Tag: Syd

Syd – “Beard” review

Syd is a 34 year old singer/songwriter, DJ & producer from Los Angeles, California known for being one of the now defunct Odd Future collective’s earliest members alongside her younger brother Taco. She would also front the alternative R&B band The Internet, who would go on to drop 4 studio LPs. I should also mention the Raunchboots solo mixtape back in 2011 along with her 2017 full-length debut Fin under Columbia Records & the accompanying Always Never Home extended play. Her sophomore effort Broken Hearts Club arrived in 2023 & had hopes of her Warner Records debut albeit 3rd LP artistically elevating herself beyond her previous material.

“Walls” starts us off with a settle R&B intro singing for her lover to come over to her place whereas “Callin’” featuring Blu June finds the pair using 911 for a metaphor detailing how much these 2 lovers need each other. The self-produced “Jasmin 17” embraces a groovier vibe instrumentally singing about this woman’s physique being therapeutic to her just before the bossa nova-inspired “My Love” gives a fuck less if anyone thinks she’s crazy for proving her love to this person.

Jordan Ward appears on “Always Be Mine” depicting a couple who doesn’t want to leave each other’s sides leading into “Closet” featuring CUBE wrapping up the 1st leg having Raphael Saadiq play bass singing about feeling the complete opposite of usually desiring for their own space. “Bad Guys” co-produced by Benny Cassette kicks off the 2nd half reminding us all that every villain was once goodhearted at some point while “G.M.F.U. (Got Me Fucked Up)” featuring Big Sean on the remix talks about being misperceived.

“Do Better” finds Syd refusing to go in circles again telling this woman she’s crazy for that she needs to make some improvements after the love she had for her became a weapon while “Any Time” featuring James Fauntleroy neo-psychedelically sings about always losing when running from the individuals addressed. “Water” assures the female partner she adores that she wouldn’t have if she found someone else & “2 Many Days” sings about working too hard to not make any money.

Nearly everything Syd has released on her own up until this point has left listeners torn, but I adamantly believe Beard sticks out in a league of it’s own compared to her early output although I wouldn’t put it above Steve Lacy’s new album Oh Yeah? that dropped earlier today. The largely self-handled production distills the contemporary/alternative R&B influences of her earlier output, coming into her own mixing them with some smooth & trap soul undertones.

Score: 3.5/5

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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