Let’s dive in with Barrington Hendricks’ most recent album, “I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR YOU”. To say that this contains everything that makes JPEGMAFIA great, would be disingenuous. What might seem like a bad thing to say about an artist’s best album, truly is praise; a testament to Hendricks’ versatility and the distinct qualities of every one of his eras – and possibly a hint at things even greater yet to come. For now, “I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR YOU” just so happens to be the most consistent JPEGMAFIA album and, if you don’t have a distaste for heavy guitars, it is also his most palatable. For the first time, Hendricks seems to approach songs more traditionally when it comes to structure, while not sacrificing his artistic identity at all – that being confusing and abrupt twists in his instrumentals, uncompromising sampling as well as sonically combining the seemingly uncombinable. The best example for all these things might be the album’s second single “SIN MIEDO”. What it exemplifies on top, is how unbelievably fantastic “I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR YOU” sounds. It is hands down is best album when it comes to production, mixing and mastering, which cannot only be heard on the louder and/or more chaotic cuts, but also on the backend of the album, where you’ll find some of the most reflective and lush cuts in the JPEGMAFIA discography, most notably the early-Kanye West-esque “either on or off the drugs” (sampling an AI-Soul-cover of a Future-song) and the closing track “i recovered from this”, featuring a beautiful Janet Jackson-sample. The biggest highlights are to be found in the late middle portion of the album: On the lyrically savage “Exmilitary” (a Death Grips reference, for sure), Hendricks shows off his ability to perfectly pace a song, delivering several extremely satisfying pay-off moments, and the glorious “JPEGULTRA!” has the perfect Denzel Curry-feature. I could go on and on about each individual track from here on out, but just trust me when I say that each song is a highlight in the JPEGMAFIA discography.

95 % (almost perfect)

Check out these 3 songs: “SIN MIEDO”, “JPEGULTRA!”, “either on or off the drugs”

The predecessor to “I LAY DOWN MY LIFE TO YOU” is simultaneously the second best album in the JPEGMAFIA discography. “SCARING THE HOES” is a collaborative album with Danny Brown, another Experimental Hip Hop artist, who is probably just as iconic and influential as JPEGMAFIA. The two have immaculate chemistry on the record and outside of it. As their chronically online personalities mesh perfectly, they inspire each other to reach new heights of trash talk and sampling. “SCARING THE HOES” is easily the craziest album in the JPEGMAFIA discography when it comes to production. The mixing is all over the place, but still sounds fire and the samples are some of the wildest ever done in Hip Hop. Case in point: “Garbage Pale Kids” is sampling an old TV commercial from Japan – and somehow makes an extremely hard beat out of it. The song is further enhanced with some heavy guitars coming in at two points, hinting at what Hendricks would do on his next album. 
So, “SCARING THE HOES” is definitely a mess of a record, but it makes perfect sense considering what it is supposed to be. The result is the most fun album in the JPEGMAFIA discography.

90 % (phenomenal)

Check out these 3 songs: “Garbage Pale Kids”, “Fentanyl Tester”, “Burfict!”

The "SCARING THE HOES: DLC PACK" contains four additional tracks from the "SCARING THE HOES" era that didn't make the cut. While none of them reach the level of craziness of the original album, they are different enough from it sonically to be of note. Check out "HERMANOS" especially.

80 % (great)

The sophomore JPEGMAFIA album is a big step away from "Veteran" and its bold and relentless experimentation. While maintaining much of the Glitch Hop elements and sticking to his musical ethos, Barrington Hendricks opens his music up to more colourful and palatable soundscapes, Neo-Soul inspired vocal parts and poppy hooks. "All My Heroes Are Cornballs" contains some of the most beautiful moments in the JPEGMAFIA discography ever and lots of unexpected glitchy instrumental twists. In fact, no other album in Hendricks‘ catalogue feels so sound collage-y (case in point: the brief cover of “No Scrubs” in “BasicBitchTearGas”) which is why “Cornballs” is so addictive and simultaneously difficult to overplay. To encompass it all, on the front cover, “Cornballs” features my favorite JPEGMAFIA album art — a great illustration of how in touch Hendricks seems to be with his feminine side in this era of his music. 

