Lav's Music Corner

  Kendrick Lamar is a rapper who really needs no introduction. After serving up some of the most acclaimed albums of the entire 2010s like To Pimp A Butterfly  and Good Kid m.A.A.d   City , he took a break for the last few years of the decade and the COVID pandemic. But since then he's returned in a massive way. It began with a series of acclaimed collaborations with his cousin Baby Keem, the much-discussed "The Heart Part V" became the table setter for one of the most discoursed-about albums of the 2020s so far, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers . And Kendrick spent much of this year embroiled in a back and forth rap beef with Drake, one he's widely seen as having won with his hit song "Not Like Us."  And that brings us to GNX , a surprise album that arrived to the surprise of all Kendrick's fans, and allegedly his label as well, on a Friday morning in late November. At 12 tracks spanning 45 minutes the album isn't exactly slim, but it's his lea...

Drake needs no introduction, come on guys. Review by Lav:  Drake hate is so corny in 2023. Much like every single new album cycle people who probably didn't listen to For All The Dogs  came out of their caves to bash it relentlessly. Thankfully this is so routine at this point that the tactic gets easier and easier to ignore every time. The best I can do to contribute to the discourse is actually try and digest the material he's releasing and give an honest reflection about it. As if it wasn't already the most obvious thing on earth, the truth about the album lies somewhere in between Drake's devoted haters and his biggest fans. I won't break down every single moment of For All The Dogs  as like many Drake albums it is TOO long. Drake is limited artistically and his songwriting lacks the scope and ambition to make an 80-minute album feel fresh throughout. I think he realizes that because this album is absolutely stacked with talented collaborators. Normally that h...

5.  Gem & I  - Animal Collective This may be the simplest of AnCo's new singles yet. That isn't just due to its composition which certainly arrives more slimmed down than the 21 minute epic they led off their new era with. But even thematically and sonically what you see is what you get with the song. Thankfully, I find the refrains very compelling and the gentle indie folk flourishes are pretty satisfying even on repeat listens.  Listen 4.  Motorbike  - Poppy Right out of the gate, I'll say I know that this song does have a kind of critical flaw, the lyrics. To call this clunky would be an insult to a lot of embarrassing songwriting I've described in those terms in the past. It's unfortunate because this song has a chorus that I find absolutely intoxicating and it's been stuck in my head since the moment I heard it. I also think the track has thematic elements that work really well. The sleek and sensual worship of motorcycle girls is pretty easy to get beh...

Travis Scott is one of the biggest rap superstars in the world. He's managed to be both a massive hitmaker and a critical darling relative to his peers. UTOPIA  comes two years after Travis Scott found himself at the center of the Astroworld  music festival tragedy. Despite the festival's shortcomings and his maligned public reaction to it, fans were extremely excited for UTOPIA . The album was released with an impressive collection of featured artists and producers and has spawned extensive discussion among rap fans online. Review by Lav: It's hard for me to put into words how excited I was for Astroworld . After Rodeo  turned me into a big Travis Scott fan and the years he spent building up to its actual sequel generated so much hype, how could I not be excited. I stayed up till midnight to listen to the album with my friends and unpack all the features and credits that were initially hidden. But here's the thing, Astroworld  lived up to every bit of the hype. I st...

5.  Portraits  - Panchiko There's been at least something to admire about pretty much all of the new Panchiko singles so far and this one is the best so far at pinning down the crackling nostalgia and lo-fi textures of their surprise classic material. The glitchiness of the song impugns a character that's entirely unique from their other songs while also feeling physically aged as you listen to it.  Listen 4.  FaceTime  - billy woods & kenny segal (feat. Samuel T. Herring) If you're familiar with the names involved in this song then it sounds exactly what you're imagining it will. There are no surprises here just a successful blending of styles with kenny's often poignant and jazzy production serving as a perfect middle man for the vocals. The high contrast of billy's gritty vocal delivery on the verses and Sam's subtle hook sounds great.  Listen 3.  Back In Office  - Saba & No I.D. Saba and No I.D are teaming up for a mixtape coming soon ...

I've said a few times this year that it's been a kind of interesting year for albums. While there wasn't the same pile of records absolutely blowing me away this year that there had been in years past, I was pleasantly surprised by how deep the field was. There were definitely albums cut from this year's list that could have comfortably made it onto one of the last two years' editions. Ultimately, I think that's a good thing. If I had to choose between the two I would take more good albums. But if the praise seems particularly quick compared to other lists and other years, there's a reason. Enjoy <3 ( This list was originally posted on January 1st, 2023 but was remade due to formatting errors) 100. Rina Sawayama - Hold The Girl While Rina failed to impress me with some of the songwriting and in particular the hooks on her new record, the production of Clarence Clarity and her imposing personality are enough to carry this record through with its memorable ...