Rapid Review - 2/12/22

2 Chainz – Dope Don’t Sell Itself: After the nice shout-out by Kanye’s recent rampage of crazed posts, I decided to engage with the surprisingly concise project. I don’t listen to much 2 Chainz, but I think he succinctly compiles a nice collection of songs here with a hustle-culture theme, good features (specifically enjoyed 42 Dugg’s appearance), and interesting beats. Roddy Ricch also doesn’t disappoint in my opinion, which is nice because of the recent unnecessary criticism of him on social media. Short and enjoyable. 6-7

Cate Le Bon – Pompeii: I’m surprised I haven’t heard about Cate Le Bon until now, but I’m glad I at least know now as the avant-garde pop artist releases a very impressive album in Pompeii. From the very beginning, the motif of certain horns and sonic aesthetics are introduced along with her unique vocal jumps. Every sound that is perceived by my ear feels like it's in the liminal space between neutral noise and dissonance, and somehow Cate is able to make these sounds cohesive and sonically pleasing. A seemingly challenging feat is interwoven between some more conventional pop techniques, but she keeps up this distinct vibe for the entire nine tracks. She does not miss on a single one of them; they are all different in their own way, the elements are new, and there is clearly much effort put into the instrumentals. She is definitely an artist that I desire to explore the discography of now. 8-9

Black Country, New Road – Ants From Up There: Coming off an incredibly well-received debut record, the post-rock outfit already feels like a classic indiehead or /mu/core band. Ants From Up There focuses instrumentally on a lot of wind instruments and folk-esque strings and vocals, combining into this neo-folk aesthetic with their post-rock musicality very much underlining the project. This album feels like the contemporary ITAOTS; it’s playful and joyful yet has the undertone of mysticism and strangeness, of familiarity yet complete novelty. It’s a weird project to listen through as a classic indie fan (referring to the original usage of the term in music in the late 20th century to early 2000s) because of the musical techniques that are nostalgic but clearly contemporary (mostly mixing). Honestly, it’s unsettling how pristine the listen is because such conventions usually coincide with incredibly lo-fi mixing. There are great moments, but the overall project just doesn’t compel me to want to listen to it over the classics. ~7

Windy And Carl – Antarctica: Bliss Out, Vol. 2: A deeply ominous and immensely empty (in terms of spaciousness) ambient and drone record that is a powerful work to go through if you are up for it.