Often forgotten as one of Sergio Leone’s masterpieces, Once Upon a Time in America (1984) was released in theatres as a 149-minute gangster epic. Upon release it was swiftly cast aside as a miss in Leone’s otherwise stellar career. If you have seen it, you would know of the decades that pass in mere minutes of screentime in which the passage of time is hardly made clear. Or, you would remember the highly motivated characters, driven by…? Nothing that was made clear in this version of the film. It was only when the original 229-minute version was released was the true gangster epic told, and the film was recognised for its brilliance. But for years Leone’s genius was lost to the harsh business standards of film executives.
In his career thus far, JPEGMAFIA has often made clear to fans the sheer amount of music that gets scrapped from each of his albums. JPEGMAFIA, aka Peggy, has mentioned the hundreds of songs that never reach listeners’ ears. But for the first time Peggy has made the move to release an extended version of his album billed as the ‘Director’s Cut’, the original vision of the album.
When I reviewed I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR YOU in August 2024, I was impressed by the story of the dissolution of faith in oneself, the violent downward spiral that follows and ultimately bubbling up of dark impulses that are coaxed out in times of depression and self-annihilation. Peggy has never been one to shy away from violence or dark themes in his music, but ILDMLFY made it personal and reflective, in doing so becoming by far his most emotionally confronting, intimate album to date.
So how does Peggy go about extending that in the director’s cut? Really, I wouldn’t say he adds much to the story, as much as he extends the peaks and lowest points of the album. The A-side contains the eight additional tracks such to fulfill the Peggy’s original vision for the album, with the B-side containing five new songs from the sessions of ILDMLFY.
Amongst the new tracks, “PROTECT THE CROSS” and “Jordan Rules” embellish the aggressive rushes of the first act. He even ups his own pugnacious parallel to Dillon Brooks: “I was wrong when I said Dillon Brooks/I’m a Billy Laimbeer kind of man.”
“CULT STATUS” extends the tripped out, punkish outro beat from “New Black History” adding an equally psychotic threat to violence, heightening the high points of mania fuelled aggression: “Play with mе, he need surgery/Court room gave him thе third degree/Burner pistols and lawyer fees”.
The ultimate loss of faith in oneself, followed by loss in faith in God is only furthered “ALLAH” repeating much of what has been repeated; “I’m on my knees for a God that I can’t even see”. It feels like the most fitting of all the new tracks, extending the delicate honesty originally seen on “Don’t Put Anything On the Bible” and “i recovered from this.
This leads into the B side, which contains a couple new tracks, the banging “What the hip hop hell is this ?” and “HATE”, the eerie “Come & Get Me” and “Bloodline Freestyle (2022 Demo)” which very much sounds like something from the post LP! era.
Peggy continues to flex his absurdly diverse musicality, built off the back of eclectic samples and swirling, tripped out beats. In almost doubling the album’s runtime, he doesn’t quite reinvent the album as much as Leone with America, but instead smooths out the intensity of his original. It feels somewhat more like a deluxe album and less like the unfettered directorial vision. Ultimately, Peggy reframes the album from violently jarring, to sweepingly painful; from a beatdown to an agonising decline.
THREE AND A HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
JPEMAFIA TOUR
In addition to the director’s cut, Peggy has also confirmed additional tour dates as the opener for Linkin Park following the Australian leg of his current world tour.
For all tour dates click HERE.
AU/NZ TOUR
February 26—PowerStation—Auckland, NZ
February 28—Fortitude Music Hall (Intimate)—Brisbane, QLD
March 4—Enmore Theatre—Sydney, NSW
March 7—Timber Yard—Melbourne , VIC
March 8—Metropolis Fremantle—Fremantle, WA
LINKIN PARK DATES
June 24—I-DAYS Festiva—Milan, IT
June 28—Wembley Stadium—London, UK
July 1—Merkur Spiel Arena—Dusseldorf, DE
July 8—Deutsche Bank Park—Frankfurt, DE
September 13—Dodger Stadium—Los Angeles, CA
September 15—SAP Center—San Jose, CA
September 17—Golden 1 Centerr—Sacramento, CA
September 19—Moda Center—Portland, OR
September 21—Rogers Arena—Vancouver, BC
September 24—Climate Pledge Arena—Seattle, WA
Header image credit: Logan Fields
