Emerging from the hazy digital underground, JAKEWITHSPACES! delivers a masterclass in organized chaos with DOPEFUMEMIDI, an album that rewires the conventions of trap, hip-hop, and experimental beatmaking. Entirely self-produced and self-directed, the project stands as a visceral statement of independence — a transmission from a parallel internet where warped MIDI textures, distorted 808s, and razor-sharp synths crash into each other in thrilling disarray.
From the very first seconds of THE SILENCE, JAKEWITHSPACES! establishes an atmosphere of digital distortion and eerie calm. The intro feels like a reboot screen flickering to life, preparing the listener for a descent into a soundscape that is at once chaotic and deeply intentional. Every beat seems slightly off-axis, every synth detuned just enough to feel alive. It’s this controlled imbalance that defines the entire album — a sound that rejects symmetry and embraces imperfection.
MY SOUL, THE ANTITODE dives deeper into this aesthetic, pairing fragmented drum loops with shimmering pads that float in and out of focus. The rhythm never settles into predictability; instead, it shifts like static interference, forcing the listener to adapt to its fractured logic. In the world of DOPEFUMEMIDI, groove is not a destination but a moving target.
The title track, DOPE FUMES, captures the essence of the album’s experimental DNA. The percussion pattern feels both mechanical and organic, as if constructed from corrupted machine files. Layered beneath are sub-bass frequencies that pulse like a distant engine, grounding the song’s floating melodies. JAKEWITHSPACES! uses texture as rhythm, transforming glitches and sonic debris into percussive tools.
One of the standout moments comes with $ $ $ $ (ft. ZekeUltra), where the project momentarily opens its digital shell to let another voice enter the chaos. ZekeUltra’s verse moves fluidly across the distorted landscape, complementing the producer’s warped aesthetic rather than fighting it. It’s a reminder that even within such abrasive experimentation, there’s an undeniable musicality at play.
Tracks like PAVEMENT LEAK 2222 and JAY Z highlight JAKEWITHSPACES!’ unique sense of pacing. The drums stagger, the synths lurch, and the spaces between sounds become as important as the sounds themselves. Rather than adhering to conventional trap or lo-fi hip-hop formulas, the producer bends them, creating something that feels alien yet familiar.
By the time ON THEY ASS!!!!! and NO I’M NOT TALKING ABOUT THAT arrive, the project has fully committed to its surreal rhythm universe. The beats here are dense and frenetic, but there’s a coherence beneath the noise — an intricate logic guiding the chaos. MONEY CALLING (couldn’t put the phone down) follows with a warped sense of groove that seems to phase in and out of existence, like a transmission lost between frequencies.
As the album progresses, pieces like REAP WHAT YOU SOW! and KIN introduce moments of introspection. Beneath their distorted surfaces lies a melancholic undercurrent, suggesting an emotional depth that extends beyond the abrasive sonics. IYKYKYKYK and MIC HISS then pull the listener back into the experimental vortex, with the latter blending warped MIDI tones and offset grooves that would feel perfectly at home on playlists like Alternative Hip-Hop, Experimental Vibes, or Leftfield Beats.
Toward its conclusion, JIBBS SIZE CHAIN and AL ROKER channel a strange kind of euphoria — almost celebratory in their sonic absurdity — before the closing triptych (FELT SO COLD, HOW THE NIGHT HAD SPOKE, ONE FOOT IN THE DOOR, ONE FOOT OUT THE DOOR, RECOUNT IT / CLONE ME) ties the album together in a swirl of ambient textures and fractured rhythm. The finale feels like a system shutting down, the final echoes of a digital fever dream fading into static.
DOPEFUMEMIDI is not an easy listen, nor does it try to be. It thrives in its unpredictability, rewarding those who lean into its noise and complexity. For fans of JPEGMAFIA, Injury Reserve, Earl Sweatshirt, Flying Lotus, and Kenny Beats, this album represents the restless spirit of experimental hip-hop — bold, unfiltered, and defiantly original.
With DOPEFUMEMIDI, JAKEWITHSPACES! doesn’t just blur genre boundaries — he erases them entirely. This is a release of high quality and artistic conviction, and we’re proud to host it on our webzine as a celebration of forward-thinking sound design and fearless creativity.