There was hardly a month in 2013 that Milo was not making his presence felt. He debuted on Hellfyre Club with the Things That Happen At Day//Things That Happen At Night double EP on January 1. He toured with Open Mike Eagle and toured some more with his college mates. It was barely the year's half-way point when he dropped the Cavalcade mixtape, featuring collaborations with YC the Cynic, Busdrive and Nocando. Earlier this month, his label released the crewed-up mixtape Dorner vs. Tookie, which is heavily littered with verses and hooks from their darling rapper. In the words of jheri-curl era Ice Cube, “oh yeah, it ain't over motherfuckers.”
Milo was so amused by Clams Casino's moniker he started a side project called Scallops Hotel, which became Milo's home recording refuge for experimenting with production. It was a year ago Milo opened cease & desist mail from Anticon for rapping over Baths' production. With guidance from Cavalcade collaborator Riley Lake, Milo crafted four of the instrumentals on his debut as Scallops Hotel, entitled Poplar Grove (Or How To Rap With A Hammer). The 9-song release feels insular and reclusive from the shaky hum of lo-fi mic levels, and when Milo finds his own work in inadequate he enlists the help of Busdriver, Iglooghost, ELOS, Jincallo, and Lee Bannon for production assistance.
As Scallops Hotel he's slightly more exposed, shaken to insecurity since he's at the mercy of his head and hands. On “50 Centaurs” he turns the morning routine of cereal for breakfast into a chance to ponder his rap lifestyle of playing hookie to make music and overloading Open Mike Eagle's inbox in hopes it will bring new opportunities. Eventually, he interpets himself as a cereal bowl with a built-in straw, the comparison being he's a “simple man with the flaws built in.”
Purchase Scallops Hotel's Poplar Grove (Or How To Rap With A Hammer) at milo's Bandcamp.
