Kevin Abstract – “ARIZONA baby” review

Kevin Abstract is a 23 year old rapper, singer/songwriter, producer & director from Corpus Christi, Texas who made his debut in 2014 with MTV1987. He followed it up 2 years later with the fantastic American Boyfriend: A Suburban Love Story & then the following year, he rose to stardom as the de facto leader of the best boyband since 1 Direction themselves BROCKHAMPTON. However after a rough 2018, he’s back with his 3rd full-length album.

Things start off with “Big Wheels”, where Kevin raps about his personal demons over a synth & some hi-hats from Jack Antonoff & Romil Hemnani. Not a bad opener, but it sounds unfinished. The next song “Joy Ride” melodically reflects on how he would never listen over a some soothing horns while the track “Georgia” talks about being at peace over a relaxing instrumental. The track “Corpus Christi” raps about feeling like a loner as well as addresses Ameer Vann being kicked out of BROCKHAMPTON over a prominent synthesizer while “Baby Boy” is a full-blown psych-rock that touches down on an ex.

The track “Mississippi” is a somber R&B cut telling his loved ones not to get it twisted with him while the song “Use Me” reflects on going from growing up rough to being successful over an atmospheric beat. The track “Peach” by Geezer is a psychedelic tune about a past relationship while the song “American Problem” literally sounds like a leftover from Childish Gambino’s last album “Awaken, My Love!”. The penultimate track “Crumble” is a guitar ballad about getting back to his lover & then the album finishes with “Boyer”, where Kevin talks about how he & this guy can’t run forever over a banger beat.

While it’s no American Boyfriend 2, this in my opinion is still the 2nd best release in Kevin’s solo discography. He continues to show how diverse of an artist he is & the production is detailed, but he drowns in his influences on some of these cuts to the point where it’s distracting. Noneless, it’s still worth checking out if you’re a big BROCKHAMPTON fan.

Score: 3.5/5

BROCKHAMPTON – “iridescence” review

BROCKHAMPTON is a hip hop “boyband” that originated in San Marcos, Texas in 2015. They dropped a flawed yet decent mixtape in 2016 called ALL-AMERICAN TRASH but in 2017, they completely reinvented themselves by dropping 3 near-perfectly creative albums with the SATURATION trilogy. However, things this year looked bleak for them in part of Ameer Vann (who was featured on the cover of all 3 SATURATION albums) was kicked out in May due to sexual misconduct. They then dropped 3 solid singles over the summer but now, they’re finally returning with their 4th full-length album.

Things start off with “NEW ORLEANS”, where they talk about how they’re calling their own shots over a gritty beat. The next track “THUG LIFE” sees the boyband’s de facto leader Kevin Abstract linking up with his older brother Dom McLennon alongside bearface to talk about depression over a beautiful piano instrumental while the song “BERLIN” sees Dom getting with Matt Champion & JOBA to talk shit over an abrasive beat. The “SOMETHING ABOUT HIM” interlude is an endearing tribute to Kevin’s husband Jaden Walker with a smooth instrumental from Romil Hemnani & Q3, but it sounds unfinished.

The track “WHERE THE CASH AT” sees Merlyn Wood & Matt Champion talks about their new rich life over a bouncy beat while the song “WEIGHT” is a heartfelt look into the boyband’s inner demons over some strings, but then it constantly switches from drum & bass with a piano to just simply punchy drums. The track “DISTRICT” is a club banger over a video gamey beat & after the “LOOPHOLE” interlude, we go into the song “TAPE”. Here, the boyband talks about their insecurities over a gloomy beat with skittering drums. The track “J’OUVERT” talks about success over a chaotic beat & while everyone’s performance on here was great, JOBA’s angry verse stood out to me the most.

The song “HONEY” gets braggadocious over an electro-funk beat while the track “VIVID” talks about how they’re making money now over an eerie electronic beat. The song “SAN MARCOS” is a guitar ballad about wanting more out of life while the penultimate track “TONYA” talks about unstable stardom over a prominent piano. The short switch up during Kevin’s verse & JOBA’s bridge was just ok, though. The album then finishes with “FABRIC”, where the boyband talks about still being depressed despite their newfound success & I absolutely love how the beat constantly switches throughout.

