On "Here Lies," a track from Paradox and Sean P's latest, Mending, the beats are impressive — DJ Premier-esque, sample-driven boom bap — as are the rhymes, which touch on government conspiracies, injustice and sundry ills of society. This is solid underground hip-hop that doesn't seem to match the label's goal to "infiltrate the entire planet earth with Catholic propaganda." While that sounds awfully nefarious, if all religious materials had hooks this infectious, the world might have avoided the Spanish Inquisition. "I Don't Believe Them" is built on a killer Nina Simone sample and laced with tight flows outlining the ways people fool themselves. Mending is really a record about personal struggles and the search for inner strength played over a score of crate-digger loops. Labeling it Catholic propaganda is a disservice to the quality. If there's a religious meaning deeper than "Be a decent person," we missed it.
I think the phatmass statement isn't as negative as you are portraying it. The goal, in it's entirety, reads: "With orthodoxy, charity and humility, phatmass will infiltrate the entire planet earth with Catholic propaganda." You left out the "charity and humility" part. If you look deeper into phatmass you'll find a very diverse, inclusive and open minded community of Catholics trying to live out their faith the best they can.
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