Bavitz was born in Syosset, New York and grew up in Northport, New York. While attending college, Bavitz initially recorded and released two self-financed efforts, Music for Earthworms (1997), a full-length featuring underground artist Percee P on two tracks. Bavitz also released a music video to "Abandon All Hope", which was one of the tracks on the CD. The album sold over 300 copies, largely from a grassroots internet-based promotion at his website AesopRock.com and then-popular web portal, MP3.Com. It was a success. With the money he made from his previous release, he then released his Appleseed EP in 1999 which received critical acclaim in the underground hip hop circuit.[citation needed] Both of his early records were produced by long-time friend Blockhead, and underground producer Dub-L. He completed these albums while also working as a waiter.
After his breakthrough success in the underground hip hop and indie rap community, he was eventually noticed by the Mush label and obtained his first record deal in 1999, just a year after he graduated from college. Aesop released his first major album, Float (2000), with guest appearances from Vast Aire, Slug, and Dose One. Production was split between Blockhead and Aesop himself, with one track by Omega One. During this time, Aesop worked at a photography gallery. In August 2001 tragedy struck when Bavitz had a nervous breakdown. The song "One of Four" on his Daylight EP documents his struggles.
Shortly after releasing Float, Aesop Rock signed to Manhattan-based label Definitive Jux (commonly shortened to Def Jux), where he released Labor Days (2001), an album dedicated to the discussion of labor in American society and the concept of "wage slaves". This album was most well known for its single "Daylight". Because of its popularity, Daylight was re-released in 2002 as a seven-track EP, including an "alternative" new version of the song "Night Light", whose paraphrased lyrics simultaneously refer back to, and stand in stark opposition to, the original's. The song "Labor" (from Labor Days) was featured in Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4; it also was the first album in his catalog to break through the Billboard charts, peaking at number 15 at the United States Independent Charts, giving Aesop Rock more recognition.
Labor Days was followed by Bazooka Tooth in 2003. For the first time, production was mostly handled by Rock himself, with three tracks from longtime collaborator Blockhead and one from close friend and Definitive Jux label CEO El-P. Guest appearances include Party Fun Action Committee, El-P, and Mr. Lif (all Definitive Jux labelmates) and Camp Lo. With this release Aesop hit a higher level of recognition, releasing "No Jumper Cables" as a single and music video, then another single, "Freeze", shortly after. A remix of "No Jumper Cables" was featured on Tony Hawk's Underground 2, furthering Aesop's recognition. In 2004, He released Build Your Own Bazooka Tooth and created a contest in which you had to create a remix of an Aesop Rock song using the a cappellas and instrumentals.
In February 2005, Aesop Rock released a new EP, Fast Cars, Danger, Fire and Knives. The first pressing of the EP included an 88-page booklet with lyrics from every release from Float until this EP (the lyric booklet is titled The Living Human Curiosity Sideshow); later pressings of the album come without the booklet, but with an additional bonus track, "Facemelter". In addition, a limited number of albums were available direct from Def Jux with Aesop Rock's graffiti tag on them. In response to demands from his fans, Rock did less production on the EP: three songs are produced by Blockhead, three produced by Aesop, and one by Rob Sonic. During this time he was asked to join The Weathermen to replace Vast Aire.
Aesop Rock was commissioned to create a 45-minute instrumental track for the Nike+iPod running system, entitled All Day. It was released in February 2007. Distributed via the iTunes Music Store and featuring his wife Allyson Baker on guitar and scratches from DJ Big Wiz, Aesop has described the release as "something that evolved enough that the sound was constantly fresh and attractive, as though the runner were moving through a set of differing cities or landscapes."
All Day was followed in August of the same year by Bavitz's fifth full-length album, None Shall Pass released in 2007. The album also contained original artwork by Jeremy Fish. About Jeremy Fish, Aesop Rock said: "Man that guy is my hero. We have a friend in common who hit me up a while back saying that this guy Jeremy Fish had an opportunity to pitch a cartoon to Disney and wanted me to be involved in the music side. I flipped out cuz I was also a fan of his, and owned some of his work." Aesop Rock also teamed up with Jeremy Fish again in a project called Ghosts of the Barbary Coast. Aesop Rock made a song called "Tomorrow Morning", to go along with a slideshow of drawings that Jeremy Fish drew. This was displayed in San Francisco, but was also made available for download online. None Shall Pass had positive reviews from critics and fans, applauding Aesop for his change in sound.
In 2011, Rhymesayers released "Are You Going to Eat That?", the debut album from Hail Mary Mallon, a collaboration between Aesop Rock, Rob Sonic, and DJ Big Wiz.