Being one of my most anticipated albums of the year, this did not disappoint. BROCKHAMPTON continues to be the most unique group in today’s hip hop landscape as their sound on here is refreshingly different than that of the SATURATION trilogy & I’ve also noticed that the chemistry between every member has improved.

Score: 4/5

A$AP Rocky – “TESTING” review

While he’s been dropping a project every 2 years since 2011, A$AP Mob member A$AP Rocky had a noticeably quiet 2017. However, he’s been trolling the public eye with his 3rd full-length album up until this point with some awful “dummy” singles & alas here we are.

The album starts off with “Distorted Records”, where Rocky brags about his place in the current hip hop landscape over a glitchy yet bass heavy instrumental. The “A$AP Forever” remix sees Rocky paying homage to the Mob while KiD CuDi’s verse talks about overcoming his depression over some symphonic strings with thunderous drums while the next song “Tony Tone” is a humble brag over a psychedelic guitar that FNZ hooked up while the track “Fukk Sleep” with FKA twigs sees the 2 talking about going from being poor to being successful over a murky electronic beat while the track “Praise the Lord (Da Shine)” with Skepta vividly talks about criminal activity over a bouncy woodwind beat.

The song “Calldrop” does have a beautiful acoustic guitar, I just wish it was structured better. Also, I found the Kodak Black feature to be pretty redundant. The song “Buck Shots” gets confrontational over a synth-heavy trap beat & while I do like the Playboi Carti’s verse as much as Rocky’s, the Smooky MarGielaa verse doesn’t really do much for me. while the track “Gunz N Butta” talks about wealth over a cloudy trap beat with a prominent chopped & screwed sample of “Ridin’ Clean” by Juicy J throughout. The song “Brotha Man” with Frank Ocean sees the 2 talking about fighting for something over a beautiful instrumental with prominent keyboards & occasional strings while the song “OG Beeper” reflects on his drug dealing past over a dinky yet bouncy beat.

The song “Kid$ Turned Out Fine” tells the world just that over an laidback electric guitar & hi-hats while the track “Hun43rd” talks about hustling over a cloudy synthesizers. The song “Changes” talks about an ex over an acoustic guitar that gets more layered as it progresses. There’s also a point where it switches up into something more atmospheric for about a minute & it’s not too bad either. The penultimate track “Black Tux, White Collar” talks about shining through it all over a cloudy trap beat from none other than Clams Casino & then the album finishes off with “Purity”, where he & Frank Ocean talk about finding a peace of mind over an acoustic guitar.

Like most people, I was pretty worried about this album based on a vast majority of the singles Rocky dropped leading up to this but at the end of the day, I think he came through. It’s definitely more experimental than his past efforts & yet, it’s just as equally fun as his last 2 albums

Score: 3.5/5

Tinashe – “Joyride” review

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It’s been 3 years of waiting & 2 years since preluding it with Nightride in 2016 but now, Tinashe is finally delivering her highly anticipated sophomore album. After a 1-minute intro, we go into the first song with the title track. It’s pretty much about kickin’ it with an ex over a thumping electronic instrumental from Hit-Boy. The song “No Drama” with Offset sees the 2 talking about how they don’t want any bs over an electro-trap beat while “He Don’t Want It” is pretty self-explanatory with a moody instrumental with some punchy drums.

The track “Ooh La La” is about a guy loving her so good that she’ll be singing all night over an acoustic guitar/trap beat with a surprisingly nice “Dilemma” sample in the background while the song “Me So Bad” is basically about how attractive Tinashe is over a tropical beat & while I did enjoy the Ty$ verse, I found French Montana’s to be redundant. After the “Ain’t Good for Ya” interlude, we go into the song “Stuck with Me”. It’s both Tinashe & Little Dragon singing about having this guy with him for the weekend, but the instrumental is just ok.

