The musically adventurous, lyrically downbeat Richmond, Virginia rapper Lil Ugly Mane has been missing in action for a while. I haven’t heard anything from Lil Ugly Mane since he collaborated with Wiki and Denzel Curry on the 2019 track “Grim,” and before last night, he hadn’t put anything up on his Bandcamp page in more than three years. But last night, Lil Ugly Mane returned with two new songs. They’re weird, and they’re great.

On the Bandcamp page for his new tracks “Headboard” and “Here I Am,” Lil Ugly Mane writes, “i forgot to upload this on here a couple months ago.” and then, “i remembered.” That’s all the info that we get. The two songs are murky and lo-fi and not really rap at all. “Headboard” is gurgling shoegaze with a beat that might be the tiniest bit emo-rap-adjacent. (A version of “Headboard” has been on YouTube for a few months, but it flew under the radar.) “Here I Am” exists at some foggy crossroads where synthpop and pop-punk meet. Both are emotionally weighty and weirdly pretty.

It’s hard to say whether these new songs could mark a real reemergence for Lil Ugly Mane, but he’s booked to open for Turnstile in Austin in September, so maybe things are happening. Even if they’re not, though, these songs are good, and you can hear them below.

You can get “Headboard” and “Here I Am” at Bandcamp.