Aug 30, 2020 @Odysseus #35: Kanye West - Yandhi (Big Country Edition) [8.0/10] Well firstly, welcome to this demented forum! Although we might not have the peaks of activity we once had from years back, I highly encourage you to stick around with us and see if you like it around here, there's a very hospitable environment that we've fostered along with a host of posters that genuinely care about making sure we're a top quality corner of the internet. We also have a lot of talented writers, curators, musicians, etc. which brings me to this mix, made by our very own & fellow Ye Stan @Donkey Kong Cuntry! It wouldn't be too farfetched for me to say that Kanye might be my favorite artist in any genre. I have countless precious memories of this man's songs to share, endless moments where his voice gave me that gust of wind to lift me back up from the depths and overall the impression his music has left imprinted on not just us as consumers, but that small, exclusive sphere of fellow musicians can only speak for itself. But even we as fans have to admit, he hasn't been the supernova that he was from ages ago in recent times. Even when I try listening to Ye or JIK there's this sort of awkwardness and lack of confidence that I'd never imagine he'd exist in. We've had glimpses of his greatness, but overall it's been very hit or miss, which is where Yandhi comes into the picture. I don't want to be verbatim with what BC said on his thread (^linked above), if anything this version is sequenced to perfection and probably better than what Kanye might have originally had in mind. In a way this feels like a karmic reincarnation of TLOP with a twist of Yeezus, except it now involved a new mindset that came with his mental health struggles. The songs are chaotic, sort of like personified undeveloped thoughts that you'd normally experience when you're calming down after a panic/psychosis attacks. It's like Kanye was picking pieces of whatever imagination he can dip into and throwing them into these barebones tracks, normally this is a recipe for a disaster, but its credit to Kanye for summoning the old charisma and personality that make it somehow work. While it's conceptually all over the place, there's a sort of charm that Yandhi inhibits, it's like an aged boxer that's way past his peak but still trying to fight for his life, since who knows what kind of future lays for Kanye. I still take great comfort that, for at least certain portions, Kanye was able to part those storm clouds above his mind and give us the rays of sunlight I still pray he's capable of producing until the hereafter.
Aug 30, 2020 Excited for you to get to the album I chose. I’d recommend doing a bit of research first, or at least skimming the Wikipedia, before you listen to understand what you’re listening to. Beautiful music
Aug 30, 2020 I always do this out of habit haha, love getting the context behind everything I listen to! I'm actually gonna watch tonight the doc The Devil and Daniel Johnstone since it's apparently about his background & mental health struggles.
Aug 30, 2020 Oh s--- let’s f---in goooooooo I hope you enjoy it man. I hope it touches you like it’s touched others
Aug 31, 2020 Knew you'd enjoy this! I'm still taken aback by how dense (but good) this album came out. The Kendrick comparison is spot on. His previous album - Common Sense was great but had a much lighter touch. This coming on the back of his being released from prison definitely influenced the sound and direction, and you absolutely nailed the description!
Sep 1, 2020 @Jeans #36: Daniel Johnston - 1990 [9.1/10] d---, I've been thinking about this man's life the entire day ever since last night when I sat down with some chips to watch that documentary. It's, always tough putting the right words whenever an artist isn't with us, since we tend to either get overly magnanimous, death tends to canonize people and make their contributions all that more significant. But when you live your life battling literal demons from within and still make heavenly music, it's absolutely merited to give this man his roses. I work in this psychological field for further context, it's such a difficult hurdle for everyone that undergoes mental health struggles. That brings me to this, a lo-fi diaristic account of someone that views the world with such childlike innocence and sees the evils that plague it. It's another extremely personal album that almost makes it uncomfortable to listen to, since it feels like you snuck into this dude's living room and he's performing this on his couch, guitar in hand, without him noticing your presence. His songwriting is so heartfelt, it's transparent and equally optimistic, but even then when the pessimism creeps in is when the album hits staggering highs. The sequencing of original songs, to live performances to covers of The Beatles & Bruce Springsteen, give this album a montage-like sensation, it's truly rewarding getting through till the end. I'm definitely gonna explore his older work, but huge thanks for sending this in my way, may this wonderful man find heaven at last.
Sep 1, 2020 @Enez #37: Sweet Trip - velocity : design : comfort [9.0/10] When I first saw the cover I thought "Oh cool, this looks like some soothing ethereal s--- that I can kick my feet up and vibe to". Next thing you know the intro kicked in with it's distorted chirps and drum & bass loops and I got s----d into my Mac on some Freakazoid s--- into this cyberspace utopia where this kick a--- band is performing to an acid trip induced audience. I literally just got back from it, still readjusting to being plugged back into matrix and seeing Technicolor 3-D prisms flying around. I'm not even kidding when I say this band kicks serious a---. There's probably a handful of acts I've ever listened to that could cover such an infinite array of different electronic/rock sounds and make it all blend together. I'm still blown-away at how this came out in f---ing 2003(!!?!?) and still sound futuristic, this is like an anti-Kid A from Radiohead. The reason I say so is that the music itself can be mellifluous, and then formless, but easy to adjust in spite of it's industrial influences, there isn't much melancholy to wallow over. The progression is flawless from track to track, it wouldn't be so implausible to believe you're listening to a hour-long song. It's one of the few instances where in spite of it's length, the long trek into this whimsical, dissolute universe is completely worth it. Great band, great choice, huge thanks once again good sir!
