The Dragon of an Ordinary Family

Background

Work for the album dates back to the Nuke Proof Suit sessions, as one or two tracks were held back for this release; causing Jehst to refer to the album as "[being] like a scrapbook..."

Album title

The title is from "an old kids' picture book" (by Margaret Mahy and Helen Oxenbury, London: Heinemann, 1969).

Jehst described the title of the album as "the juxtaposition of ‘Dragon’ with ‘Ordinary Family’. You’ve got references to everyday mundane shit that everyone can relate to, but at the same time there’s something otherworldly about it and something that’s kind of fantastical and people can’t quite put their finger on. It’s that mixture of the everyday with the surreal."

Recording

The album features no guest appearances, but boasts production appearances from Jehst himself, long term Jehst collaborators LG and Mr. Thing, veteran producer Beat Butcha and new producers Zygote, Jon Phonics and Chemo.

Promotion

The first single from the album, "Starting Over", was launched by a viral marketing video campaign in which a supposed Jehst fan recorded footage of the rapper appearing as a worker of the Post Office. 'Jehst Is My Postman' later turned out to be a PR stunt, as this recording was followed up by a music video of the single, featuring many other rappers dressed in a variety of costumes.

Critical reception

The release received mostly positive reviews