Last year Castle debuted with Gasface, an enigmatic intro to the North Carolina MC/producer’s talent. It offered everything needed from a hip hop record; style, substance, beats, slick production and meaningful lyricism. 

Castle is back with a ‘new’ LP, Return of the Gasface (The Has-Lo Passages), which sees his gruff delivery, frank observations cheeky sense of humour undergo a full-length redo from labelmate Has Lo. Such a fan was he of Gasface, that Has Lo re-envisioned an entirely new identity for it, getting Castle to re-record verses, adding his own verses and production style, to create something that sounds a lot different to your usual remix project. The first taste of Gasface re-imagined is ‘Live Action’, originally called ‘No Prep Time’, it indicated in no small way that the reworking is a more than worthwhile exercise. ‘Live Action’ is injected with a new spirit and it’s strength lies in the execution, particularly the two artists willingness work together in tandem for a common goal. Has Lo’s production is flawless, bouncy beats entrance you while the pauses and breaks are perfectly timed to compliment Castle’s delivery and flow. Realized at the most opportune moments, it reinforces what Castle’s got to say, sounding more authoritative and speaking with an authority that makes you pay attention. 

Return of the Gasface (The Has-Lo Passages) is released on March 18th with original artwork by Josh Bayer. For now though, you can sample the delight that is ‘Live Action’.