A Muse In Her Feelings - dvsn: Review

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dvsn


is the Canadian R&B project spearheaded by vocalist Daniel Daley and producer Ninteen85. The group is signed to Drake affiliate OVO records out of Toronto and first tunred heads in 2016 with their debut record Sept 5th. After a quick 2017 follow-up the duo is back with their longest record yet, sandwiched between two other major OVO releases from Partynextdoor and Drake. 

Review By Lavender:
I was one of the people interested in dvsn's debut record. Despite the fact that it was definitely flawed and contained some underwhelming songwriting there were things about the group that struck me and I saw them as a pair to watch going forward. The quick turnaround into their second record impressed me even less and going into their longest project yet at 56 minutes and 16 tracks I was hoping they had something more significant in store. Unfortunately Muse turned out to be packed full of the bands weakest songs yet as they try to stumble through moody R&B instrumentals with no songwriting and a focus on vibes instead of compelling ideas. 

Lets clear out the records biggest flaw first. There aren't a ton of tracks that sound flat out terrible but there is an entire records worth of songs that are completely forgettable. The opener No Good gets the song started off right with a complete lack of structure that makes the song boring before it has barely started. Friends features Partynextdoor whose album I though was decent last month, but the vocal chemistry is completely nonexistent and hearing the two vocalists stumble their way through this wandering track gets old instantly. Miss Me? is a song that wandered out of the warmer R&B sound of the 2000's and sounds more like a B-Side to an already forgotten record from that period than a song on a major label release. Greedy may have been a highlight on the vocal side of things but it has one of the driest and most dull instrumentals I've heard all year. For Us tries to avoid its awful songwriting by being loud but it doesn't work. The worst offender by far is Outlandish a song so dry and boring that I can forget about what it sounds like while it is still on, maybe when the wind chime synths kick in but that is a rare moment of texture in one of the dullest songs I've heard this year. 

The worst songs however are still to come as a few tracks here are actively difficult to make it all the way through. So What is a terrible track that features Popcaan only he is trying to mirror the R&B theme of the song and the result is one of the most boring and lifeless performances I've heard all year. Keep It Going is the worst song here and features an absolute disaster of a hook, The instrumental is decent at first but even it gets dragged through the mud and the whole song is a ruined mess as a result. Finally there is Flawless the worst duet on the album despite the talented Summer Walker featuring. Her vocal talents get wasted on a dry and understated performance trying to match one of the most vapid instrumentals on the record. This is the worst of the numerous points on the record where the featured guests don't make much sense at all and are executed poorly. 

Even some of the good features here are placed into rough songs. Courtside is a decent track and Jessie Reyez is a refreshing change of pace with her great vocals. The metaphor of only being around for games if its courtside is a creative one but the song still has a wandering extended outro and could use some more structure too. No Cryin is a track that mirrors many of the complaints I already had for the rest of these songs but it does at least have a pretty solid Future verse right in the middle as he continues a run of features I enjoy recently. Between Us features an artist I'm not familiar with and tries to mask the total lack of chemistry by only putting the pair in vocal situations where they are far apart. As a result it is a duet that barely feels like one but still one of the more tolerable songs here. 

The best song on the entire record is also the one with the best feature in Dangerous City. The song is sharp, catchy and Ty Dolla $ign delivers an absolute standout performance. As one of the kings of features he adds a well rounded element to this song that I love. The track Still Pray For You is one of the best vocal performances from Daniel that has a genuinely heartfelt quality to it that I love. The song keeps it short and also has a slick beat switch-up that I really enjoy. The only oasis of good songwriting on the record comes at the very end when two of the last three tracks are good. A Muse is genuinely one of the best songs on the record with a bouncy beat that is buttery smooth and some soaring vocal harmonies that I love. On a record so full of comatose songs and vocals this track is a really dramatic highlight. Again is a great closing track with some wonderful ballad dynamics and a sound that actually develops as it goes on. The song has some booming percussion and some slick guitar lines that make for one of the most well rounded experiences on the album. 

A Muse In Her Feelings is exactly what I feared would happen to dvsn after hearing their second record. the album is full of underwhelming and underwritten cuts that don't last for anywhere near their runtimes. Occasionally the pair stumble into something interesting but it seems like a genuine accident when they do as the rest of the album is absolutely packed with boring formless R&B pap. If this is all that dvsn has to offer going forward they certainly aren't going to win me over anytime soon and I find it hard to forsee them matching the hype behind their debut record. 2.5/10


Album Cover Review By Tyler Judson: I like this cover! I think that there's a strong connection to the title which I appreciate as she is being their muse while painting. There are a few simple compositional errors that are so basic even a person on their iPhone would know to fix. The crooked line of the windows, the insanely harsh vignette, it's isn't not the vibe. I would have also liked to see them ditch the ripped jeans and "cool guy" styling of their outfits. Why not get in some more inspired clothing? Maybe they're not at the level of confidence to let themselves step out of the box they've made of their image. 5/10
 
For more OVO R&B check out my review of PARTYNEXTDOOR's PartyMobile here

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