On July 10, 2012, Rhymesayers released Aesop Rock's sixth studio album, "Skelethon". Its first single, "Zero Dark Thirty", was released four months earlier on April 10. A second single, "ZZZ Top", was released on June 29.
In 2011, Aesop Rock and Kimya Dawson of The Moldy Peaches formed the duo The Uncluded. The duo's debut album, "Hokey Fright" was released on May 7, 2013.
In 2018, Aesop Rock teamed up with TOBACCO to form Malibu Ken
Mystery Fish
Aesop Rock Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In a cave on a failed bit of terraforming
Four corners of paranormal
Get shorn for a thermos and pair of thermals
In the warehouse air where his dairy curdles
St. Vincent de Paul trying to square the circle
Circle the source of his power
Foresight born at the corner of Howard on sale
It's a blue-nose chewin' his tail
Losing his coat
Schmoozing a high and head-rush
Hack up bile over H1N1, and then some
One eye on the breadcrumbs
Other eye on the Drencrom
Other other eye on the income
Good knife and a grin
Shoot dice with the lice and the ring worms
Peg leg, smells like Medellin wake in the night
Make a pipe out of anything
Take five, take a dive in the cellophane
Turn five into five, six, seven, eight
Back out, black out somewhere fancy
Shaped like the backseat of Aesop's Camry
Dude seat full of chips and sandwich meat from the crypt
In the end, if you give an address in a river of piss
Don't question the mystery fish
Just picture shrimp on a pillow of grits
Close your eyes, lick your lips
I'm at the cafe ordering a cup of fresh
Sarah gave me two, I gave one to Rex
He said, fools ain't shit plus fuck the pigs
They could never understand what sumner is
(Word up, word up, word up)
I'm off the grid
I'm through the gate
I fly these kites into the fray
(Word up, word up, word up)
I'm out the box
I'm through the mud
I fly these kites into the cut
Norcal fried bacteria
No ID survive the vivarium
Try soft wheels, sourdough and heroin
Eat with the chimera, fly with the seraphim
Might hold court with the cats and dogs
Who hold Kools like an orb in a dragon's claw
In terry cloth robes outside detox surly
Curse at a beat cop, doctor a Slurpee
Adopt no Xerxes, fear no moon man
Stay true like a wolf wearing wolf pants
Oooh, never could avoid himself
For long enough to contain or employ as help
And now he look both ways at the asteroid belt
Buzzed, gross and wholly unloved
Still hear an ex in his head yelling, kiss the ring
From a fortune to Fisher King
Or from assisted care, blisters in his hair
New day, new diary of disrepair
Soups on, two ton crucifix to bear
No shoes, no shirt, no fiscal year
I said hello to Marshall every morn for six
He yelled at me every time, that's amore, bitch
It only took one tooth to crack the bug juice and chug
Turn a bum to a Sun Tzu, it's bug
Outside home is an open swim
Occultism in the throws of corrosive wind
A cold meal with the ghosts of friends
A whole host of meds
A deal on a Tone Loc cassette
I stepped over a body in the door
I pretend he asleep but it's probably more, God damn
Profound apathy, heart with a crack
I'm ships in the night
I'm darts at a map
Word up
The lyrics to Aesop Rock's song Mystery Fish are quite cryptic, giving listeners much to ponder about its meaning. The song presents a series of disconnected yet vivid images that create a dense and surreal atmosphere. The song starts with a reference to Tech Support and a Feral Army in a cave on a failed bit of terraforming. Here, the singer describes a dystopian landscape. The lyrics go on to mention a St. Vincent de Paul warehouse where his dairy curdles, and he's trying to square the circle, which is an impossible task, suggesting a sense of futility. The lyrics further mention a foresight born at the corner of Howard on sale and cherry picking blue in the pale that paints a picture of someone searching for meaning while navigating through an unforgiving world.
The second verse of the song widens the scope of the lyrics. The lyrics connect Norcal fried bacteria, no ID survive the vivarium and try soft wheels, sourdough, and heroin, further adding to the sense of dystopia. The lyrics also mention the imagery of holding court with the cats and dogs, who hold Kools like an orb in a dragon's claw, suggesting a possible metaphor for power dynamics. The song continues with the singer adopting no Xerxes and fearing no moon man, staying true like a wolf wearing wolf pants. The lyrics here create a sense of isolation and a lone-wolf spirit. The lyrics go on to talk about a new diary of disrepair and stepping over a body in the door, hinting at death and possibly violence.
Overall, the song's lyrics paint a vivid yet surreal picture of dystopia and the search for meaning in a crumbling world.
Line by Line Meaning
Tech support, feral army
A group of people who may come together for technological support and who also exhibit wild and untamed behavior.
