Tyler, The Creator – “IGOR” review

This is the 6th full-length album from California rapper, singer/songwriter, producer, music video director & designer: Tyler, The Creator. Who rose to international stardom at the beginning of the decade as the de facto leader of the now defunct collective Odd Future with the help of the music video of his breakout single “Yonkers”. Last time we heard Tyler in a long capacity was in 2017 with the release of Flower Boy. Easily his magnum opus & one of the greatest hip hop albums of this decade, where we saw his full artistic & personal evolution with personal lyrics & colorful production. Tyler even saw fit to drop an EP this past winter to coincide with The Grinch & while that was ok, it seems like he’s ready to deliver his long-awaited follow-up to Flower Boy.

The album kicks off with “IGOR’S THEME”, which is a repetitive yet entrancing piece with an instrumental that keeps making well-constructed turns left & right. The next song “EARFQUAKE” with Playboi Carti sees the 2 telling their significant others that they need them in their lives over a atmospheric beat while the track “I THINK” is a catchy love tune with a synth-funk instrumental. After the “EXACTLY WHAT YOU RUN FROM YOU END UP CHASING” skit, we go into the song “RUNNING OUT OF TIME”. Where Tyler calls out his ex’s true colors over a spacey beat. The track “NEW MAGIC WAND” sees Tyler begging his lover not to dump him over a noisy beat while the song “A BOY IS A GUN” is a soulful tune where Tyler is telling this person he’s here for them.

The track “PUPPET” with Kanye West talks about being controlled by a lover over a blissful instrumental while the song “WHAT’S GOOD” vents about depression over a beat that starts off eerie, but later switches into something more chaotic. The track “GONE, GONE / THANK YOU” starts off as a sunny R&B tune about how his love’s no longer here, but then it transitions into an interlude where Tyler is thanking this ex of his. The penultimate track “I DON’T LOVE YOU ANYMORE” is of course a breakup anthem with a punchy yet meditative beat & then the album ends with “ARE WE STILL FRIENDS?”, where Tyler & Pharrell team up to deliver a slow yet beautiful R&B cut with a fitting Al Green sample.

As I expected from the snippets, this a nice change of pace. Tyler’s going into a more neo-soul direction while fusing it with the sounds of his 2015 album Cherry Bomb. You could compare it to M.I.A.’s ΛΛ Λ Y Λ because Kala & Flower Boy were M.I.A. & Tyler’s most accessible albums & both of them turned around to deliver their most experimental efforts yet. Just another example of why T is the most creative recording artists of this decade. Here’s to whatever he has coming in 2021.

Score: 4.5/5

Solange – “When I Get Home” review

Solange is a 32 year old singer/songwriter & actress from Houston, Texas known for being the younger sister of Beyoncé. Her first 2 full-length outings in the 2000s were average at best, but came back fantastically in 2016 with A Seat at the Table. But now 3 years later, she’s returning out of the blue with her 4th album.

Things kick off with “Things I Imagined”, which is a mellow yet repetitive piece. After the “S. McGregor” interlude, the next song “Down With the Clique” sings about how she comes first & the keyboards from Tyler, The Creator on here are absolutely gorgeous. The track “Way to the Show” is about how this guy can get it over a spacey yet funky beat & after the “Can I Hold the Mic?” interlude, the song “Stay Flo” talks about lust over a settle instrumental from Metro Boomin’ of all people. The track “Dreams” talks about just that over a relaxing instrumental from both Earl Sweatshirt & Blood Orange and after the “Nothing Without Intention” interlude, the song “Almeda” with Playboi Carti sees the 2 listing common traits of black people over some militant drums & beautiful keyboard passages.

The track “Time (Is)” sings about how this guy isn’t for her over some keys & bass-playing while the song “My Skin My Logo” with Gucci Mane sees the 2 complimenting each other perfectly over a bass-guitar. After the “We Deal with the Freak’n” intermission, the track “Jerrod” is a guitar ballad about how Solange wants the titular guy to call her. The song “Binz” talks about how she wants to wake up over a minimalist instrumental while the track “Beltway” is a half-written ballad about how this dude loves her. After the “Exit Scott” interlude, the song “Sound of Rain” is another repetitive piece, but I do admire the atmospheric Pharrell production. Then after the “Not Screwed!” interlude, the song “I’m a Witness” serves as a flawless closer with a prominent bass-line.

This is EASILY a serious contender for the best R&B album of 2019. It’s bit more psychedelic than A Seat at the Table, but it’s just as introspective & lush. Another near perfect example of why Solange is on par (or maybe even better) than her sister.