Then after the “Go Easy on Me” interlude, we go into the song “Salt”. It’s basically about a guy who had sex with her at a hotel & left her shortly after over an atmospheric instrumental. The track “Faded Love” is about Tinashe wanting a guy to come home with her to have sex over an electro-club instrumental & the Future verse at the back-end is just ok. The song “No Contest” is about Tinashe wanting only her in her man’s lane over a smooth electro instrumental & then the closer “Fire & Flames” is about wanting to stay the night with this guy over a bare piano that sounds pretty.

As a whole, I was as satisfied as I’d hoped to be. I wish it was a tad bit longer, but her vocals sound as beautiful as ever & the album as a whole sounds a lot more focused than Nightride was

Score: 3.5/5

Justin Timberlake – “Man of the Woods” review

With his 37th birthday passing this Wednesday, former *NSYNC member Justin Timberlake is celebrating with his 5th full-length album. The opener “Filthy” is a sex tune over a messy, techno-pop instrumental from Timbaland & Danja. The next song “Midnight Summer Jam” gets celebratory over a funky instrumental from The Neptunes (who produced a bulk of the album surprisingly) with an acoustic guitar & some fiddles.

The track “Sauce” gets playful over a funk rock instrumental from Timbo & Danja while the title track is a dedication to his wife Jessica Biel over a Neptunes best with some rubbery bass along with a twangy guitar at the beginning that later progresses into something more funky. The song “Higher, Higher” talks about Jessica yet again over a guitar & the keyboards on here are vintage Neptunes. The track “Wave” sees JT basically telling Jessica to come away to an island with him over some acoustic guitars while the song “Supplies” talks about how they’ll be living like The Walking Dead over a sitar.

The track “Morning Light” is a duet with Alicia Keys about how they wanna spend 1 more night with each other over a smooth yet funky instrumental while the song “Say Something” is a decent country-rock duet with Chris Stapleton about being caught up in the music. After the “Hers” interlude, we then go into the next song “Flannel. However, it’s pretty much JT impersonating what sounds like if R. Kelly made a country ballad. The track “Montana” gets romantical over a vintage Neptunes beat with an acoustic guitar & the song “Breeze Off the Pond” uses nature similes over an instrumental that kinda reminds me of Pharrell’s last solo album G I R L.

The track “Livin’ Off the Land” talks about being a man doing his best over some predominant bass & twangy guitars. The strings near the end are nice touch as well. The penultimate track “The Hard Stuff” pretty much tells Jessica how much he loves her over a laidback country instrumental while the closer “Young Man” pays tribute to JT’s son Silas over a Timbo instrumental with mostly guitars & organs.

While it’s not even close to a Justified sequel or anything like that, I think this is big improvement over the 2nd disc of Justin’s last album The 20/20 Experience. The lyrics are mostly endearing & the production is funky as ever, but I should point out the fact that Justin incorporates more country elements on here & it actually works out pretty well given that he’s from Memphis. Sure it isn’t reinventing the wheel, but I really love hearing JT’s maturity on here

Score: 3.5/5

Miguel – “War & Leisure” review

This is the 4th studio LP from Los Angeles, California singer/songwriter, actor & producer Miguel. Introducing himself in 2010 off his moderate full-length debut All I Want is You, his sophomore effort albeit RCA Records debut Kaleidoscope Dream & the follow-up Wildheart a month after my high school graduation would both go on to become some of the most beloved alternative R&B of the previous decade. Over a couple years later, he’s ready for some War & Lesiure.

“Criminal featuring Rick Ross begins comparing their love to committing crime over a wavy yet smooth instrumental, but there are a handful of cringey lines on there. Especially the ones about Columbine & Duck Duck Goose near the end of the first verse as well as the one about 9/11 at the start of the second verse. The next song “Pineapple Skies” sees Miggy telling his lover everything will be ok over a spacey instrumental while “Sky Walker” with Travis Scott cleverly inserts many pop culture references as they brush off their haters over a druggy beat.

The song “Banana Clip” talks about protecting this woman in a war on love over a funky instrumental & the song “Wolf” compares himself to just that over a guitar & explosive drums from Raphael Saadiq. The song “Harem” encourages this woman to follow him to see the world in a new way over a mellow instrumental & then the track “Told You So” talks about setting his lover free over a Jeff Bhasker instrumental kin to Michael Jackson’s output during the 80’s.

