TheGoffOff

I liked this album a lot more when I was listening to it while doing homework than while I was driving and paying more attention.

That's probably not a good sign. But it does raise my score a bit. Was initially a 5/10.

Fantastic aesthetic throughout the record, but it needed some stronger songwriting. Found it difficult to focus on the music at times.

Put it in the "good study music" folder.

Welp, found my likely rap AOTY.

This is such a tight record. It's only like 30-40 minutes long, but every second feels necessary and fresh. The hooks are catchy (I'm a BOSS in a fucking dress) and the production is consistently excellent. Little Simz can spit, but she shows maturity by not going full machine gun the whole album. She has her moments, for sure (Venom, for example), but overall she places emphasis on fitting within the song over being flashy. And it works so damn well.

Excellent ... read more

The first half or so of the record is rather dull, with Hozier opting to swap out his folk/blues sound for... well, nothing much. There are some exceptions here, like Nina Cried Power and Movement, but overall there was nothing drawing me into the songs.

The latter half, thankfully, was more along the lines of what I was hoping from the album. Some maturation from the sound of his self-titled, but it was actually pretty interesting. Loved the use of a choir throughout -- the gospel sound ... read more