His first solo album in twelve years, Benjamin Hammond, more familiarly known as Macklemore (34), having departed from longtime producer Ryan Lewis, seems eager to prove himself as a solo artist with his latest release, “Gemini.”

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The title alone suggests that Macklemore feels a sense of place among great Gemini artists, a list which includes: Kanye, Kendrick Lamar, Andre 3000, Tupac, and Notorious B.I.G. The first problem with this, self-evident by the project as a whole, is that Macklemore is nowhere near as artistically unique (or therefore valuable) as the artists in question.

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Although Ryan Lewis is out of the picture due to an unforeseen hiatus, the original sound he brought to the pair is not lost, and still there in spirit in songs like, “Glorious” and “Ain’t Gonna Die Tonight.” Both of which contain choir elements, anthem appropriate horn sections, and features which steal the show, credits to Skylar Grey and Eric Nally, respectively.

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While Macklemore seemingly holds his own as a solo artist, he is still incredibly dependent on featured artists, though no more than he was on previous projects. The sixteen-track album contains fifteen featured artists, without which, many songs would have been completely forgettable. “Willy Wonka” is a good rap-based example, with a top-notch guest performance from Offset of Migos. Later, Kesha shows up on “Good Old Days,” on an instrumental that compliments her voice extremely well, with symphonious accompaniment like that on her own successful single, “Praying.”

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It certainly cannot be argued that Macklemore isn’t a skilled rapper. His technical skill is impressive. If not for his distinctive tonal quality, he’s a bit like a chameleon, blending right into whatever musical style the song happens to be taking. This skill however, quickly reveals itself as a weakness due to how indistinguishable Macklemore can seem from the rest of hip-hop. It becomes difficult to see what he offers when he is so busy mimicking the sound of other artists. To list a few (out of several) examples: “How To Play the Flute” sounds like Future’s, “Mask Off,” capitalizing on the woodwind-constituent beat; “Marmalade” sounds like D.R.A.M.’s “Broccoli,” down to the Lil Yachty feature, piano, bass pattern, and autotune; and lastly, “Corner Store” could not be closer to copying the mid-forward, horn splashed, raspy elements of Chance The Rapper’s current brand. Despite this, Macklemore cannot be completely faulted, considering that he does a good job at recreating the sound of others. All the songs mentioned maintain the mood and energy of their modeled inspiration, almost eerily so – which is good, because Macklemore’s lyricism often leaves a lot to be desired.

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Every so often however, Macklemore’s verses can be truly good. “Levitate” hits nicely with a spring-loaded groove line and big band emphasis, which complement the quick, heavily enunciated flow that made him famous. “Excavate,” the album’s closing track, (after Saint Claire’s choral intro) contains an initial verse that comes as close as Macklemore gets to smoothly addressing high-headed questions of self-worth and artistic longevity. This stands in stark contrast to his normal, hit-and-run style, which usually implies or hints at high-brow subjects, but never truly offers a stance on the matter.

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“Intentions” is one of those hit-and-run songs. In recent memory, “Intentions” most accurately represents everything corny and wrong with Macklemore’s artistic career. In this “Lazy Song” homage-brainchild, Macklemore expresses in each line something he does not do, that he wishes he did. These regrets, so to speak, vary greatly, from wanting to “eat healthy” but eating “this DiGiorno’s” and being “too lazy to work out,” to not going to the protest march and being self-centered. All of which is signed and sealed by the mantra sung in the chorus by Dan Caplen, “I’m okay with who I am today.” While a song about self-acceptance is fine, the timing could not be worse, as Macklemore talks about doing things that negatively affect health and social politics. This kind of self-cluelessness he has is indescribably irksome, and would not be missed on future releases (refer to his stunt a few years ago when he said on Instagram he was sorry he “stole” the Grammy from Kendrick Lamar).

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Macklemore is not a profound artist. He is however, a skilled one, perfectly capable of releasing crowd-pleasing remakes of popular songs, despite no loss in quality when retreating to a sound more specific and unique to him. Macklemore is whoever you want him to be, a blank slate who can “thank God [he’s] not religious.” He is hip-hop’s Batman, but not the one hip-hop needed, or even deserved.