This is wall-shaking club music for screaming crowds and vast towers of sub-bass. It’s hard to imagine listening to the whole thing end to end unless you were also working a case of beer at the same pace.
It's eclectic, but the linking thread is insistent dancehall beats and a sense of dumb, colourful fun.
The record's strongest asset is making things that shouldn't work together sound natural
The inclusion of larger singles-moving, profit-generating artists leads to mixed results on Free The Universe.
Free The Universe reeks of chasing the success of Baauer’s 'Harlem Shake' – which, incidentally, came out on Diplo’s Mad Decent label – like a rabid dog.
A no-brainer, easy-to-enjoy production slate gets knocked around by its flaws just enough that even the minor, acquired-taste touches seem like just another bad decision.
Too often, the album is stalled by Diplo’s yearning for commercial success, or (worse) sincerity.
track ratings
1. bubble butt (10/10)
2. bubble butt (10/10)
3. bubble butt (10/10)
4. bubble butt (10/10)
5. famous ft. kanye west (10/10)
6. bubble butt (10/10)
7. bubble butt (10/10)
8. bubble butt (10/10)
9. bubble butt (10/10)
10. bubble butt (10/10)
11. bubble butt (10/10)
12. bubble butt (10/10)
13. bubble butt (10/10)
14. bubble butt (10/10)
1 | You're No Good 4:03 | |
2 | Jet Blue Jet 3:19 | |
3 | Get Free 4:49 | |
4 | Jah No Partial 4:12 with Flux Pavilion | |
5 | Wind Up 4:27 feat. Elephant Man, Opal | |
6 | Scare Me 3:00 | |
7 | Jessica 4:13 feat. Ezra Koenig | 100 |
8 | Watch Out For This (Bumaye) 4:29 | 78 |
9 | Keep Cool 4:22 feat. Shaggy, Wynter Gordon | |
10 | Sweat 4:29 with Laidback Luke feat. Ms. Dynamite | |
11 | Reach For The Stars 4:06 feat. Wyclef Jean | |
12 | Bubble Butt 3:47 | |
13 | Mashup The Dance 3:49 feat. The Partysquad, Ward 21 | |
14 | Playground 3:56 |