Score: 4.5/5

Earl Sweatshirt – “Some Rap Songs” review

Earl Sweatshirt is a 24 year old MC & producer from Los Angeles, California who began his career in 2008 under the name Sly Tendencies. He posted a handful of tracks for a mixtape called Kitchen Cutlery on MySpace, but the tape would never be released to this day. Then he formed a rap trio with 2 of his friends called The Backpackerz & planned to release a mixtape together titled World Playground, but they disbanded sometime in 2009. Shortly after, he joined Odd Future & appeared on their 2nd & final mixtape Radical that May. 10 months later, he put out his only mixtape to date Earl with OF’s de facto leader Tyler, The Creator producing a bulk of it. The tape received a lot of buzz, but Earl’s mother would send him to a therapeutic retreat school for at-risk boys in Samoa sometime after until February of 2012. He was then granted his own Columbia Records imprint Tan Cressida Records & released his debut album Doris in 2013 to critical acclaim for his clever rhyme schemes & the gritty production from those such as The Neptunes & even the RZA. He then formed the duo Hog Slaughta Boyz with OF affiliate Na’kel at the beginning of 2015 & released his sophomore album I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside a couple months after. Many of which consider to be better than Doris for it’s darker aesthetic. He’s been laying low since then but with the deaths of his father Keorapetse Kgositsile as well as his his uncle Hugh Masekela & his friend Mac Miller earlier this year, he’s putting out his highly anticipated 3rd album.

The album begins with “Shattered Dreams”, where Earl discusses his comeback over a soul sample. The next track “Red Water” serves as a short yet equally gratifying sequel to Solace while the song “Cold Summers” uses some clever gun imagery over a mellow instrumental. The track “Nowhere2Go” talks about depression over a glitchy abstract instrumental while the song “December 24” gets intellectually conscious over a Denmark Vessey instrumental with a prominently gloomy piano sample. The track “Ontheway!” talks about his mood swinging over a smooth guitar sample while “The Mint” with Navy Blue sees the 2 talking about fighting their demons over an amazing piano loop.

“The Bends” touches down on his success over a soul sample & some strings while the song “Loosie” seems to talk about a backstabber over a slow yet funky beat. The track “Azucar” talks about how he’s been coping with his depression over a blissful instrumental from Navy Blue while the song “Eclipse” is about him missing his shine. The track “Veins” talks about keeping faith over an AMAZING Curtis Mayfield sample & after the heartwarming “Playing Possum” interlude from Earl’s parents, the penultimate track “Peanut” discusses the deaths of Keorapetse & Hugh over a settle yet dark beat. The album ends with “Riot!”, which is an instrumental cut heavily sampling the Hugh Masekela song with the same name.

This has been one of my most anticipated albums of 2018 & at the end, Earl has just given what I believe to be the best album I’ve heard all year. I’m a little disappointed that it’s only 25 minutes long, but the Madvillainy influenced production is super creative & Earl continues to prove himself as the 2nd best lyricist of the decade (#1 of course being Kendrick Lamar) by cleverly detailing the darkest year of his life.

Score: 4.5/5

Lil Peep – “Come Over When You’re Sober 2” review

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Lil Peep was a 21 year old rapper & singer from Long Island, New York who blew up in late 2016 with the release of his 4th mixtape Hellboy & then following it with his debut album Come Over When You’re Sober last summer. Both projects were too melodramatic for my tastes, but I could see why it connected with a couple of my friends. But unfortunately, Lil Peep passed away last year just 2 weeks after his 21st birthday of an accidental fentanyl–xanax overdose right before a show in Tucson, Arizona. The rights of his unreleased music were then given to Columbia Records, who are now delivering the long-awaited follow-up to Come Over When You’re Sober a week after what would’ve been Peep’s 22nd birthday & a week before the 1 year anniversary of his untimely death.

The album kicks off with “Broken Smile (My All)”, where Peep vents about his hopes of getting back with this girl over a dark trap beat from his in-house producer smokeasac. The next track “Runaway” talks about getting away from fake people over a cloudy trap beat instrumental while the song “Sex with My Ex” truly lives up to it’s title with the instrumental containing a prominent guitar along with a heavy bass-line & rattling hi-hats. It’s ok. The track “Cry Alone” is a surprisingly solid alt rock ballad about loneliness & while the song “Leanin'” has a pretty acoustic instrumental with a cloudy backing, it’s legitimately upsetting to hear Lil Peep recalling a time where he survived what eventually killed him.

