Earl Sweatshirt, MIKE & Surf Gang - Pompeii // Utility (Album Review)
Monday, 13 April 2026
Written by Jack Butler-Terry
Photo: Ian Buosi
Collaborative albums have long been an exciting fixture in hip hop, from MF DOOM and Madlib to Eminem and Royce Da 5’9”, Jay-Z and Kanye West to Method Man and Redman. Now, underground hero MIKE and Odd Future alum Earl Sweatshirt step to the plate with New York collective Surf Gang for an hour of woozy plugg trap to get lost in.
First things first: to call this a collaborative album feels slightly disingenuous. Although the pair have frequently collaborated across their longtime friendship, this is not an album of Earl and MIKE trading bars, but is instead an album by MIKE (‘Pompeii’) and an album by Earl (‘Utility’) that both happen to be produced by Surf Gang.
In fact, the rappers appear together on just two of these 33 tracks, and that they are rapping over Surf Gang beats is the whole red thread of the project.
‘Pompeii’ occupies the first half of this project and hears MIKE’s energy fluctuate wildly. On Minty, for example, MIKE punches his delivery through heavy droning bass for a clear highlight, but during Back LA he sounds half-conscious before fading away, as if he wandered out of the booth mid-session.
Earl doesn’t fare much better, but at least Surf Gang’s hyper-ambient tracks fit his style. :( again :) feels like it could have been a prime cut from last year’s fantastic ‘Live Laugh Love’ release, but Rectangle Lens pairs a frustratingly choppy loud-quiet-loud beat with a washed-out vocal that sounds like a reference track.
Most frustratingly of all, though, is that when Earl and MIKE do appear together on the tracks Kirkland and Leadbelly, they produce glittering highlights. These are among the most fully formed and full-bodied cuts on the whole project, and fans will be left scratching their heads as to why they have been so short changed.
Although MIKE and Earl have each produced their own fair share of sleepy tracks in the past, many of those on ‘Pompeii/Utility’ tumble into the realm of laziness, and the project ends up being a rare misfire that may just be hip hop’s most frustrating ‘what if?’ in 2026.
Earl Sweatshirt Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Tue August 25 2026 - GLASGOW O2 Academy Glasgow
Wed August 26 2026 - DUBLIN Vicar Street
Fri August 28 2026 - NOTTINGHAM Rock City
Mon August 31 2026 - LONDON O2 Forum Kentish Town
Wed September 02 2026 - BRISTOL Prospect Building
Thu September 03 2026 - BRIGHTON Concert Hall at Brighton Dome
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