There’s a common complaint with a lot of nerd rappers, and it’s one I for the most part agree with: that weak production and sloppy rhymes often get a pass because of the subject matter. Not here.

Ambivalently melancholy nerd rap sounds like it should be an oxymoron, but in Open Mike Eagle’s compellingly odd forebrain, it’s the foundation for the sublime. The Chicago-born hip-hop artist’s mix ...