The track “16 Lines” is a drab explanation about how cocaine made him feel better over a murky instrumental with some down-tune guitar strumming while the song “Life is Beautiful” is probably his best song yet. It’s a completely unexpected positivity anthem & the hypnotic instrumental enhances the feeling of it. The track “Hate Me” has a nice bass guitar with some faint skittering hi-hats in background, but the take on his girl going off on him while he’s on the road is too melodramatic. The song “I.D.G.A.F. (I Don’t Give A Fuck)” continues the theme of the previous joint by talking about how he’s not gonna answer her calls, but it’s just boring & the instrumental doesn’t help either. The penultimate track “White Girl” is a chilling ballad about this girl who wants him back now that he’s famous over a trap beat with some sinister guitar licking & then the closer “Fingers” foresees his own death over a trap/alt rock fusion. As for the 2 bonus tracks: “Falling Down” with XXXTENTACION seems like a cash grab for the label since both Peep & X are no longer with us while the original version of that same song with iLoveMakonnen is just plain awkward.

This was honestly better than I had anticipated, but it’s still decent. I do hear an improvement on Lil Peep’s vocals, but only half of the melodrama of his last 2 projects are still present through his lyrics. The production’s just as decent as the last album too with the few incorporations of rock elements on here being the most creative move, but there are some points where the beats tend to be too overproduced. The fans will definitely love this more than me but if this is the last we’ll ever hear from the kid, then it’s a real shame we never got to hear him fully evolve as an artist because the potential of that is clearly shown on here a lot more. May he Rest In Peace.

Score: 3/5

Russ – “ZOO” review

Russ is a 25 year old rapper, producer & singer/songwriter from Secaucus, New Jersey. He’s released a total of 11 mixtapes on SoundCloud from 2011 up to 2014, eventually landing a contract with Columbia Records in 2016. He made his full-length debut last year with There’s Really a Wolf & within the past 16 months since that release, he has become one of hip hop’s most polarizing figures in recent memory. Primarily because of being a “fake activist” against drugs & then there’s an unignorable interview resurfaced from 2016 where he literally said “we need to blame producers for all the wack music today”. All of that aside, I‘ve decided to give this sophomore album of his a fair chance.

Things actually start off with “The Flute Song”, where Russ talks about doing whatever he wants when he wants over a flute-tinged trap beat from Scott Storch. It’s actually not bad at all, but I really just don’t understand why an immensely talented keyboardist & producer like Scott has been collaborating with Russ so much lately. The next track “Outlaw” compares himself to just that over a soulful boom bap beat from Russ himself (who of course produces the rest of the album solely) while the song “Kill Them All” is essentially a temper tantrum in response to the backlash he has received with a generically gritty trap beat & a WWE reference.

“Missing You” is a painful breakup anthem with an acoustic trap beat while the song “Voicemail” is basically him begging this girl to get back to him over an acoustic boom bap beat. The track “Parkstone Drive” is about never giving up over a laidback instrumental while the song “Begging You” is basically Russ telling himself to staying strong over a somber yet punchy beat. The hook is hilarious bad, too.

The track “Serious” is a simp anthem with a moody instrumental while the song “Keep My Wits” egotistically talks about his success over a nondescript beat. The track “Our Time” talks about a long distance relationship over some plinky keys & hard hitting drums while the song “From a Distance” tells this woman to look for someone who has more free time over something Drake would’ve sung over on VIEWS.

“Last Forever” is about longevity over some rich keys & faint hi-hats, but the only things that give it credit are the verses from Snoop Dogg & Rick Ross. The song “Keep It Pushin’” is a sappy description of a teenage relationship with a moody beat & the closer “Fuck That” is another temper tantrum over a beat that generically sounds like something Dr. Dre would’ve produced in the early 2000s.

This is slightly better than anything he’s done before, but that’s not saying much. The production is basic & when Russ isn’t telling melodramatic relationship stories, he’s either being self-centered or lashing out in a fit of bitter rage.

Score: 1/5

The Internet – “Hive Mind” review

It’s been 3 years since their magnum opus Ego Death & with 4 of it’s 5 members making their solo debuts within the past year, Odd Future subgroup The Internet is returning with their 4th full-length album.