In a cave on a failed bit of terraforming
The subject is in a cave-like place where an attempt to modify the environment has been unsuccessful.
Four corners of paranormal
The subject finds themselves surrounded by supernatural, eerie incidents.
Get shorn for a thermos and pair of thermals
Giving up something valuable for necessities.
In the warehouse air where his dairy curdles
In an unpleasant, perhaps rotten or bad environment.
St. Vincent de Paul trying to square the circle
In a situation that is impossible to resolve.
Circle the source of his power
Trying to identify the key source of influence.
Foresight born at the corner of Howard on sale
Knowledge gained through life experience and not just from books.
Cherry pick blue in the pale
Selectively choosing options among unattractive alternatives.
It's a blue-nose chewin' his tail
Losing his coat
The subject is experiencing internal conflict and stress resulting in self-destruction.
Schmoozing a high and head-rush
The subject is attempting to impress someone through charm and addictive behaviors.
Hack up bile over H1N1, and then some
The subject is vomiting out disgust and outrage related to a widespread disease.
One eye on the breadcrumbs
Other eye on the Drencrom
Other other eye on the income
The subject is juggling multiple priorities including financial stability with drugs and indulgence.
Good knife and a grin
Shoot dice with the lice and the ring worms
The subject is engaging in risky behavior and is prepared to face and fight off potential consequences.
Peg leg, smells like Medellin wake in the night
The subject is handicapped and reminds others of an infamous drug cartel.
Make a pipe out of anything
Take five, take a dive in the cellophane
Engaging in drug use using unusual items as a smoking device.
Turn five into five, six, seven, eight
Back out, black out somewhere fancy
Shaped like the backseat of Aesop's Camry
The subject is going out and blowing money in fancy places while creating the illusion of having wealth and success.
Dude seat full of chips and sandwich meat from the crypt
Sitting in the back of the car with bags of processed, cheap junk food.
In the end, if you give an address in a river of piss
Don't question the mystery fish
Just picture shrimp on a pillow of grits
Close your eyes, lick your lips
Even if you find yourself in a terrible situation, do not question or challenge the status quo. Instead, imagine a better or more harmonious reality.
I'm at the cafe ordering a cup of fresh
Sarah gave me two, I gave one to Rex
He said, fools ain't shit plus fuck the pigs
They could never understand what sumner is
Sharing good vibes with friends at a café and criticizing the police.
(Word up, word up, word up)
I'm off the grid
I'm through the gate
I fly these kites into the fray
(Word up, word up, word up)
I'm out the box
I'm through the mud
I fly these kites into the cut
The subject is feeling independent, free and brave enough to face challenges head on.
Norcal fried bacteria
No ID survive the vivarium
Try soft wheels, sourdough and heroin
Eat with the chimera, fly with the seraphim
In California, taking drugs and indulging in risky behaviors.
Might hold court with the cats and dogs
Who hold Kools like an orb in a dragon's claw
In terry cloth robes outside detox surly
Curse at a beat cop, doctor a Slurpee
Among the subjects in this society, the most powerful and dominant group are those who are able to hold and smoke cigarettes without dropping them or causing harm to others.
Adopt no Xerxes, fear no moon man
Stay true like a wolf wearing wolf pants
Oooh, never could avoid himself
For long enough to contain or employ as help
And now he look both ways at the asteroid belt
An individual who refuses to become a follower of a king or a ruler and would rather make their own way in the world.
Buzzed, gross and wholly unloved
Still hear an ex in his head yelling, kiss the ring
From a fortune to Fisher King
Feeling unsatisfied with life and still haunted by the past.
Or from assisted care, blisters in his hair
New day, new diary of disrepair
Soups on, two ton crucifix to bear
No shoes, no shirt, no fiscal year
Living in a care facility and dealing with the struggles of aging.
I said hello to Marshall every morn for six
He yelled at me every time, that's amore, bitch
Having a rocky relationship with someone and being repeatedly rebuffed.
It only took one tooth to crack the bug juice and chug
Turn a bum to a Sun Tzu, it's bug
The subject feels that they have found a hidden gem in their current circumstances.
Outside home is an open swim
Occultism in the throws of corrosive wind
A cold meal with the ghosts of friends
A whole host of meds
A deal on a Tone Loc cassette
I stepped over a body in the door
I pretend he asleep but it's probably more, God damn
Life is full of chaos and unexpected situations that are out of our control. The individual is coming across unsettling sights and trying to navigate through the uncertainty.
Profound apathy, heart with a crack
I'm ships in the night
I'm darts at a map
Feeling indifferent and broken, the subject is having trouble finding direction or purpose.
Word up
Acknowledgement, similar to saying 'OK'.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: IAN MATTHIAS BAVITZ
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind