February 2024
Monthly Reviews | February 2024
The second month of 2024 has been completed, and we have continued to receive new releases from various artists. This month I have listened to five brand new projects. The first being the new EP from Little Simz, Drop 7. Can she continue this great run that she has had since 2019’s Grey Area? We also received two other projects that released on the same day as Little Simz’s new EP. The ever controversial Kanye West returned and teamed up with Ty Dolla $ign for what is meant to be the first instalment of their Vultures trilogy. Whilst, lead singer and guitarist of the Alabama Shakes, Brittany Howard, also returned with her new album, What Now. I also listened to two more albums that were both released on the 23rd February, that being On Purpose, With Purpose from East London’s very own Ghetts, and I’ve Never Been Here Before, the new LP from Erick the Architect. Find out how all five projects fared out and what scores they received.
Little Simz — Drop 7
Release Date — 9th February
The new EP from North London rapper Little Simz comes after the success of her last three albums. Since her 2019 album, Grey Area, Simz has gone on to receive critical and commercial success. It’s also well deserved as she has creatively reached incredible new heights since her debut, A Curious Tale of Trials + Persons, which was released almost a decade ago in 2015. Drop 7 is a follow up to its 2018 predecessor, Drop 6, and is the seventh EP instalment of her Drop series, which started way back in 2014. On the latest addition to the Drop series, Little Simz is experimenting with the production she is rapping over. Entirely produced by British producer, Jakwob, he provides some instrumentals that are out of the norm for Simz. As on tracks like “Mood Swings” and “Torch” she raps over House inspired production.
For those that followed Little Simz’s journey and have enjoyed her last three albums, they will be caught off guard with the EP’s intro, “Mood Swings”. The intro is a pleasant surprise to say the least as the chorus is incredibly catchy and along with the production, it can easily have your head bopping. Not to mention the switch in style with the production and Simz’s delivery, also catch you off guard in a nice way. Fantastic start to the EP. The album cover is a great reflection of the EP’s sound, as “Torch” sounds robotic and not in a bad sense, but with Jakwob’s production and Little Simz’s flow it just sounds exactly what a futuristic android would sound like if it were told to rap well.
Other highlights off the seven track EP, include “I Ain’t Feeling It”, which possesses the best production work out of the whole album, as the spacey and atmospheric production from Jakwob is an incredible highlight. The last track “Far Away” is a sombre track that sees Little Simz singing well and lyrically both regretting past mistakes and telling her respective partner to move on from her. Drop 7 for the most is a good body of work, however unfortunately there were a couple of missteps within the EP. “Fever” is one of the weaker tracks from the project, as I didn’t really care for the instrumental and Simz’s delivery of the record. The EP would of have been more consistent if “Fever” wasn’t included, as it was honestly quite a boring track. “Power” is the shortest record on the album at just 55 seconds and suffers from being quite forgettable, with only seven tracks it would have been either beneficial to have made the song longer or replaced it.
Overall Little Simz’s new Drop 7 EP may not be on the level of Grey Area or No Thank You, however it is different and enjoyable. Whether this form of production will be replicated and used on Simz’s next album is yet to be seen, however it is welcomed, as Little Simz sounded great over Jakwob’s production. Credit must be given to Jakwob as he laced Little Simz with some great beats, they both seem to be a good rapper-producer combo.
Kanye West & Ty Dolla $ign — Vultures Vol. 1
Release Date — 9th February
Where do I begin with this review? This is the question I asked myself when I knew it was time to review Kanye West and Ty Dolla $ign’s latest collaborative album, and their first album in what is said to be the first instalment of a trilogy. However with Kanye West, you can never trust what the future holds with his musical output. As many previously announced projects were never released, from the likes of Yandhi, Cruel Winter and TurboGrafx to just name a few.
In the twenty years since Kanye West’s classic debut album, The College Dropout, he has grown to become a highly influential artist in the first ten years, and an incredibly controversial figure in the last ten years. Sure, he has always been an outspoken individual from the time he was upset that his debut album wasn’t winning awards, when he criticised then-U.S President George Bush on national TV to the 2009 VMA’s incident with Taylor Swift. However since his Yeezus-days, his behaviour and comments have become more worrying as the years have gone by. Of course I have to mention his well documented mental health issues, however these last six years have been disturbing to say the least. There are so many moments to choose from, his appearance on TMZ where he shockingly stated that “slavery was a choice”, his backing of previous controversial President Donald Trump, wearing a t-shirt that read “White Lives Matter”, his comments about George Floyd’s death, and all of his antisemitic remarks. Kanye West has essentially plummeted as public figure and he has scarred his musical legacy, due to his current public image. On top of his declining public image, his musical output has also been disappointing.
After the incredible run that he had between 2004 and 2016, from The College Dropout to The Life Of Pablo, Kanye made multiple great albums. Though I personally may not be the biggest fan of 808s & Heartbreak and Yeezus had to grow on me, the former is still incredibly impactful and the latter has aged incredibly well. Since The Life of Pablo, Kanye has however been incredibly inconsistent. Lyrically he isn't great, this has been the case since My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. 2018's Ye and 2020's Jesus Is King were both average at best, whilst Kids See Ghost and Donda are good albums for the most part, but fail to live up to his best albums. When it comes to the first instalment of the Vultures series however, it's by far Kanye's lowest point as an artist.
Though a collaborative project, Vultures seems more of a Kanye West album featuring Ty Dolla $ign. Throughout the majority of the project Ty Dolla $ign doesn't really standout nor is he that memorable. Now though Vultures 1 is generally a bad album, it doesn’t mean that it doesn’t include some good tracks. The album actually starts off well with “Stars”, but after that you have to power through the album's weaker tracks to find its best moments. “Back to Me” does include a silly chorus, but I would be lying if I said it wasn't catchy and it didn’t grow on me, not to mention it includes a great feature from Freddie Gibbs. Though I did just mention that Ty Dolla $ign struggles to standout, “Hoodrat” and “Burn” are the small exceptions, as this is where he showcases his best vocal deliveries on the album. “Burn” in particular is a huge standout on the album as it includes a fantastic groovy instrumental, whilst as mentioned previously Ty Dolla $ign's vocal delivery is also really good. Those who may miss the days of Kanye’s soulfulness, they should enjoy “Good (Don't Die)” as it samples Donna Summers, and lastly Lil Durk has a great feature on the banger, “Vultures”.
As I mentioned above, you have to get through the album's weaker tracks to get to the best tracks, and there is a heavy amount of bad ones. The reason that these records are bad are pretty much for the same reason, they are all over the place. “Paperwork” and “Fuk Sumn” sonically aren't great and are examples as to why parts of the album were difficult to get through, in particular the production and that high pitched voice that was incorporated on “Fuk Sumn”. Lil Durk and Freddie Gibbs were mentioned as the best features on the album, but there are multiple bad ones. From the likes of India Love on the outro of “Keys To My Life”, Rich The Kid and Playboi Carti on “Carnival”. Carti's new voice has definitely not grown on me, since he debuted it in January. The album itself grows to become really tiring, and what causes that is the sheer amount of beat switches on so many tracks. Beat switches can be great when done well, but when it's conducted throughout the whole album and on multiple records, it becomes a huge headache and the songs become unmemorable.
Unfocused and chaotic are the two words that describe this album perfectly, when there is a brief good moment there are so many bad ones to welcome you straight afterwards. Vultures 1 is the first album from Kanye West that lacks any form of replay value. Even on previous projects that I weren't a fan of, there was a song here and there that I would revisit. Unfortunately, there isn't anything that will pull me back to this project, even the records that I thought were good. Currently, at the time of writing there are two more instalments that will be released following this album, and I'm not looking forward to them at all. On the other hand, I do want to believe there is a good artist that still exists within Kanye, even if this has been shown sporadically in the last few years.
Brittany Howard — What Now
Release Date — 9th February
Lead singer of American rock band, Alabama Shakes, Brittany Howard took the step to become a solo artist in 2019 with her solo debut album, Jaime. On her debut there were was a blend of musical genres from Soul to Rock, and this continues on a much grander scale with her latest full length LP, What Now. On Brittany’s sophomore album, we get everything from Jazz, Soul, Funk and even Electronic influences on the eighth track “Prove It To You”.
On What Now, Brittany delivers some fantastic vocal performances, most notably on the album’s best tracks. The being “I Don’t”, “Samson” and “Patience”. Brittany continues to remain personal and vulnerable throughout the album, on “I Don’t” she provides commentary on the longing of the good old days, where work wasn’t a priority. The album’s lead single, “What Now” is based on trying to move on from a current partner, and the theme of relationships is also present on songs such as the Jazz inspired, “Samson”.
On this album, Brittany takes risks in terms of the album’s stylistic changes and there are styles that long-term fans may be surprised to hear her use. For example, the previously mentioned “Prove It To You”, which possesses electronic and dance inspired sounds. These risks are admirable and they generally pay off really well, as it shows Brittany’s ability and desire to be creative and not just stick to her Rock roots. On the other hand, there are a couple of tracks off the album that aren’t as sonically pleasing as the records mentioned previously. Her performance on the last track “Every Color In Blue” isn’t great and just doesn’t match the song’s instrumental, making the track quite difficult to listen to. Prior to that, the fourth track “Red Flags” suffers from similar traits It can be difficult to sit through “Red Flags, because Brittany’s vocals can become a bit too much.
Besides the couple of records mentioned above, Brittany Howard’s What Now is a good project. It showcases Brittany’s creativity, and her confidence and desire to step out of her comfort zone and try new sounds and styles. With the album’s versatility, the project doesn’t fade into the background. It definitely will have listeners on their toes.
