Splendor & Misery (Anniversary X)

Splendor & Misery (Anniversary X) is the tenth-anniversary edition of experimental rap trio Clipping’s Hugo Award-nominated sci-fi opus. This deluxe edition features revised art, the original album, plus eight previously unreleased songs and alternate takes.

Splendor & Misery is an Afrofuturist, dystopian concept album that follows the sole survivor of a slave uprising on an interstellar cargo ship, and the onboard computer that falls in love with him. Thinking he is alone and lost in space, the character discovers music in the ship’s shuddering hull and chirping instrument panels. Clipping’s music draws an imaginary sonic map of the ship’s decks, hallways, and quarters, while Daveed Diggs’ lyrics ride the rhythms produced by its engines and machinery.

Splendor & Misery is one of Clipping’s most beloved releases. It made multiple year-end lists and earned praise from The New York Times, Bandcamp Daily, CLASH, The Line Of Best Fit, The Needle Drop, Uproxx, The Observer, and Stereogum. In 2019, Pitchfork ranked Splendor & Misery as one of the 33 best industrial albums of all time. Clipping celebrated the album in August, 2026 with the Splendor & Misery Fest at NYC’s Knockdown Center with opening acts SPELLLING, Shabazz Palaces, ELUCID, Fatboi Sharif, evicshen, and Maria Chavez.