Things begin with “Come Together”, where multiple band members beautifully sing in unison & the instrumental takes me back to Jamiroquai’s first 2 albums Emergency on Planet Earth & The Return of the Space Cowboy. The next song “Roll (Burbank Funk)” is taken over by guitarist Steve Lacy & it talks about listening to your heart over a psychedelic instrumental while the track “Come Over” sees Syd singing to this girl she loves over a funky instrumental. The song “La Di Da” sings about dancing with the instrumental suiting the content perfectly while the track “Stay the Night” is a laidback ballad about Syd not wanting this girl she’s with to go home for the evening. The song “Bravo” sees Syd singing to an ex over some prominent drums while the track “Mood” tells the story about a date over some pounding drums & some synth chords.

The song “Next Time / Humble Pie” talks about a woman she’ll never see again over a Neptunes inspired instrumental that’s pretty cool, but then it transitions into the second half pretty well about needing a real love over a more spacey beat. The track “It Gets Better (With Time)” sees Syd telling this woman just that over some dreamy synthesizers while the song “Look What U Started” tells this ex that she’s gonna pay over a funky instrumental. The song “Wanna Be” is a mellow guitar ballad asking this woman to become her girlfriend while the penultimate track “Beat Goes On” sees Matt Martians singing about moving forward & I like how the instrumental transitions from being funky to going into a more high-tempo drum & bass direction. The album then finishes with “Hold On”, where Syd singing to her girl about their love for each other over a dreamy yet settle beat.

I’ve been waiting on this for quite some time after the wait, it definitely lives up to my expectations. Not only is it almost as well written & vibrantly produced as the last album was, but you can just tell that everyone sounds happy to be back.

Score: 4/5

The Carters – “EVERYTHING IS LOVE” review

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The Carters are a musical duo & power couple consisting of legendary Brooklyn, New York emcee JAY-Z & his wife, former Destiny’s Child member & Houston, Texas popstar Beyoncé. Their latest albums Lemonade & 4:44 saw them at their most personal, but now they’re closing out the trilogy with a collaborative effort.

The album starts off with “SUMMER”, which is a sex song over a Cool & Dre instrumental that suits the mood fantastically. The next track “APESHIT” is an energetic club banger with an infectious Pharrell beat & Bey’s rapping was a very nice touch. The song “BOSS” talks about success over a triumphant trap beat from D’Mile & Mike Dean while the track “NICE” with Pharrell sees the 3 getting braggadocious over some beautiful keys & rattling hi-hats. The song “713” is a dedication to Beyoncé’s hometown over an instrumental with heavy bass with even some Scott Storch-like keyboards. It makes even more sense that Bey interpolates the classic Dr. Dre tune “Still D.R.E.” in the hook, but that’s really the only part of the song that I’m realistically not crazy about.

The track “FRIENDS” sees the 2 individually dedicating the time to song crew over a gloomy trap beat from Boi-1da & for some reason NAV while the song “HEARD ABOUT US” tells their critics to watch their mouths over a funky beat. The penultimate track “BLACK EFFECT” sees the 2 intelligently talking about being African American over a soulful trap beat & then it finishes perfectly with “LOVEHAPPY”, where the ‘03 Bonnie & Clyde go back & forth with each other about professing their love for each other as well as moving on from the whole Becky incident over a beautiful Eddie & Ernie sample.

I’m well aware that Jigga intentionally gave us this just the day after the new Nas album NASIR & while that is definitely superior, I still thought this was a lovely way to end the trilogy. Given what they’ve been through, the impeccable chemistry between JAY-Z & Beyoncé is a lot more stronger than it’s been in the past. Most of the instrumentals are luscious too & while I do enjoy a handful of trap music, I feel like a few of the beats on here sounded like they were forced to throw in hi-hats when they really didn’t need to

Score: 4/5

Lil Xan – “TOTAL XANXIETY” review

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Lil Xan is a 21 year old rapper from Redlands, California & this is his full-length debut. The opener “Who I Am” has a bass-heavy trap instrumental, but his whiny lyrics & boring delivery don’t do it any justice. The next song “Wake Up” gets repetitive lyrically over another bass heavy instrumental while the track “Tick Tock” with 2 Chainz sees the 2 getting braggadocious over an eerie rattling instrumental from Ronny J.

The song “Diamonds” talks about the obvious over a monstrous trap beat while the track “The Man” with $teven Cannon talks about how cool they supposedly are over some heavy bass. The song “Saved by the Bell” is filled with corny school references over a cloudy beat while the track “Moonlight” is about him & his girl getting fucked up over some more bass heavy trap percussion. The song “Shine Hard” with Rae Sremmurd gets braggadocious over an airy beat while the track “Round Here” sees him repeating the same lines for 2 short verses over an explosive beat & the YG feature is the only saving grace on here.

