Homeboy Sandman, “12 Days of Christmas & Dia de Los Reyes.”

Homeboy Sandman has put in an incredible amount of work throughout 2022, having released two albums, an EP and a mixtape. But he hasn’t finished just yet, closing out one year and kicking off 2023 with an album, 12 Days of Christmas & Dia de Los Reyes, on his own imprint, Dirty Looks.

The title is fairly misleading, as it doesn’t really have anything to do with the holidays outside of Sandman releasing a track a day starting on Christmas. It’s more of a Christmas gift to fans.

Instead, the album is thematically structured around self care and self improvement, as Sandman explores how he’s made changes in his own life. It naturally opens with “First Day of Christmas” with a vibrant, jingling keyboard melody and light backing bass and marimba as clapping sets the tempo. Sandman raps about how carefree he feels, in particular with regards to his approach to rapping. He disregards the judgments of peers who aren’t keen to his artistic style of songwriting.

“Second Day of Christmas” features the return of producer Peanut Butter Wolf, following an extended hiatus from hip-hop. Light organs transition into an electric guitar melody paired with string tones, piano and snares. Sandman continues to spit about his open defiance to rapping about typical fodder most come to expect from the genre. He opts to speak on more niche and personal subjects—very much so akin to friend and collaborator Aesop Rock. Tamborine opens “Third Day of Christmas,” followed by snares and faded woodwinds, while a sharp and piercing tone transitions back and forth between stereo speakers. Sandman discusses not just his talent as a lyricist and performer, but also how his cautious distance toward the world helped him to build insight.

A soft electric guitar melody and flutes play nicely on “Fourth Day of Christmas,” on which Homeboy Sandman opens up about how building healthy habits through diet change and self care while simultaneously trying to maintain a positive outlook has helped to improve his overall state of mind. “Fifth Day of Christmas” kicks it with swinging jazz piano. Sandman talks about the importance of taking measured risks—as to not become “the blind leading the blind.” The lo-fi vibes on “Sixth Day of Christmas” explores how the conscious choices we make in determining stimuli—ranging from social interactions to media that we consume—can influence how we feel.

“Seventh Day of Christmas” is a love song of sorts, as Homeboy Sandman opens up to his girlfriend about his internal dilemma of desiring intimacy while valuing long distances with those around him. Despite acknowledging his own flaws, he maintains his devotion to his girl. We get another minimalist piano lead melody on “Eighth Day of Christmas,” where he discusses the virtues of defiance and pushing limits. He expresses how breaking boundaries is the only way to make any genuine progress, whether internally or externally imposed.

“Ninth Day of Christmas” has Homeboy rapping over an eerie instrumental with stringlike drumming and minor keys notes from washed-out guitars to unsettle listeners. Here Sandman explores the importance of following your gut instincts over blindly trusting everything you see around you, as well as not fearing embracing your odder tendencies. We get a bit of a tropical flair on “Tenth Day of Christmas,” with light electric guitar and buzzing synths offering up a delightful melody. Sandman discusses how much he revels in being a subversive maverick.

“Eleventh Day of Christmas” features a rather bouncy and playful piano and saxophone melody. Here Sandman explores the importance of regularly challenging yourself—which brings to mind his song “Don’t Look Down” from 2020’s Don’t Feed The Monster. The album closes out with “Twelfth Day of Christmas and “Dia de Los Reyes,” both of which see Homeboy Sandman lifting himself up and embracing a positive self-image. This album puts an exclamation point an incredible year for this underground legend. Sandman has made it his goal to hone in on his silver linings and to make the best decisions for his well-being.

Follow hip-hop critic Tim Hoffman at Twitter.com/hipsterp0tamus.