90 % (phenomenal)

Listen to these 3 songs: "Jesus Forgive Me, I Am A Thot", "Beta Male Strategies", "Free the Frail"

The fourth JPEGMAFIA full-length studio album, “LP!”, was released in two different versions. The “ONLINE” Version came out on the label Barrington Hendricks was signed to and fulfilled his contract. The true version for the fans, which we consider canonical in this list, was released via Soundcloud, Bandcamp and YouTube and contains more tracks, leaves out some of the songs from the “ONLINE” Version already featured on “EP!”, has the original track listing and “OFFLINE” versions of the rest of the songs shared between the two versions. On the song “either on or off the drugs” from “I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR YOU”, Hendricks later describes the process of completing “LP!” as rushed. Fittingly, the “OFFLINE” version largely differs from its pendant because it has several samples that were omitted from the label’s version as they were not cleared in time. Right now, the “OFFLINE” version is finally available on all streaming platforms to stream. 
Now, about the album: It’s really good as is to be expected from JPEGMAFIA. Personally though, I don’t think it is as phenomenal as its critical acclaim suggests. “LP!” is a very long album, clocking in at over 55 minutes of runtime with 22 tracks. While the album is definitely a summary and evolution from everything Barrington Hendricks has been up to musically in the past, it does feel very disjointed and even bloated. This is further promoted by a track order that doesn’t connect the songs to something greater than they are individually. Nevertheless, “LP!” is probably the richest album and the biggest grower in the JPEGMAFIA discography.

85 % (outstanding)

Check out these 3 songs: “TRUST!”, “HAZARD DUTY PAY!”, “TIRED, NERVOUS & BROKE!”

While "Veteran" is not Barrington Hendricks' debut album as a musician, it is the first JPEGMAFIA album – an album that deserves its place in the discography by introducing the Glitch Hop-formula and trash-talking leftist lyrical personality JPEGMAFIA is known for and works with until today. The name of the album is a nod to Hendricks' time in the US military. As he told Cambridge Union in 2020, he was asked to join the military in school and agreed as he needed money. Hendricks hated his time in the military and goes on to say that the only good that came from it, was the money which he used to finance recording equipment so he could start making music on a professional level. 
As is to be expected from this background as well as the album cover and title, "Veteran" is the bleakest, most dark and abstract and the most political JPEGMAFIA album. Surprisingly, it is also the most humorous. With "Veteran", Hendricks earned JPEGMAFIA an instant breakthrough and a cult-following that has only grown ever since. It is not his worst album by much, and it might even – understandably so – become one of your favorites, but for me, it is just a bit too skeletal and lacking when it comes to memorable hooks and full-fledged songs. 

80 % (great)

Check out these 3 songs: "1539 N. Calvert", "Real Nega", "Rainbow Six"

An EP compiled of singles Hendricks released over the course of 2020. Although it has a decent enough flow, this doesn’t live up to any of JPEGMAFIA’s full length projects, nor to the LP that would follow. However, if you follow the JPEGMAFIA canon, which means ignoring the standard version of “LP!”, this is the extended release you’ll find BALD! on – one of Hendricks’ most iconic songs – as well as its remix featuring none other than Denzel Curry, who of course totally slays on the song’s Atmospheric Drum & Bass production. Other highlights include the satirical Donald Trump diss “THE BENDS!”, the string-kissed “SUPER TUESDAY!”, the two-parted “COVERED IN MONEY!” and the groovy “CUTIE PIE!”. Tommy Genesis’ feature on “ROUGH 7” also is entertaining enough to be notable. Sadly, the two remaining tracks “BODYGUARD!” and “living single” are rather forgettable. So, as is to be expected from Hendricks, there’s nothing unenjoyable to be found here, but except for “BALD!” and its remix, nothing really stands out in the context of his discography.

75 % (very good)

The second JPEGMAFIA release in the lead-up to “LP!” is shorter and more restrained than any full-length project Hendricks has ever brought out. “EP2!” is more of a Trap- and Cloud Rap-inspired collection of tracks, lacking the experimentation JPEGMAFIA is known for. Consequently, it is a bit underwhelming of a listen, even though it is more certainly a solid project, where Hendricks shows that he can also successfully embrace a more basic and mainstream Hip Hop-sound. Check out "FIX URSELF!".

65 % (enjoyable)