Bad Cameo - James Blake & Lil Yachty: Review
Review by Lav:
James Blake and Lil Yachty are a compelling duo for a myriad of reasons. As James Blake wandered further and further from the experimental electronic of his early career he began to intersect with genres like hip-hop and R&B more and more. Eventually, he formed into one of the most well-rounded artists in music with a versatile and extremely consistent discography. "Versatile" and "consistent" are not words many would use to describe Lil Yachty's discography, at least not until early 2023 when he shocked fans with his album Let's Start Here. The project was an embrace of vintage psychedelic rock music that went over surprisingly well. So this crossover being successful wasn't completely outside the realm of possibility, which is why it's extra disappointing that Bad Cameo is a bit of a dud.
Let's talk highlights first. James Blake is one of my favorite artists in all of music so of course when he's allowed to roam in familiar territory, he absolutely shines. In Grey is a great stop early on the record with minimalism that's familiar to Blake's fans and subtly integrated contributions from Yachty. The second half of the song features some punchy drums and mesmerizing vocal loops that sound excellent. The title track Bad Cameo is another strong point with James Blake sounding straight out of Assume Form. Those vibes return on the strong closing track Red Carpet which features some of Yachty's best singing on the entire record. The song manages to live up to the drama and even the muted grandeur of a finale to the album.
Other tracks take a more focused and down-to-earth approach which is the most consistent formula for success on the album. Woo is a silly psych rap song with infectious drums and great chemistry between Blake and Yachty even if they don't seem to have much to do with each other thematically. Transport Me is the kind of genre crossover I was expecting from the record with it bouncing between Blake's spacious and reserved attitude into something more hard-hitting from Yachty. That comes right after Twice which is one of the hookiest tracks on the record.
But just as often as the pair heighten each other's output on this record, they also step on each others toes. While Yachty has already displayed much more versatility and ambition than some of his rap contemporaries, this record often pushes him well out of his comfort zone with messy results. Save The Savior is an absolutely goofy start to the record that contrasts the intense, rumbling instrumentation with Yachty's silly lyrics and performance. It sounds even sillier transitioning into Blake's passages and the whole thing is just critically awkward.
Occasionally songs hit their stride way too late, long after they've already been completely ruined. Run Away From The Rabbit is like that featuring a rough Yachty performance followed by a remarkably touching finale from Blake. Similarly, Midnight is just out of Yachty's range in a way that is genuinely hard to listen to. It also eventually recovers to a pretty strong final minute but it's too little too late. The worst performance from Lil Yachty and the worst song on the record is Missing Man which is a totally disastrous example of how bad it can sound when Yachty wanders out of his comfort zone.
In addition to disrupting the flow of the album, the awkward moments also work to undermine some of the better cuts on the album. It's hardly a complete whiff, but the moments where James Blake and Lil Yachty reach their highest peak of compatibility are few and far between. The resulting mixed bag feels like both artists punching below their belt and working to make each other sound less unique and less compelling as a result. 5.5/10
For more hip-hop collaborations check out my review of NxWorries' Why Lawd?
