an aggressive track with a great horn sample in which kHill lays down some great lyrics discussing growing up as an outsider and using music to find a place to shine. There’s plenty of nerdy fun alongside the serious introspection, with my favorite being “The Ascension of the Holy Hand Grenade,” which of course rewards all the Monty Python fans out there. There are also some really good songs about hip hop and the music industry in general, such as “Fuck Nostalgia,” with Adam WarRock, which does a good job of presenting the problems of glorifying hip hop, whether is yesterday or today. Perhaps the best surprise of the album is “Silence is Golden,” an instrumental track produced by kHill himself. I’m going to imagine many listeners may not know he’s capable of a track like, and which made me wonder if an instrumental project might happen in the future. The two bonus tracks at the end of the record both feel like they drag a little, but a lot of that comes from sticking two songs of regular length that are slow in tempo at the end of an album of short one to two minute songs which are very energetic.

2012 has been a good year for Mikal kHill, and buy product is just the latest in a line of interesting and entertaining projects from the North Carolina emcee. He more than demonstrates his versatility as an emcee and lyricist, and with help from Romero Shaw, delivers a very entertaining album.