There are a couple of decent ideas here, and jev.'s rapping is pretty good, but it rarely comes together to make anything truly great. There is still a lot of potential here, and I'm looking forward to see where he takes his sound in the future.

Jackson C. Frank's voice is incredible, and the plucky guitar playing makes for a really soothing record. The writing here is really emotional as well, it's a shame that this guy never got the attention he deserved.

Thanks to @Kickingpro for the recommendation!
Despite being a huge fan of the live version of this song, I had never heard the studio version of "Long Season", so I'm happy to say that this is an incredibly ethereal and incredible listen. I love how detailed this album is, there are so many small parts that add together to create something magical. This definitely works better as one single, continuous song, rather than a project being split up into smaller parts. While I do ... read more

Fantastic, I love how honest the writing is here and I thought the production was really impressive and well done. The rapping did feel a little awkward at times, but that's the type of thing that will just improve with experience.

Otis Redding's voice has a lot of power behind it, and it makes for a number of really emotionally poignant moments throughout the album. There are some songs here that are just less interesting than others: "Ole Man Trouble" and "Shake" for example, didn't do much for me at all. However, there are a number of songs here that really do work, overall this is just a really solid album with a couple of weak spots.

I get what this album is going for, and this definitely has a specific vibe to it that does sound pretty unique. The dreamy effects on the vocals pair well with the sometimes heavy instrumentation. However there really isn't much else going for this album, each song sounds super similar, which can be a detriment when trying to pick out individual things you like abut the album.

Thanks to @Bryan23 for the recommendation!
This album really grew on me in the second half, I really liked how methodical and multi-phased the songs sounded, it meant that the album flowed surprisingly quickly.

I understand that the mixing might turn some people away, but I honestly didn't take any real issue with it. The style of production here feels very deliberate and adds to the atmosphere of the album. This album is really really good, it has a specific blend of different hip hop styles that I haven't seen replicated before. If I'm being honest, I couldn't pick up on much of what was being said, which is something I should have prepared for prior to listening. I can see a lot ... read more

I saw @curbicon compare this to Denzel Curry's ZUU, and I think that's a really great comparison to make. Both pay heavy homage to certain types of hip hop: ZUU with Florida hip hop, gnx with West Coast hip hop (Both also feature three letter titles and include the artists leaning against a car on the cover). It's easy to discard this as being "less ambitious" than something like TPAB and GKMC, but I think that does a disservice to what Kendrick is trying to do here. ... read more

This is a really fun album to listen to, all the small details Aphex Twin adds in these songs come together to make for a really interesting electronic album. The album feels all over the place, which can lead it to lacking a bit of cohesion, but also means that this album is always surprising you with something new. I cans see this album growing on me too, really great listen.

A bit of a regression from the chaos that was "CHASER", it's missing that punch that made the previous EP so special. The production sounds a little more generic, the vocals feel less exciting to listen to having Danny Brown on a song is a novel idea, but the song itself isn't all that special all things considered. It still sounds like a Femtanyl record, and the production still sounds really good and unique, but it just doesn't hit the same highs as CHASER.

While I don't think this is as strong as "Sevgilerimle", Sezen Aksu is undoubtably a talented musical figure. The number of musical styles here weave together to create a pretty unique sounding album, including elements of regional folk, combined with elements of funk on the last track. Aksu's singing is also great here, so much emotion and range in each song, from bouncy and light like on "Lunapark" to sorrowful and ballad-like on the opening track. While I still ... read more

One of the greatest songs I've ever heard, the last 30 seconds of this is pure magic, Riperton shows her vocal range perfectly with some really powerful singing. Simply one of the best to ever do it. The orchestral instrumentation compliments her singing really well. The writing is also really pretty, and she delivers each line with so much emotion, all condensed in a little over 3 minutes as well.

The jazz instrumentation here is Great, and lends itself well to an album with a longer runtime, however the vocals can feel a bit overbearing and awkward, even if they are spoken word. Really happy I checked this one out though.

Tracks like these show why Denzel is one of the most versatile rappers going right now.

I am absolutely mesmerised by this album's beauty, every single moment of this album is absolutely incredible. The orchestral instrumentation creates this grandiose, lush atmosphere, but never overshadows Minnie Riperton's incredible singing. Riperton's singing is really what makes these songs soar, she blends typical soul singing perfectly with operatic vocals, her vocal range here allows the album to go from feeling quiet, intimate, and sorrowful, to this roaring declaration of ... read more

One of the heaviest albums to come out of this year, this album caught my attention first because of the cover art, it feels so abstract and desolate. I'm happy to say that the album itself lived up to those initial assumptions. I understand people's issues with the vocals on this album, they can be very off-putting and overbearing, however personally, I never found the vocals to be that much of a problem. The high-pitched screeches paired pretty well with the heavily distorted ... read more

Really intense production and performances, I'm also impressed at the variety this album has, from the intense screaming of VIBANDA, to the almost serene production of MUKAZI, that being said this album is also incredibly dark in its writing in almost every track. My one gripe would be that I didn't feel like the features added much to the album, a lot of tracks would have been pretty much the same with or without.

John Glacier has had an upwards trajectory this entire year, from her great features on Vegyn and Jamie xx's albums, and her singles had just been getting better and better. This is flat out one of her best songs, the fast production mixed with the slow, laid back performance work perfectly together in a really unexpected way. The whole song has a really ethereal sound to it, and works perfectly with the music video.

Shabaka's instrumentation is phenomenal, and compliments billy woods' rapping perfectly. Though I would have preferred if woods had more of a presence on the track, his verse ends pretty abruptly, which is a shame, still really good.