Ghetts — On Purpose, With Purpose
Release Date — 23rd February
The new full length LP from the East London veteran. On Purpose With Purpose is Ghetts’ fourth album and his first since his last project, Conflict of Interest, which came out back in 2021. The new album boasts multiple features from the likes of Kano, Sampha and Tiggs Da Author. Whilst, Conflict Of Interest was a brilliant album and one of the best releases of 2021, Ghetts struggles to provide the same level of magic with his latest LP. On Purpose With Purpose comes across as left over material from his last album.
The first half of the album fares out a little better than the second half, as the album is affected with inconsistency. Songs such as “Mine” featuring Shakka and “Gbedu” with Harry Aye sadly sound like any cliche rapper-singsong tracks you may find on the “Rap UK” playlist on Spotify. “Blood On My Hands” attempts for a more dark and gritty aesthetic, but Ghetts is completely outshined by fellow East Londoner, Unknown T. Unknown T stands out more with his pitch and vocal performance, in comparison to Ghetts who opts for a mellow delivery. “Mount Rushmore” featuring two legendary British MCs, Kano and Wretch 32, surprisingly isn’t a huge highlight from the album. Additionally, it must be mentioned that the album also contains two interludes that sit really randomly within the project and don’t add anything to album. This is especially noted for the first interlude, “More Than I Required” with Jay Angelo, the interlude contains autotuned high pitched vocals and it’s difficult to understand what is being sung.
On Purpose, With Purpose isn’t all bad though, as there are some good records that should be noted. In the early stages of the album, the intro consists of one of the album’s best performances from Ghetts. Sampha’s feature fits perfectly on the third and introspective track, “Double Standards”. Arguably the best song on the album, as Ghetts touches upon multiple double standards that exists within society today. Dexta Daps’ performance on the chorus for “Hallelujah” also marks him as another great feature. South African singer Moonchild Sanelly, who was featured on Ghetts’ last project, makes another great appearance on this album as well. Though with the album’s inconsistency, as mentioned previously, it actually ends well with the last three tracks. In particular “Street Politics”, which features Tiggs Da Author, and has Ghetts telling a vivid yet tragic story.
Ghetts’ latest full length album, does have multiple bright spots, however the album lacks cohesiveness and consistency, due to certain records not living up to the quality that Ghetts has produced previously. Being one of the best British rappers to ever pick up a microphone, On Purpose, With Purpose is sadly a disappointing project, especially after Conflict Of Interest, which is one of Ghetts’ best projects from his discography.
Erick The Architect — I’ve Never Been Here Before
Release Date — 23rd February
One third of the East Coast trio, the Flatbush Zombies, rapper-producer Erick the Architect finally drops perhaps his first proper full-length LP. Previously, Erick’s last LP, Arcstrumentals Vol. 2, was only an instrumental album. His last project, Future Proof, was a solid five track EP and now Erick has taken his solo career to the next step, by releasing a 16 track LP that is a solid body of work, but does come with its faults.
The album starts off really well and the first half has multiple great records, most notably the James Blake produced “2-3 Zone”. Easily the best song off the album, the song features phenomenal production work from Blake, whilst Erick flows impeccably over the song’s instrumental. The same compliments can be given to the album’s seventh track, “Jammy Jam”. I’ve Never Been Here Before does come with its fair share of features, and RÜDE CÄT and Baby Rose are definite highlights on the chorus for “Breaking Point”. Towards the bottom of the album, “Neue Muse” and “Leukemia/AM” are also standouts from the album. YouthXL and Worm provide Erick with a really chill and smooth instrumental for “Neue Muse”, whilst “Leukmia/AM” touches upon the emotional ups and downs of romantic relationships.
The album does hit a rough patch within the middle of the park though. “Colette” is a more braggadocios record as Erick opts to flex his luxurious lifestyle, but the song suffers from a bad chorus and Erick’s low pitch delivery isn’t great either. I’m confused by the inclusion of “Beef Patty” featuring Dancehall singer Boy Boy, as Erick doesn’t make an appearance on the song at all, which is a strange thing to do on your first full length LP. Other records such as “Parkour” and the last track “Liberate” with Lalah Hathaway, were examples of records that seemed to fade into the background and there isn’t much to note of with these records.
Overall, I’ve Never Been Here Before is essentially an example of Erick the Architect as an artist. Respectfully, the music that Erick makes isn’t anything new or profound, and there are other artists who make music that are sonically similar, so he doesn’t completely standout. But in the end, Erick can make enjoyable music that can be smooth and a great vibe. His new album is a solid project, where I’m sure it has something for everybody. Plus, he does possess talent as a rapper and he has shown this since his early days as a part of Flatbush Zombies, with fellow members Meechy Darko and Zombie Juice.