The song “Basically” talks about people he fell out with over a mediocre trap beat while the track “Deceived” continues this theme over an atmospheric trap beat. The track “Betrayed” is about his former xanax addiction & I actually find his story pretty compelling. The song “Slingshot” is about doing lean & narco over a gritty trap beat while the track “Far” is another compelling story: This time about his come up in the rap game. The track “Color Blind” is taken from Diplo’s new EP California & then the closer is a remix of “Betrayal”, both of which I felt like didn’t need to be on here.

Honestly, this thing was awful. The features were cool for the most part, some of the beats I liked & there are very few times were Xan says anything profound. My issue with it is that a lot of the songs sounded samey from the monstrous percussion to Xan repeating himself with no charisma whatsoever.

Score: 1/5

NER*D – “NO_ONE EVER REALLY DIES” review

A little over 7 years after their last album Nothing, Virginia funk-rock band N*E*R*D are returning with their 5th full-length album. The opener “Lemon” talks about hate while making a bunch of political references over an hyphy beat & Pharrell’s performance is super catchy, but Rihanna blatantly rips off Cardi B in her rap verse that it’s painfully underwhelming. The next song “Deep Down Body Thrust” tells all the choke artists that they won’t get away over a funk rock instrumental kin to the band’s 2004 sophomore album Fly or Die. The track “Voila” with Wale sees the 2 getting motivational over a funky guitar, but then it transitions into something more tropical during Wale’s verse. However, I’m a little disappointed Gucci Mane only does the hook.

The song “1,000” may have a decent Future verse in the middle of it, Pharrell & Shay Haley make up for it with their energetically delivered braggadocio lyrics. Also, the beat is thumping! Especially the drop a little bit after the 2 minute mark. The track “Don’t Do It” speaks on police brutality over a mellow instrumental & the Kendrick Lamar verse fits in perfectly. The song “ESP” touches down on the 3rd eye over a video-gamey beat & while the track “Lightning Fire Magic Prayer” continues the spirituality theme from the last song over an instrumental that fits the vibe. Especially during the switch up during the second half.

The song “Rollinem 7’s” with André 3000 vents about being black men in the entertainment industry/modern American society over a trippy beat while “Kites” with Kendrick & M.I.A. talks about unity over a bouncy dance beat. The penultimate track “Secret Life of Tigers” gets rebellious over another infectious dance beat & then the album closes with “Lifting You”, which is a positive celebratory weed anthem over a fitting reggae beat.

Honestly, this could very well be my Album of the Year. It’s well produced, the vocals are on point & it’s their most well-written since Fly or Die

Score: 4.5/5

Juicy J – “Rubba Band Business” review

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Just 3 months after the release of his fantastic $uicideboy$ produced Highly Intoxicated mixtape, 3 6 Mafia co-founder Juicy J is finally delivering his 4th full-length album. After the 39 second intro, we get into the first song “Feed the Streets”. Here, J gets with his brother Project Pat alongside A$AP Rocky to talk about doing just that over a sinister trap beat from Metro Boomin’. The next song “A Couple” talks about doing drugs & having sex with hoes over an eerie instrumental from Tarentino while “Buckets” charismatically brags about ballin’ on your bitch at the club over a haunting beat from 808 Mafia co-founder Lex Luger. The song “Dodgin’ the Snakes” jabs at all the haters with a beat from YK fits that the mood perfectly & while I can appreciate the track “Drop a Bag” dissing all the studio gangsters, the G-O-D feature was mediocre to me. The song “Too Many” with Denzel Curry speaks on doing a large amount of drugs over an atmospheric instrumental from Murda Beatz.

The track “Ain’t Nothing” sees J & his TGOD Mafia cohort Wiz Khalifa getting braggadocious over a banging instrumental from Mike WiLL-Made It, but I wasn’t crazy about the Ty$ hook. The song “Flood Watch” talks about the trap life over a piano-trap beat from TM88 & the Offset verse isn’t too bad either. The track “Only One Up” will make you wanna right someone from the abrasive YK beat to Juicy’s energetic performance. The song “Hot as Hell” sees Juicy feeling himself a little too much over a generic trap beat while the penultimate track “No English” talks about getting fucked up over a wild instrumental from Lex Luger & TM88. The Travi$ Scott hook here is pretty decent as well. The closer “On & On” left little to be desired, primarily because it feels more like an leftover from Belly’s latest mixtape Mumble Rap.

Overall, this was well worth the 4 year wait. There are some weak moments, but the production bangs & Juicy sounds energetic as ever for the most part