The hook for Nocando’s latest song nicks a line that’s been so overused it barely counts as a hook anymore: “I fell in love with a stripper.” But “Alaska” travels into colder territory from there, half lamenting, half skewering the ensuing relationship. As always, his wordplay is crisp and aggressive, interpolating words of loneliness to create the semblance of shelter. This new track comes on the heels of his recently-released “Osaka” video, so it seems like he’s in full creative swing again on the West Coast. “I know no man is an island / I never had those illusions,” he raps at one point in the song, possibly becoming the first rapper to allude to John Donne? Don’t worry, right after that he makes a terrible catheter joke. Balance is key. Listen below.