Sep 1, 2020 I was so taken away by Daniel Johnston I forgot I was supposed to drop the masterpiece you recommended first Right on time though!
Sep 1, 2020 surely lol. yeah it is a big masterpiece for me, ethereal s---, wish i could hear it for the first time again
Sep 1, 2020 Whoever the female vocalist is on Sweet Trip, she's an angel I've been exploring their catalog after you plugged them into the summer music thread from weeks ago, honestly blown away with each project!
Sep 1, 2020 Thanks for the warm welcome! This forum seems like a great place for real discussion as opposed to some of the other message boards, so I'll be sure to stick around. Great review, the Big Country edition intrigues me - I need to get my hands on a link. City in the Sky might be one of my favorite Kanye joints. 8 out of 10 seems like a fair shake.
Sep 4, 2020 @Ordinary Joel #38: Hermit and the Recluse - Orpheus vs the sirens [8.6/10] To sum up New York rap in the 2010's would be a tall tale of confusion, homogenization and lately tons of hubris. The giants of the past were still mainstays, but we had a ton of revelations that either poked at superstardom (Nicki, Rocky, Cardi, *sigh* 69) or became talented niche artists (Joey, Roc Marciano, Zombies, Griselda). Ka, falls right into the latter category; a mysterious, elusive, almost sinister poet that lurks from the Brooklyn shadows like the boogie man. He's had a number of remarkable projects with Descendants of Cain & Honor Killed the Samurai coming to mind, all of them are stunning demonstrations of elite penmanship and abstract story-telling. Just when you think Ka couldn't raise the stakes any higher, he dropped this colossus of a project... I have no idea who the heck Animoss is, but the stuff he cooked up for Ka is jaw-dropping. This isn't a conventional hip-hop album as much as it isn't rhyming in rhythm, there are extended stretches where there are zero traces of drums and most of the time you just have to bear with Ka's sleek vocals. Conceptually this was executed flawlessly, taking greek mythology and threading it with growing up in NYC takes one heck of an imagination and it's presentation is reminiscent of what Deltron once did. In half an hour, you'll be done with this project and will want to embark on a God-slaying arc like Kratos but instead your roaming the streets of Brownsville, it's incredible that this album actually worked and it's another fine piece of Ka's peerless catalog.
Sep 4, 2020 @The Product #39: Polo G - Die a Legend [8.4/10] I used to think it couldn't possibly get better after Chief Keef, G Herbo, Durk...the list could go on for another paragraph, Chicago was the gift that kept giving. Enter Polo G, another street-hardened golden child with life experiences that could have shattered another more fragile mind. His explosion after this album has been such a treat, while The Goat wasn't as strong as this, I have no doubt his career will continue in an upward trajectory. But what a start this was. Taking elements of deep trap & drill, Polo uses these gloomy instrumentals and paints vivid pictures of the Chi-town background. It's familiar territory if you've heard his contemporaries like Herbo, but Polo is equally as honest and compelling, with a razor sharp delivery and an ear for melodies that could even rival Durk. These stories still hit just as hard, there's an earnestness that's just so admirable, this is a rapper you seriously want to root for. Luckily there are millions that agree, Polo G is the real deal and this is a classic debut. #40: Denzel Curry - Zuu [8.6/10] f--- man I love this album too! Denzel's astronomical rise from Raider Klan upstart to one of Florida's torch bearers has been an absolute ride, he's been unstoppable for an entire year. He's another complete package; blessed with a breathless super-saiyan flow, a powerful affinity for punches and a capacity for story-telling, it's all been steadily improving like an RPG character with every passing year. It's helped that Denzel has tackled every kind of hip-hop instrumental known to man, there is no environment he won't camouflage in, this is where Zuu bubbled onto the surface. I'm going to echo what I've said on this site before: this album is one giant love letter to the history of Florida hip-hop. Every imaginable influence and nuance that the Sunshine state has contributed to the genre is amplified with Denzel's surging and invigorating performances, doesn't matter if it's Miami Bass-Ross mafia beats-Ronny J's distortions. Perhaps more than ever, Denzel reached a maturity to craft a well-sequenced album and a salience of his full capabilities behind the mic, this is his best work and I still feel he'll top this sooner than later. Heck this album slaps so f---ing hard, even the clean version that I heard on the airplane to Mexico slapped--funny enough it was listed as "Soothing R&B" sitting next to Luther Vandross and Stevie Wonder lmaooo.
Sep 4, 2020 There was a LOT of incredible music that dropped last year but the more time passes, the more I settle on this being my favorite album of 2019. And Denzel's best overall. Insane energy, flawless front to back.
Sep 4, 2020 Same with me, I've gone back to this so many times and I'm still as impressed as if it were still my first time bumping it! No kidding, he's thrash-metal personified into a rapper, plus so many of the beats he chose are so nostalgic. Got heavy Plies & Trick Daddy vibes
