Hail Mary Mallon is the new collaboration between Definitive Jux label mates Aesop Rock and Rob Sonic, along with DJ Big Wiz. The three toured together and decided that they might as well collaborate on an album. They took their name from Mary Mallon, also known as Typhoid Mary, a cook who became known as the first healthy carrier of the Typhoid virus. I imagine that had this album come out earlier, it would have been on Definitive Jux, but with their hiatus last year, the album found a home on Rhymesayers.

The first thing that hit me listening to Are You Gonna Eat That? is how long it had been since we’ve had a release that sounds like a Definitive Jux album. It’s been four years since Aesop Rock or Rob Sonic put out an LP. There have been other albums in the interim, and I certainly am not going to chastise Definitive Jux for expanding their sound and roster. But this album reminded me that I was a college radio DJ and music director during Definitive Jux’s golden era. El-P, Aesop Rock, Mr. Lif, Rob Sonic, and Cannibal Ox formed a label identity based on harsh sci-fi-inspired hip hop. It’s been just long enough since I heard a release like this that it almost sounds fresh again.

Aesop Rock and Rob Sonic handle the production duties on the album, with Wiz providing the cuts and scratches. If you’ve listened to either artist before, you’ve probably got a good idea what the album sounds like. Lots of dissonance, heavy drums, and thick, fat bass lines. What surprised me here was the prominence of distorted guitar in the mix. It certainly works to add wieght on the tracks. One track that stood out as a change of pace was the lead single, “Smock.” It starts off with some synthesized strings and spaced-out drum hits creating tension resolved with a warm bass line. It’s an interesting juxtaposition of sounds that kept me coming back for repeated listens.

Lyrically, we get a characteristic mixture of abstract imagery, harsh social criticism, and absurdist humor. I get the feeling that the name of the group was chosen out of a fascination of the comic yet horrible circumstances that Mary Mallon found herself in. The two emcees play well of off each other, with Aesop moving between rapid fire and drawn out deliveries, while Sonic comes across with a more straightforward flow that hits on the beat. Both are capable and confident wordsmiths, and this album is no exception.

I’m not sure where this album is going to fit into the larger narrative of hip hop in 2011, but I’m glad it’s here. I know a large part of why I enjoy this album has to do with my personal relationship with Definitive Jux, and the nostalgia I feel for my college radio days, but I don’t want to sell this album short on its merits. It’s a creative, challenging record made by three guys who have been making hip hop for a while now, and I’m certainly not done listening to it yet.