Iridescence is full-to-bursting; it’s like almost eating too much food, almost drinking too much booze; it’s getting close to too much, and still asking for more.
Kevin Abstract is so often the mastermind, but on Iridescence, there’s no reliance on one member to take centre stage and in turn, some who were prone to lingering in the shadows have burst into the limelight.
A record about the repercussions of fame and the pressures of expectation, iridescence thwarts the opportunity to sell out at every turn, delivering a major label debut that’s boundary-breaking, frank and achingly heartfelt. Hip hop feels greater with these men in it.
iridescence is the best Brockhampton album because it doesn't give a fuck what you think a Brockhampton album should sound like.
BROCKHAMPTON's return is a harrowing exploration of fame and identity, boasting "America's Favorite Boyband" at arguably its most creative and certainly its most introspective.
Iridescence, the first installment of their The Best Years of Our Lives trilogy, ventures into a more experimental and abrasive sound. Though they are still figuring out this new dynamic, their fourth album is a bold and thrilling ride.
Very much a product of their time, Brockhampton absorbs what they need from across genres, sharing honest confessions from their varied personal backgrounds (the most striking provided by group leader Kevin Abstract) and reflecting its mixed audience as a voice of their generation.
In ‘Iridescence’, Brockhampton find their own truthful rebirth. And, regrouped and renewed, they're not going anywhere.
'Iridescence' feels like Brockhampton have regrouped musically to create a great, if not perfect, representation and platform to build on.
That members of the self-proclaimed boy band met on a Kanye message board is extremely apparent: The group’s music is all over the place, often gloriously so.
The all-American boyband makes its major label debut with an album that shows emotional and creative maturation despite occasionally gimmicky production and some members getting outshined by others.
iridescence proves the American rap group—or boy band, if you ask them—have found the right balance of vulnerability and abrasive freneticism.
There’s a significant difference in experience between fans of BROCKHAMPTON that found them after their 2017-2018 rise and fans that were there to see it as it happened, and I think the former isn’t able to truly appreciate what it was like to see these significant events happen real time. Context is always important when it comes to discussing albums, but I think there’s barely any other albums that require an understanding of the circumstances that formed an album’s ... read more
EDIT 2: This might be my favorite album. Fuck. I've recently started getting more interested in making electronic by improvising live with samplers and synths. This has given me a whole different perspective on this album as it seems like the producers of Brockhampton really relish that more hands-on and immediate method of composing beats. This thing is fucking loaded to the brim with the short samples, vocal chops, and analog synth sounds you'd expect to hear at any local electronic house ... read more
The amount of urban white girls and cholas I know who think they're listening to underground trap rap has me confused on how to react.
Original score: 50
As of 12/5/18: 28
Review from albums launch week: Wow that cover is ugly. Anyways, I think everyone had their concerns with this record. From Ameer to closeted projects and now their $15,000,000 major label deal with RCA. My personal concern wasn't music however. I knew (even if Ameer was around) BH would stray from what they were known for. ... read more
Weirdly optimistic but confused album with a confused sound that doesn't really know what to be perfectly represents the boyband's feelings and situation.
A lot of beautiful moments that find the group seeing the light in a really dark situation, not knowing how to keep moving, but doing it anyway knowing it'll be alright.
The beginning stretch of this album was rocky but as it went on they started to find their footing (SAN MARCOS and TONYA in particular are exceptional). Although this has some of their best moments it still takes ages to get there and ends up feeling scattered and unfocused as a result.
i cant really explain my thoughts on this, its just got an emotional aspect to it that many experimental rap albums don't have and it's paired with an incredible sound
1 | NEW ORLEANS 4:03 | 90 |
2 | THUG LIFE 2:02 | 82 |
3 | BERLIN 3:19 | 83 |
4 | SOMETHING ABOUT HIM 1:33 | 69 |
5 | WHERE THE CASH AT 1:54 | 79 |
6 | WEIGHT 4:20 | 89 |
7 | DISTRICT 3:31 | 86 |
8 | LOOPHOLE 0:53 | 72 |
9 | TAPE 3:29 | 85 |
10 | J'OUVERT 3:54 | 92 |
11 | HONEY 3:15 | 85 |
12 | VIVID 2:24 | 82 |
13 | SAN MARCOS 4:46 | 87 |
14 | TONYA 4:43 | 90 |
15 | FABRIC 4:37 | 85 |
#10 | / | NZ Herald |
#11 | / | Slant Magazine |
#12 | / | The Line of Best Fit |
#15 | / | Consequence of Sound |
#15 | / | Dummy |
#16 | / | Dazed |
#16 | / | NME |
#16 | / | Stereogum |
#29 | / | BrooklynVegan |
#35 | / | Billboard |