The Singles Jukebox

The controversy keeps rollin’ in…

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[6.44]

Micha Cavaseno: The tinny siren-nag reminiscent of early Ruff Sqwad melody that begins the track is a false promise. The “meat” of the beat Rustie provides is generic slop, and I can’t recall anymore when Danny Brown hasn’t sounded both tired out and over-exerted at the same time. The former aqua-crunk kid is just trying earnestly to get himself some of that ‘trap’ money he thinks he deserves, when what he and former cohort Hudson Mohawke deserve is to get booted back to the Glasweigian swamps they emerged from. From Drexciyan to dregs in a matter of years.
[1]

David Sheffieck: In the past couple years, Danny Brown has quietly proven himself to be one of the most versatile and exciting rappers working today. From the laid-back vibe of “Grown Up” to the fury of “Monopoly,” from the introspection of “Lonely” to the frenzy of “Dip,” he’s near unmatched in his ability to make any kind of beat his own. “Attak” finds him re-teaming with Rustie after a few previous collaborations, and the result is a completely singular banger. Over two long verses, Brown dominates a beat that it’s hard to imagine another rapper even thinking of attempting, matching Rustie’s manic drops and jittery drums with a virtuoso vocal. It’s weird, it’s unconventional, and that means it’s exactly in Brown’s wheelhouse.
[10]

Alfred Soto: A Danny Brown track in name only, closer to UK garage circa 2003 than EDM, with the music occasionally swamping him. He’s a special effect himself, though.
[6]

Megan Harrington: When “Wild For the Night” came out I was low-key psyched for EDM and rap to settle into a long term relationship, but the two sized each other up in the harsh light of day and decided to part on unsteady terms. Danny Brown is in constant pursuit of frontier beats, and he finds “Attak” in the Martian desert, unclear at first whether it’s a relic of the past or a portent of the future. His self possessed, fiery raps reveal it’s the latter. “Attak” is no gimmick, no excuse to bounce around on ATVs with Skrillex. Brown rewound the clock and now everyone else is again behind.
[9]

Crystal Leww: Dance music for boys who would rather yell in the corners of clubs than grind. No thanks.
[4]

Hazel Robinson: The first 40 seconds or so of this do nothing, ‘cus it’s all about the build; as computer-game-y as it sounds, it gradually levels up the vague menace and aggressive fun all the way through until the word “toast” sounds like a genuine threat. By about two minutes in you feel 80 feet tall.
[9]

Jonathan Bradley: The snares in “Attak” trip over one another into the tipdrill clatter of early ’00s glitch, augmented by a siren peal that creates its own emergency to chase after. Danny Brown is well suited to Rustie’s chaos; he raps like everything around him is falling apart, jamming syllables and pungent imagery into a yapping, nasally stream. It’s hard and austere and thoroughly ugly, and every unpretty noise makes each other part even less agreeable.
[8]

Patrick St. Michel: On paper it makes sense, but the execution here is just weak and waters down what makes both artists great. Rustie works best when he’s going off in as many directions as he can, but here he’s forced to make room for Danny Brown. Yet his music is still loud enough that it blots out Brown, here sounding less charismatic and more like a guy trying to shout over a club’s speaker. 
[2]

Dan MacRae: I really hope “Attak” has been getting a healthy workout on this summer’s roller coaster and carnival ride circuit. It’s a cut that sounds like caramelized whiplash in the best possible way. Hats off to Danny Brown for not only hopping aboard this weaponized beat, but also for maneuvering it like he’s saddled in and commanding full control of where this missile is going.
[9]