Music for Earthworms is the debut studio album by American hip hop artist Aesop Rock. It is a compilation of tracks recorded during summers and other occasions on which he would return home to New York City from college at Boston University. The packaging states "This is not an album. It is merely a chance for heads to hear some of the music we've been making." The featured material was mostly recorded in a Manhattan studio where Dub-L and Plain Pat were working as interns. Although the studio was not typically used as a recording studio, it was equipped with impressive technology for the time, including Digital Audio Tape machines, ADAT machines and CD drives capable of burning discs. Aesop Rock's vocals were recorded on an SM58 microphone.[3]

Music for Earthworms
Studio album by
Released1998[1]
Genre
Length55:55
LabelSelf-released
ProducerAesop Rock
Dub-L[2]
Aesop Rock chronology
Music for Earthworms
(1998)
Appleseed
(1999)

Music for Earthworms was ultimately self-distributed. As an unsigned artist, Aesop Rock was responsible for cutting out the album covers and burning the album onto CD-Rs himself.[3] The tracks are organized under three subheadings: "Some recent tracks," "The Controls featuring Aesop Rock," and "Some dusty oldies from a few years back."

Aesop Rock references the project and its rarity[clarification needed] on his 2002 EP Daylight in the track "Alchemy." Blueprint asks:

"So why they blaming you for the cats that sleep while the earth turns?"

Aesop Rock responds:

"Yeah I had em' up all night praying I'd re-release Music For Earthworms."

Track listing

edit
Some Recent Tracks
No.TitleCreditsLength
1."Abandon All Hope"produced by Dub-L5:12
2."Wake Up Call" (featuring Percee-P)produced by Dub-L; scratches by JS-One3:19
3."The Substance"produced by Dub-L5:59
4."Merit"produced by Dub-L4:51
5."89.9FM Nighttrain Promo"produced by Dub-L2:09
6."Live on 89.9FM Nighttrain"produced by Dub-L5:58
The Controls featuring Aesop Rock
No.TitleCreditsLength
7."Coward of the Year" (also featuring Percee-P)produced by Dub-L; scratches by JS-One; vocals by Ann Colville4:12
8."Shere Kahn"produced by Dub-L; scratches by Mattimal; vocals by Ann Colville6:35
Some Dusty Oldies from a Few Years Back
No.TitleCreditsLength
9."Antisocial"produced by Dub-L4:10
10."Coordinates"produced by Aesop Rock3:22
11."Plastic Soldiers"produced by Block5:18
12."Troubled Waters"produced by Dub-L; scratches by Plain Pat4:50

References

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  1. ^ "The 15 Best Aesop Rock Songs". Complex.
  2. ^ "Aesop Rock - Music For Earthworms (CDr) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2012-03-02.
  3. ^ a b "My First Time: Aesop Rock Remembers 1996". Pigeons & Planes. May 27, 2015. Retrieved 27 May 2015.