The “City of Angels” is a vividly told story of Los Angeles fictionally getting destroyed & Miguel expressing his remorse of cheating on his girlfriend prior to her getting killed in the bombing over a down-tuned guitar. The track “Caramelo Duro” (“Hard Candy” in Spanish) is Miggy’s first predominantly Spanish song, but he does it fantastically over this funky beat.

The song “Come Through & Chill” is pretty self-explanatory, as both Miguel & J. Cole encourage their ladies to swing by their cribs to have sex all night over a tropical Salaam Remi instrumental. The track “Anointed” is pretty much Miguel telling his woman that she makes him feel like a God over some bass & then the album then finishes off with “Now”,’ where he gives his take on the world today over a twangy guitar.

Given that I still may have enjoyed a great deal of War & Leisure, I wouldn’t put it in the same discussion as Kaleidoscope Dream or Wildheart. The contemporary/alternative R&B production with minor influences of synth-funk & neo-soul doesn’t feel as ambitious as both of it’s predecessors were during my adolescence with the subject matter getting more political than Miguel has ever been previously.

Score: 3.5/5

SZA – “CTRL” review

After a series of countless delays following the release of her fantastic Z EP back in 2014, Top Dawg Entertainment’s 1st lady SZA is finally releasing her full-length debut. The album kicks off with the track “Supermodel”, where basically SZA telling her ex that she cheated on him on Valentine’s Day to understandably get back at him for going out to Vegas that day & the instrumental has a wavy guitar along with some bass & some organic drums. The next song “Love Galore” with Travis Scott seems to follow that opening track up, as it talks about her ex wanting to get back with her when she doesn’t over some wailing synths. The track “Doves in the Wind” is a dedication to pussy with a spacey instrumental & the guest verse from Kendrick Lamar fits into the song perfectly. The song “Drew Barrymore” reflects on a low self-esteem version of SZA herself & not only does the instrumental on here enhance the emotion of the song, but it’s also infectiously catchy. Especially with the strings near the end of the track. The track “Prom” is pretty much SZA promising herself to get better as she gets older & the instrumental will make you wanna throw a party. The song “The Weekend” talks about being this guy’s side chick during the weekends (hence the title) & while I love the spacey synths at the beginning along with how the smooth keys throughout, the cliché snares just sound meh to me. The track “Go Gina” talks about this guy bringing her out of her character when he’s around her & the production from Ging primarily has these winking chimes & some drums throughout most of it, but the tension building strings during the last 20 seconds of it are beautiful. The song “Garden (Say It Like Dat)” is pretty much SZA telling this guy that she loves her & even though I appreciate, the trappy production on this track sounds so painfully generic. The track “Broken Clocks” talks about how SZA’s moved on from her ex for the better, despite him still talking about her & while I do enjoy the trophy vocal sample on here, the hi-hats are just average for me. The song “Anything” sees SZA asking her ex if he knows she’s alive & the instrumental on here has this fantastically galactic tone to it. The short but sweet “Wavy” sees SZA singing about how bad as Hell she is as well as looking for a way out over a dreamy instrumental & while James Fauntleroy’s voice does sound muffled during his hook, I still enjoyed it. The song “Normal Girl” is pretty self-explanatory, as it talks about wanting to live the life of a normal girl over a spacey instrumental. The penultimate track “Pretty Little Birds” with Isaiah Rashad is basically the 2 talking about wanting to be together for the rest of their lives & the instrumental is very smooth. Especially with the jazzy trumpets that pop in right before Zaywop’s verse. The album then closes out with the track “20 Something”, where SZA is passionately hoping that she doesn’t lose all of her friends & doesn’t die while she’s in her 20s over nothing but an acoustic guitar that enhances the beauty of this closer. When it seemed like TDE was never gonna release this album, it was well worth the 3 year wait. The production is luscious for the most part, it’s well-written & SZA’s vocals sound both very focused & passionate. If you enjoyed SZA’s early mixtapes & Z as much as I did, then I don’t see why you wouldn’t like this. She’s been one of my favorite R&B singers of this current generation & walking away from this seeing her improving herself just makes me really happy

Score: 4/5