The indie hip-hop duo’s new EP is true to the work they’ve done apart but is something they could only do together.

Alfred Banks is earnest. His “Underdog Central” brand announces it, as do his rhymes, which can be playful but still driven by intention. He plans to make it—whatever that means—and no one’s going to outwork him. But he has shown a playful side, including his 2020 video for “On That,” which show Banks replicating a famous video of Andy Warhol eating a hamburger. His sense of humor can be a little deadpan, but it’s there.

Nectarine Peels by SaxKixAve shows how Banks’ collaboration with Tank and the Bangas’ Albert Allenback has added dimensions to his rap and public presentation. Allenback’s beats give him rich musical vistas to work with, ones that don’t clearly point to stories of struggle and determination. Instead, the EP’s really about two friends having musical fun. The title track is about keeping it real, but Banks doesn’t treat honesty like an abstract positive or use it as a stick to beat his detractors. Instead, he most often approaches the concept metaphorically, using the relationship between a fruit’s skin and what lies beneath it because he’s trying to figure out a relationship he’s in.

That, like everything else on the EP, comes with a light touch. “Kaleidoscope” is a straight-up roller skating jam with LeTrainiump singing the hook. The title “Humblebrag” highlights the gentle touch on this boast track, which Banks shares with rapper Mega Ran, and even Allenback gets in on the action with his own self-consciously nerdy “Albert Interlude Redux.” On it, he raps about his shorts, being vegan, and “the source of all my power / my glorious man bun.” It’s a smart, well-crafted kind of silly, much like the “Elevator Pitch” skit, with Banks and Allenback trading lines that pun on fruits and vegetables starting at A and working unsuccessfully to Z.

Two things make Nectarine Peels work so well. One is its musicality. The songs all catch with engaging musical and lyrical hooks that are economically dropped. Only one song lasts longer than 3:30, so they pop, do what they have to do, then leave you wanting more. More importantly though, the EP sounds like a group that is following its own muse, not worrying about trends or even the hip-hop marketplace, indie or otherwise. Banks and Allenback made tracks that make them happy, following a playful, positive aesthetic that’s true to the work they’ve done before SaxKixAve but wouldn’t have happened without each other. They set their own bar for success, then worked to surpass it their way. The EP is self-defined and self-contained, which gives it a welcome ease.

They’re part of the glbl wrmng indie hip-hop collective, and Pell and LeTrainiump from it get meaningful guest spots. On “Away from You (Too),” Banks shares the spotlight generously, turning the lead vocals over to LeTrainiump with bounce rapper HaSizzle adding punctuation over the throbbing house-influenced dance track. Banks appears as a feature on the track and when he does, he picks up the food motif that threads through the EP, saying “some girls want and they will try / they get pushed to the side like fries.” That attention to detail gives the EP coherence and signals a level of ambition that the tone and sound undersell. The skit-heavy Nectarine Peels seems on first listen like a joke, but the care and craft that went into creating the easy vibe also ensures that SaxKixAve pack a lot of themselves in its 20-plus-minute run time.