Lav's Music Corner

Earl Sweatshirt really needs no introduction for hip-hop fans at this point. The Odd Future alum has transitioned his edgier, more provocative rap style into a much more earnest and human darkness as the years pass and collected heaps of critical acclaim every step of the way. I'll tip my hand and say that I got to catch the record early at a listening party Earl threw in LA. Because of that I went into my first proper listen already knowing that Earl recently became a father. As a result, both the sonic and thematic palettes have taken a turn for the brighter, but none of his unmistakable talent has faded in the transition.  That's how the album starts, with "gsw vs sac." It has this vibrant psychedelic instrumental that sets up the record's woozier sonic palette. It also concludes with a spoken word passage about introspecting and facing problems rather than running away from them, which feels perfectly aligned with the album's themes of fatherhood and matur...

Review by Lavender: NxWorries is the collaborative project of effortlessly smooth singer and rapper Anderson .Paak and prolific producer Knxwledge. The pair first linked up with a full-length project in 2016 with the still underrated Yes Lawd  which played a role in Paak's rapid rise to fame. It's been 5 years since Paak's last solo album, though he did churn out hits on his solid Bruno Mars collab project Silk Sonic, and now he's back with a long-awaited second effort alongside Knxwledge 8 years after their original.  The thing about the debut NxWorries album is how the incredibly smooth demeanor of both artists come together to make a tracklist that glides expertly along throughout the entire tracklist. That isn't the case here as the pair are intent on taking on a variety of subject matter, occasionally quite seriously, and to do it through a myriad of styles. Lead single Where I Go dropped back in 2022 and it's still a song I really enjoy. Paak and H.E.R are...

Earl Sweatshirt & The Alchemist are two well-respected legends of the hip-hop underground whose paths have crossed before. Now for the first time, they're releasing a collaborative album, though many won't hear it as it dropped exclusively on the Gala music streaming platform.  Review by Lav: No, I did not pay any money to listen to this album or to buy whatever NFT ass shit they're selling the individual tracks as. Was it slightly inconvenient for me, sure. Was I going to do it for Earl? Definitely. I've been a big fan of both for a while and when operating at or even near their peak they have the potential to thrill. Does this album feature them at their peak? A few times. But it's pretty solid even without that perfect consistency throughout.  That peak pops up a few times. All The Small Things  is a fascinating track with vintage key blips and slow drums that feel almost vaporwave-inspired. Earl is pretty damn lethal on the track delivering some of the album...

Earl Sweatshirt is a California rapper who originated as a member of internet famous rap collective Odd Future. After being a predominately commercial figure early in his career e firmly transitioned into the world of underground hip hop on 2018's Some Rap Songs . Since then the massive acclaim of the record and a number of high profile features have helped cement Earl as one of the premiere underground rappers of the 2020's. Review By Lav: Watching Earl's sound evolve has been fascinating. From the edgy but undeniably talented and intense early work to his more accessible but lyrically pointed debut album and then fully transcending into one of the darkest sounds of underground rap ever since, he's been fascinating at every point along the way. It's no secret that I really enjoyed Some Rap Songs  given that I gave it a 10/10 review and called it my 3rd favorite album of the entire last decade, so obviously I was excited to see what this project was going to sound l...

Happy New Year babes. For the first time in 2022 we are looking at all the new singles dropped this week and highlight the best of the bunch. Normally this time of year its pretty slow all around but there are some great albums coming out in the next few weeks and the singles aren't lacking behind. Here are the five best new tracks this week: 5.  Hard Drive Gold  - alt-j The alt-j renaissance marches on with their most upbeat single of this new era. With a deep selection of wonky instrumentation and the charming vocal gymnastics we've come to expect from the band the track builds up to a rewarding chorus. It's all done in the kooky way that only alt-j can. 4.  Respirate  - Pinegrove If you know Pinegrove you pretty much know this song. The anxious observational lyricism with a boyish lo-fi charm and the simple indie instrumental which erupts into a detailed arrangement of backing drums and horns. This is exactly what the band does well.  3.  Titanic  -...

Hey Besties, it's time for the list that's usually the most popular among the shorter bunch, almost entirely due to how much buzz anything hip hop related can attract online. Features are still a pretty big deal and they are normally one of the first pieces of promotional material leading to a new album or single. The shortlist this year wasn't as long as in years past but make no mistake, there were literally thousands of featured verses that people out there may consider when making a list like this. I certainly don't claim to have heard every single rap record released this year but I heard a LOT of them, and these were my favorite featured artists who gave memorable performances on someone else's song.  10. 21 Savage on J. Cole's my life A few years ago J. Cole jumped on 21 Savage's song a lot  for a standout feature on what became one of his most acclaimed and well known songs to date. So when it came time for Cole's newest album the pair linked up ...

