The New Jersey artist Matthew Miller has been releasing music under the name GDP for nearly two decades, but he was off the radar for quite a while. In the late 2000s and early 2010s, GDP found a lane for himself making skate-rap on the punk/emo/indie label Run For Cover, at a time when RFC was helping the emo revival pop off. But eventually, he turned his attention to other concerns, mostly related to film and photography.
As his bio tells it, Miller published zines and books. He shot and directed video projects under the alias George Douglas Peterson, including documenting medical missions to vulnerable parts of the globe. He dabbled in music outside the hip-hop sphere, playing drums in the hardcore band Ankle Monitor and launching an electronic grindcore solo project called Orange Crystal. But not until last year, when he teamed with Fatboi Sharif on the seven-song project ENDOCRINE, did he get back to rapping.
Now he's ready to roll out his first proper GDP album in 14 years. Cross Off Matthew is coming next month on Run For Cover, and its lead single is extremely promising. "Island In The Sky" finds Miller flexing a blunt yet agile flow that reminds me of Aesop Rock against the kind of volatile noise-rock backdrop I associate with billy woods. He fits a lot of memorable bars in under two minutes, finishing with this one: "I used to want a Maybach/ A record deal's really just a loan you have to pay back."
On Bandcamp, GDP calls this song "an ode to the Holland Tunnel, Route 280 and riding your skateboard as fast as it will go." Watch his self-directed "Island In The Sky" video below.
TRACKLIST:
01 "Another Country"
02 "Seroquel"
03 "Island In The Sky"
04 "Mezzanine"
05 "Holstein"
06 "Location Therapy"
07 "Bipped"
08 "Undone"
09 "Rock For Light"
10 "Money For Nothing"
11 "Ethereal Sphere"
12 "Doom Loop"
Cross Off Matthew is out 10/23 on Run For Cover. Pre-order it here.
