2024 Review: “Scrapyard” by Quadeca

Benjamin Lasky, better known by his stage name Quadeca, has had a career arc unlike any other artist I’ve seen.

Lasky got his start as a YouTube rapper in his teen years, blowing up when he released the diss track “Insecure” in response to fellow YouTuber KSI. But he was not content with staying confined to hip-hop; instead, he developed his skills to become an auteur singer/songwriter/producer. He made abundantly clear when he released I Didn’t Mean To Haunt You in 2022, an hour-long concept album about mortality, grief, and the afterlife. Combining genres as disparate as horrorcore rap and folktronica, he created an engrossing musical experience that is thoughtful, beautiful, and disturbing in equal measures.

Clearly, Lasky did a massive amount of work creating I Didn’t Mean To Haunt You. Just two years later, he put together a 15-track mixtape of whatever didn’t fit on that record or any other. Enter Scrapyard, a collection of cutting-room floor tracks that absolutely does not sound like it, emphasizing the remarkable quality and taste level Quadeca puts into every bit of music he touches.