Below are the best new singles released this weekend: 5.  Queer  - Arca (Feat. Planningtorock) Arca being on this list feels like a necessary weekly occurrence at this point but I'm always excited for a Planningtorock appearance. The song is a weird slightly industrial and incredibly surreal banger that take on queer identity headfirst. If Arca really does drop three albums in December there will be a myriad of highlights in the bunch but I feel pretty safe in saying this will be one of them.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ropCEgWpdQ 4.  Stop That  - Saba Saba continues to impress not only as a wordsmith but also as a confident and technically proficient rapper. While the beat on this one is just okay it really does enough for Saba to jump on top and deliver a smart and instantly memorable performance on both the verses and hook. The only issue I have is that at just over two minutes it feels like it stops before it uses all the momentum it built up.  ht...

Boldy James & The Alchemist are a pairing of Detroit and California rapper and producer who first met up last year on the critically acclaimed The Price Of Tea In China . Both artists have proven to be quite prolific recently with Alchemist scoring critical successes last year alongside Freddie Gibbs and this year with Armand Hammer. Boldy dropped a number of projects in 2020 headlined by China  and the Sterling Toles collaboration Manger On McNichols .  Review By Lav: In the past 16 months Boldy James has gone from a rapper I had only ever heard mentioned in passing, to somebody whose every move I am anticipating in 2021. His brand of storytelling and lethal vocal delivery made for effective and often conceptual hip hop tracks and has already been attracting the attention of some legendary producers. Boldy and Alchemist's second collaboration in as many years has massive potential and while the record is quite good, neither of them does anything we haven't heard them do b...

There is more great rap music out there than I can possibly cover in full reviews, or even in rapid fire reviews. With many of the years most talked about releases being hip hop crossovers I decided to once again return to some records I didn't get the chance to review in full to make sure I don't fall behind with plenty more great rap music surely coming in 2021 Haram  - Armand Hammer & The Alchemist Armand Hammer is the New York duo of Billy Woods and Elucid who have spent the last decade releasing some of the most abstract and indulgent rap music around with highlights coming in the form of projects like Paraffin  and Race Music . The Alchemist is a producer with a resume that rivals just about anyone with a number of great collaborative projects in the past few years, most notably the Freddie Gibbs meetup Alfredo . For fans of The Alchemist you'll find these instrumentals mostly recognizable if not a bit more grimey than usual. There are those classic moments of spa...

Kesha is an LA based pop singer who blew up in the early 2010's off of some huge viral singles and a pair of successful albums.After a long break that included plenty of non music related drama she emerged with a brand new sound on the much more personal and ballad driven Rainbow. Now on her fourth record High Road  she looks to blend her old and new styles, and even some other sounds we've never heard from her before into a defining moment. Review By Lavender: Kesha is an artist that I've always liked just a little bit less than most people. When she was at her commercial peak she was dropping big hits, but critics we're going after the short-sightedness of her music. And given how dated some of those songs feel just ten years later proves they were right. Rainbow  was without a doubt a huge improvement but I still wasn't quite as sold as some of the critics calling the record a masterpiece. The singles were excellent sure but the record had depth issues and...

The truly great EP is becoming a lost art form, at least if 2019 is any indicator. Far less notable artists dropped EPs than we were used to over the past few years and many more of them turned out to be disappointments than ever before. With a lower ceiling and a much lower floor than my lists over the past few years I do have to wonder going forward if artists are just moving away from the EP in broad strokes, but these 10 artists either truly wowed me in the short form, or did just enough to get by with their releases in 2019. 10. Kero Kero Bonito - Civilization 1 KKB are no strangers to this list and have nearly topped it before, while Civilization 1  isn't the bands most shining moment it does show off a ton of creativity as they continue to push their sound and increasingly interpolate socially conscious lyrics and more features of contemporary indie music, where so little of the J-Pop the group originally blew up on remains. The short EP is highlighted by its amazing ...

As the year is slowing to a close so is the abundance of music released, but don't turn away yet because there are still a few worthwhile moments to hit from this month. Hemlock Ernst & Kenny Segal - Back At The House Sam Herring of Future Islands teams up with producer Kenny Segal for his first full length rap album and delivers a series of mostly successful highly lyrical hip hop tunes that should at least give fans of the genre something to chew on. Review Sunn 0))) - Pyroclasts The legendary drone metal bands second release of 2019 isn't quite as thrilling as their first, but is still well worth hearing for fans of the genre and any experimental music at all. Review King Princess - Cheap Queen KP's debut record flashes a lot of promise with some fantastic high points, but is most notable for just how many of its tunes are the pop music equivalent of brown wallpaper. Review Rex Orange County - Pony Despite releasing some of the best single...