The young rapper's popularity rose as the years continued, thanks in large part due to his feature on Earl Sweatshirt's track epaR, as well as his Stolen Youth mixtape, which was produced in it's entirety by Larry Fisherman, the former production alias of Pittsburgh rapper/producer Mac Miller.
While Vince is consistently mentioned as one of the best young rappers around, his lack of a debut full length project really made it hard for me to look at him in that same light. Last year however, with the release of the EP Hell Can Wait, my faith in Vince was restored, as he incorporated many new dimensions into his sound, and was no longer staying in the same lane of using vulgar concepts over gritty beats that both he and Earl Sweatshirt had began their career doing. Instead, Staples' came through with some very surprising beat selection and actually made a project that featured quite a few "bangers" (Blue Suede and 65 Hunnid were two that really stood out to me.)
On Summertime '06 he is once again adding to his sound in attempt to really define himself and separate from the rest of the rappers clawing their way onto the charts. A very ambitious record, the double album features 20 tracks in total, which initially was a big turn off for me as I feared Vince went for quantity over quality. However, once I got through the short one minute intro and into the first real track Lift Me Up, those doubts were erased.
I really can't say enough about the production of this album, as the project which is primarily produced by No I.D but also features the likes of Clams Casino and DJ Dahi offers great beat after great beat from start to finish. The production is varied as well, as you get your gangsta' rap anthems that Vince does exceptionally well like Norf Norf; where he chants the lines "I ain't never ran from nothin' but the police." You also get some noisier beats like Birds & Bees, some very grimey and gritty production with the likes of Dopeman, and some hard hitting trap production with the lead single from the LP Señorita, and this is all just on the first half of the album.
Vince also does a great job of picking his features on this album as there are many great contributions by talented artists without taking the focus of the song off of the Long Beach native. One of the best contributions on the album has to be Kilo Kish on Dopeman who brings a whole different energy and eerie vibe to the track with her child like voice. She reappears on the second side of the LP with the song Surf. The track features very sparse production, and Vince comes through with a quicker than usual flow, a bit of a break from his normally laid back west coast approach. Kilo Kish's voice makes for a very interesting hook, as her voice starts off fuzzy, almost as if it's being recorded in a dark and dingy basement, but as the hook continues, her voice becomes clearer and clearer, which is a very interesting mixing decision.
One of the most interesting tracks of the first half has to be Summertime. While it isn't the best cut from the album by any means, Vince experiments for the first time (that I know of) with singing throughout a whole song. While it isn't the type of singing you'd hear on a J.Cole or Drake song, Vince is still certainly not rapping, and it surprisingly makes for a very good closer to the first half.
The second CD is much more of what we're used to from Vince, and he does as expected and delivers on all the songs. Almost all the tracks on this side are produced by No I.D aside from one which is by Clams Casino. This does make for a little bit less of a variety in the beats than we saw on the first half. The standout track on this side for me is without a doubt Hang n' Bang, which features A$ton Matthews as the two churn out an extremely catchy track with the ad-lib "that's true" being chanted throughout. Not only was this a great cut for Vince, but it also gains some exposure for A$ton Matthews, who I was never very big on despite his affiliations with two rappers who I both enjoy in Vince Staples himself and also Joey Fatts.
The album comes to a close with the final track, a 40 second outro titled '06 which could have been very interesting had Vince chose to let the song go a little bit longer. Although the experimenting with a more noisey beat selection definitely intrigues me and has wondering what Vince has planned for the future.
To say Vince Staples has solidified himself as one of the next best things in hip-hop after this release may be an understatement, as the California based emcee continues to redefine his own style. There's no saying how far he can go if he continues to experiment and incorporate different elements into his sound. Regardless, this album certainly rivals Kendrick Lamar's TPAB as rap album of the year so far, which is quite the achievement for a 21 year old rapper making his major label debut.
Rating: A-
Favorite Tracks: Birds & Bees, Loca, Dopeman, Jump Off The Roof, Señorita, Hang n' Bang
Least Favorite Tracks: None
No comments:
Post a Comment