It's been two years since Atlanta duo EarthGang quietly put out the ridiculously good mixtape Shallow Graves for Toys, which positioned the wise and wise-cracking Doctur Dot and Johnny Venus as a sort of millennial Outkast. Too smart for their own good, casually dropping quips about race and religion between bong hits, the pair seemed primed for a breakthrough. And they've had one of sorts, falling into the orbit of weirdo rap impresario Mac Miller and bringing visibility to the artsier alternative fringe of Atlanta rap. But unlike the viral sensations du jour, they've also spent the time between wandering the country, playing shows and making music and not releasing much of it—in other words, taking a reasonable and normal amount of time to let the artistic process happen at its own pace.Now, after the quick hit mixtape Torba and a compilation with their collective Spillage Village earlier this year, they're putting out a proper follow-up album to SGFT called Strays With Rabies. As the Beavis and Butthead-inspired art and rambling but sharp lyricism of lead single "AWOL" suggest, EarthGang's charm is undiminished, and good things await. "Be prepared for the awakening, soon comes the storm," the pair told me over the phone about the album, and I'm inclined to believe them.Continued below…"AWOL" premiered last night on VICE's Beats1 show, and now you can stream it in full and buy it on iTunes. It's "a record reflecting on progress, where we came from and what we're trying to go next," they explained, adding that it's "dedicated to the lonely kid on the bus just riding with his headphones on" and that it's about "the zone you in when you're out here maintaining." Sure enough, it dwells on being the kid with the headphones on at the bus stop and takes a look back at Atlanta tradition, referencing T.I.—through the lens of Killer Mike, for the real heads—and opening with the scene of a cold Georgia morning. Over skeletal J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League production, they weave complex tapestries of lines like "since I'm a 90s baby / I'm automatically crazy / I'm calling audible plays on the daily / just to survive / I've got a tribe of little brothers in the hood that I inspire / light the fire when they look into my eyes." It's good. Really good.Strays With Rabies is out digitally November 6 and in stores November 13. It's now available for pre-order here. Check out "A.W.O.L.," (also on iTunes) as well as the Strays With Rabies art and tracklist, below:
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