Tyler, The Creator – Wolf
While the world is busy putting Odd Future under a microscope, Tyler, The Creator is busy being mad about it. It seems that every other track on Tyler’s newest album Wolf serves as a sort of vulgar rebuttal from Tyler to his fans and critics, but Wolf isn’t merely a beef tape addressed to anyone who has asked Tyler for an autograph.
At the very least Wolf is a fairly significant step forward for Tyler’s production capabilities, between the atmospheric “Parking Lot” and the jazzy “Treehome95” showing us yet another dimension of the disgustingly talented Odd Future collective. “Tamale” is an absurdly fun track, giving the mental image of Tyler, The Creator leading a marching band through a parade as he spouts vulgar call-outs to Spike Lee and decides to show the CEO of the NRA that guns do in fact kill people.
Those are definitely not the only instances in which Tyler shows off his penchant for shocking listeners in a humorous manner, but what is even more impressive is his ability to bare his soul on tracks such as “IFHY” and “Answer,” rattling off confessional-style lyrics about Odd Future’s and his own vulnerabilities with startling intimacy coming from the guy who just told his fans that he hopes they fall off the bandwagon.
Wavves – Afraid of Heights
California’s lo-fi pop punk rockers Wavves exploded in popularity when they released their third album King of the Beach in 2010, providing listeners with a rowdy soundtrack to celebrate their summer break. Those who went back and listened to the band’s first two albums likely discovered that Wavves frontman Nathan Williams is comfortable writing stoner anthems about wasting time in Santa Monica, so it should come as no surprise that their latest effort, Afraid of Heights, is keeping that smoke session in rotation.
There is no mystery to Wavves; you know exactly what you’re going to get. With that being said, Afriad of Heights might just be Wavves at their best. Where deviations from the surf-punk formula failed on King of the Beach, they succeed wonderfully on Afraid of Heights. “Cop” perfectly demonstrates Wavves’ ability to mix poppy riffs with gloomy lyrics and fit it all into a less-than-two-minute-long package like punk artists have done for years.
The most interesting part about Wavves is the juxtaposition between lyrical content and the upbeat music found on Afraid of Heights. While Williams is writing about being treated like a dog or begging for someone to beat him up, the jaunty music challenges listeners to move to the beat without ignoring its darker sentiments.
Blu – York
Hip-hop fans born too late to participate in rap’s golden years (the 90’s) have been living vicariously through Nas and A Tribe Called Quest albums ever since young hip-hop-heads first realized that “old school” really meant “rap that doesn’t suck.”
While a lot of good hip-hop has certainly been produced between now and the end of the 90’s, (most of it underground) few albums have provided fans with a substantial sense of belonging—an album fans could rally behind and call “ours” instead of playing old tracks by groups that formed and broke up before Tyler, The Creator was even born.
Blu’s York may have the potential to qualify as one of the few albums worthy to be remembered as a classic of rap’s current generation. York is made memorable by an eclectic mix of frantic chiptunes contrasted by graceful jazz samples, providing an intricate backdrop for Blu to nimbly navigate with agility and grace.
Daedelus, Flying Lotus, Samiyam and others produced several tracks on York so it goes without saying that the level of production is out of this world, yet Blu’s lyrical ability and versatile flow are never overshadowed, making York not only an interestingly unique album, but a damn good one too.