Rapid Review – 5/22/20

Hey everybody! I think Friday will be a good day for my second post each week, so hopefully I will keep to a Tuesday-Friday schedule.

This week and last week saw some highly anticipated records like High Off Life by Future and a surprise album titled how i’m feeling now by Charli XCX. I also take a dive into a randomly chosen new release by Jerry Paper named Abracadabra.

Charli XCX blesses us with a full-length project amidst the pandemic, furthering her way into her avant-garde niche of pop music with how i’m feeling now. Coming off her critically acclaimed, experimental, and abrasive album Charli, we all had high expectations for Charli. I didn’t really follow nor was I aware of the album releasing until after it did, so of course I had to give it a listen. Charli introduces this album even more abrasively than before with noise elements, incorporating soaring electronic noises. She continues being amazing at what I believe she’s best at: Emphasizing pop lyricism (love and more positive messages) with her experimental instrumentation. Undoubtedly, Charli is at the forefront for creating some of the most cutting-edge, progressive pop music in the current music scene. However, I do believe during the span of the shorter record, the middle few tracks start sticking to a formulaic approach, even though it is a much more compelling formula than the majority of pop music nowadays. Some notable tracks include Dylan Brady’s (of 100 gecs fame) feature on claws, Charli’s questioning of her worthiness of being loved by a partner on detonate, the flow and autotune that’s reminiscent of her last project on enemy, and the earworm that is party 4 u. Towards the end, the album progresses underwhelmingly with similar techniques but ends with an amazing dance segment at the very end of visions. I honestly can’t compare this record with Charli (2019); however, it definitely feels a little less refined with spottier experimentation. Nonetheless, Charli is pushing forth some amazing pop music that will last longer than 99% of anything else in the genre, so I would give it around an 8. If you want something even more abrasive and noisy in the pop realm, I urge you to try out the black dresses album I wrote about in my last rapid review segment.

Future releases his 8th studio album (not including collaborative mixtapes) High Off Life loaded with features of popular rappers (Lil Uzi Vert, Young Thug, DaBaby just to name a few). I went into the album with higher expectations as I didn’t hear many negative remarks on it, and Shawn Cee (primarily reviews hip-hop albums) showed a lot of love to the record. The album starts with lush piano playing that is scattered throughout the tracklist along with the digital flute that accompanies the instrumentals. Without a doubt, the production is near perfect for a trap album with all songs having high fidelity mixing. The instruments are super clear, and beats are well selected as expected from a top-notch rapper. Some standout tracks include the hard-hitting flow in HiTek Tek, a good Travis Scott feature on Solitaires, the overall catchy Too Comfortable, the introspective Accepting My Flaws, and the attention-grabbing last two closing tracks. This might seem like a lot of compliments; however, there are 21 songs on High Off Life. Much of the tracks include boring flows that waste many of the beats in my opinion. As for lyricism, I don’t expect any change from Future, but bragging about women, luxury, and drugs filling every track except the 16th, and trying to talk about therapy there just doesn’t make too much sense to me. At least he’s trying? Nevertheless, the listening experience doesn’t drag as bad as I would have thought for 21 songs. We all know the number of songs is just for stream inflation, but the entire listening experience can still be enjoyed and there isn’t any detrimental aspect to High Off Life. I would give it around a 5.

I randomly chose Jerry Paper’s album as I was browsing through Apple Music and was attracted by the jazzy instrumentation. Abracadabra stands as Jerry’s 7th studio album since 2012, clocking in at a mere 34 minutes in 13 tracks. My immediate reaction to the general sound was that of a popular Indie rock band like Boy Pablo infused with lounge music. The music undoubtedly continued that way, building on each other the more the album progressed. Cholla is by far my favorite song with extremely jazzy synths and guitars all over the instrumental. Jerry also has a soothing, slightly seductive, way of singing in his natural low register that I think is enjoyable depending on a listener’s vocal preferences. Overall, the record contributes some solid groovy lounge jazz for the contemporary ear. I would give it a 6-7.

Lastly, here are some recommendations that aren’t contemporary. So Many by Blushing has been stuck in my head this week with its amazing post-rock, shoegaze vibe. The whole song is an orgasmic 4-minute sudden crescendo that immerses you in phenomenal shoegaze with some spine-tingling guitar riffs over all the noise. I love it. Otherwise, I have been listening to some Swans of course. I think White Light from the Mouth of Infinity is an extremely underrated record that shows off some post-rock elements that influenced many of the post-rock sounds we love today.