The Money Store is the debut studio album by American experimental hip hop trio Death Grips. It is the follow-up to their debut mixtape, Exmilitary. The album was officially released on April 24, 2012, but had been leaked to YouTube on April 14, sold by the band at Coachella on cassette on April 20, and made available on vinyl on April 21 to celebrate Record Store Day. The Money Store was announced alongside the group's second album, No Love Deep Web, which was released later in the year.

Background Death Grips formed in Sacramento, California, in December 2010, comprising vocalist Stefan Burnett ( MC Ride), drummer Zach Hill, and producer Andy Morin. The group first attracted significant attention in 2011 with the release of their debut mixtape, Exmilitary, which was made available as a free digital download. The project received widespread critical notice and helped characterize the group's abrasive fusion of alternative hip-hop, industrial music, and hardcore punk. Around the same period, Hill was already known for his work in the math rock band Hella.

In February 2012, Death Grips signed to the major label Epic Records, a subsidiary of Sony Music. The signing drew attention given the group's experimental style and prior independent releases. The band also announced that they intended to release two albums within the same year, with The Money Store scheduled for April and a second project planned for later in the year. Much of the material for The Money Store had already been recorded before the deal was finalized, and the label reportedly allowed the group to retain creative control over their output.

The rollout for The Money Store included several pre-release promotion: the album was first hinted at with the release of a music video for the track "Blackjack" on February 7, 2012, followed by the release of the track "Get Got" in February 27, both of which were posted online for free the following day. On March 13, Death Grips released the track "Lost Boys". On March 27, they released the music video for the song "The Fever (Aye Aye)", followed by a free download.

Musical style The Money Store has been described by journalists as experimental hip hop, industrial hip hop and hardcore hip-hop. The album incorporates influences from genres such as dubstep, juke, ghettotech, heavy metal, and synth-pop. Crack Mike Vinti has noted the use of unconventional samples, utilizing unconventional samples such as tennis grunts from the Williams sisters and the sound of the Vancouver SkyTrain. Several tracks also incorporate samples from the compilation Music from Saharan Cellphones. Vocalist Burnett delivers lyrics in a manner akin to a harsh, terrified shout. His lyrical content is often cryptic and evocative, focusing on themes of paranoia, violence, and social alienation. The production is handled by Hill and Morin and combines programmed and live elements, including synthesizer-driven textures and distorted drum patterns. Hill's drumming is frequently syncopated and altered through studio processing, contributing to an irregular rhythmic structure.

Release The album cover depicts a female masochist, with "Death Grips" carved into her chest, on the leash of a smoking female sadist. The image is painted by Sua Yoo, an artist with whom Death Grips had worked in the past. They later appeared on the album art for the band's 2015 soundtrack album, Fashion Week. It originally appeared in a zine, but the band name carved into the submissive's chest was added afterwards. The non-explicit variant of the album cover includes a white bar with the album name printed across it, censoring the breasts.

In May 4, Death Grips announced via Facebook that they had cancelled their upcoming tour dates in support of The Money Store in order to finish the recording of their second record, No Love Deep Web, stating "[sic] we are dropping out to complete our next album NO LOVE. see you when it's done. (there are no longer any scheduled shows)".

In September 10, a song titled "@DeathGripz", named after their Twitter username, was released as the final installment of the Adult Swim Singles Program 2012. The group had stated earlier that it was an unreleased cut from The Money Store.

Reception

Music journalist Jim Carroll of The Irish Times summarized: "MC Ride, Andy Morin and Zach Hill set out to create an intense, spectacular, feral racket and succeed in spades. Once you get used to the fact that they're fuming, you'll thrill to the raw, fractured, incessant and apocalyptic barrage of noise as Death Grips prepare for the end of the world".

Jayson Greene of Pitchfork assigned the album a "Best New Music" label and wrote that "The Money Store is about as intellectual an experience as a scraped knee. But it's just as good at reminding you that you're alive." Spin, while very positive towards The Money Store, felt it was inferior to Exmilitary for the rejection of the mixtape's use of samples, specifically "the raw, imperfect way that samples rub up against one another." It was also the first album which music critic Anthony Fantano rated a 10 upon its release.

Less satisfied reviewers included Louis Pattison of NME, who felt its "utterly convincing" dystopian vision was ruined by an "alienating" presentation of themes that lacked a goal. The Guardians Alex Macpherson, who claimed Burnett's "one-note" vocal performance distracted the listener from the instrumentals' "careening thrill;" and Sputnikmusic, who panned the "poor taste" blend of genres and production elements and "MC Ride's consistently incoherent mumbling and meme-of-the-day approach to making hooks" that muddled the record's lyrical complexities.

Accolades Publication Accolade Rank The 405 Albums of the Year8AllMusic Best of 201218 Decade in ReviewUnrankedBBC Music Top 25 Albums of 2012 6Beats Per MinuteThe Top 50 Albums of 2012 46Clash The Top 40 Albums Of 2012 4Complex The 50 Best Albums of 2012 40 Consequence of Sound Top 50 Albums of 2012 16Genius 100 Best Albums of the 2010s27 Gigwise Albums of the Year28 Gorilla vs. Bear Albums of 201247Metacritic Best Music of 2012 So Far22New York Nitsuh Abebe's Top Ten Albums of 20124No Ripcord Top 50 Albums Of 20123Pitchfork The Top 50 Albums of 20129 The 100 Best Albums of the Decade So Far (2010–14)34 The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s117 The 33 Best Industrial Albums of All Time25 The Plain Dealer 100 Greatest Albums of the 2010s24 PopMatters The 75 Best Albums of 201229 Pretty Much Amazing Best Albums of 201223 The Skinny The Albums of 20121 Spin The 101 Best Albums of the 2010s38 Stereogum Top 25 Albums Of 2012 So Far18 Time Out London The 50 Best Albums of 2012 2 Tiny Mix Tapes Favorite 50 Albums of 201216 Favorite 100 Music Releases of the Decade39 Treble Top 50 Albums of 2012 18 Top 150 Albums of the 2010s127 The Village Voice Pazz & Jop45 Vulture Top Ten Albums of 20124The Wire 2012 Rewind: Releases of the Year15

Track listing

Personnel Stefan Burnett – vocals Zach Hill – production Andy Morin – production Angelica Cob-Baehler – A&R Sua Yoo – cover drawing

Charts Chart (2012)PeakpositionUS Alternative Albums24US Billboard 200130US Heatseeker Albums3US Rap Albums14US Top Rock Albums39

Release history +RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)Ref.WorldwideApril 14, 2012YouTube streamSelf-released (following internet leak)USApril 20, 2012Cassette sold by the band at CoachellaSelf-releasedUS & UKApril 21, 2012Record Store Day pre-release LPEpicWorldwideApril 24, 2012LP, CD, digitalEpicUS & UKApril 18, 2015Record Store Day black/white split LPEpicUSJune 3, 2022Record Store Day Essentials LPEpic

References

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