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patricksmusicblog · 7 months

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2023 Album Ratings(So Far)

These are some thoughts on some of the albums I've listened to throughout the year. Some of them are just thoughts others are mini reviews.

Owl City- Coco Moon: Solid sound/production, okay vocals, mediocre lyrics, and overall songs. It may work with a more youthful audience. 6/10

Princess Nokia- I Love You But This is Goodbye: This is a good little EP about the ends and outs, ups and downs of heartbreak. As usual for Nokia, it's elastic and expansive. However, there are moments when I find Princess Nokia's vocals to be weak. There are moments when her passion and authenticity cut through. 7/10

Aly & AJ- With Love From: With Love From is a quality summery indie-pop/rock album. There are a lot of tracks to play loud on an open road with the top down in somewhat breezy, sunburned weather. Lovely harmonies and hooks abound. The slower hooks slow things down to an extent. With Love From is not an album I imagine I'll go back to much, but it accomplishes its goal. 7.0/10

Weezer-SZNZ: Winter: Solid effort from Weezer; some catchy alt-rock tunes, nerdy songwriting Coumo's nasally vocals all things Weezer is great at and known for here. Not essential, but good. 7/10

Conway The Machine & Jae Skeese- Pain Provided Profit: A tight and concise project that's a commonly gritty Griselda affair, grimmy and yet soulful and contemplative beats matching Conway and Skeese's ability to be braggadocious and heartfelt at the same time. A solid EP 8.0/10

Logic- College Park: Maryland MC Logic's eighth studio LP is a quality follow-up to his album Vinyl Days, released last year. If last year was Boom Bap Logic, this year is Jazz Rap Logic. It's a good album; there's much soul-baring about substance abuse and avoiding those pitfalls and ideas of getting more true to who he is. There's an 8.5-9.0 album in here somewhere, but lesser tracks water it down. There are seventeen songs here, which is just too many, but ultimately, it's still a solid effort and something long-time Logic fans can get into. 7.5/10

Statik Slektah-Round Trip: The latest LP from Statik Slektah is a dope effort that has a piano-driven and somewhat jazz-rap-driven sound that features a mixture of 90's legends and younger artists, some of which are legends at this point now as well. It's a 20-track project, and the first half is where the most potent tracks lye. All are great, but the best include "Unpredictable" feat Inspectah Deck, Ghostface Killah, Raekwon and Method Man, "Ain't Too Much Too it" ft Conway, Life & Times ft Joey Bada$$ and "Lion Heart" with Elzhi and Boldy James. Lesser guests and less entertaining beats slow the rest down. All in all, it is a solid effort, particulary for those who love the current crop of underground MCs that have been making noise from 2018 to the present day. 7.5/10

Paramore- This is Why: Paramore is ever-growing; their last LP was a foray into synth-pop, and this one is more of a post-punk album. This album is musically sharp; there are a lot of strong guitar riffs and layers of sounds underneath the mix. Hayley is vocally great at shifting velocities and tonalities during a given song. Lyrically, the album is as content-rich as any Paramore album. It's a tight album, ten great tracks 8.0/10

7XVETHEGENIUS-The Genius Tape: 7xvethegenius is a solid rapper; this project feels like a lyrical exercise for her coming from the drumwork camp. "Brainstorm" ft Conway the Machine is a highlight, as is the storytelling on "Lost on Mars," and then there's the Rome Streets and Che Noir-assisted "Neck Protected". 7.5/10

Conway The Machine-Won't He Do It: Conway follows up with 2022 essential God Doesn't Make Mistakes with Won't He Do It, an album that features more versatile production and different sounds from the lush "The Chosen" to the piano-laden "Monogram" or the R&B influenced Water to Wine" you don't know what to expect track to track on this Conway The Machine album and I enjoy that. This album, while not having quite the depth and soul searching of the previous album, is more celebratory and features an array of flows and skill sets. He sounds comfortable and effortless on this project. Great work 8.5/10

Killer Mike-Michael: Michael is Killer Mike's sixth LP and his most personal and forthright album. The production features some gospel/soul influence that feels classically Atlanta. The album tackles issues he dealt with as a youth, from naively poising the community (Something for The Junikes) to adolescent love mishandled (Slummer) to the impact of losing his mother and grandma. This album gives you a sense of the good and bad that shaped Killer Mike. I also love the EL-P-assisted "Don't Let the Devil" for a more southern-fried RTJ feel. I appreciate what he's speaking to on "Two Days" regarding the prison industrial system and the politics that keep it going. At every turn, Mike is sharp, heartfelt, and thoughtful. The features on the album all come through with good performances from Atlanta pioneers like Ceelo and Andre 3000 to current-day essentials like Young Thug and Future. Michael's an excellent album and a refreshing solo effort, a nice change of pace from Mike's work with EL-P. 9/10

Nas & Hitboy- Magic 2: Nas and Hit-boy continue their run with their fifth album in 3 years and 2nd edition in the Magic series. While the 2021 Magic felt like an exercise in traditionalism, finding Nas rhyming over an updated 90s sound with rhyming up to par with his prime. On Magic 2 Nas finds himself more aligned with modern times; tracks like "Motion" and "Earvin Magic Johnson" sound more car and club-ready than anything on the original Magic. Songs like "Abracadabra" are more thematically aligned than most of what's on the original Magic. The more thoughtful and reflective tracks tucked in the back of the album are the strongest, "What it Really Means", "Slow it Down" and "Pistols on Your album Cover" are all great pieces of work. Par for the course at this point. 8.5/10

Meet me @ the Alter- Past//Present//Future: Meet me @ the Alter is a pop-punk band that has been working toward this moment for a while through a series of EPs and singles that showed a band bustling with pop-punk energy and hooks that only come from a strong appreciation for the pop-punk we came up on in the 00s. Past//Present//Future is the baby of all that hard work. I love the catchy and snarky "Say it to My Face." I also enjoy the chunky, distorted guitars on "Try" a song that speaks to pushing through anxiety and going for things anyway. "T.M.I" is my absolute favorite on the project. It's the best vocal performance from Edith Victoria, the best chorus, and the most well-written tune here. The bass and big chorus on "King of Everything" make for a good close to the album. It's a fun project for the band that leaves plenty of room for improvement and expansion musically and lyrically. 7.5/10

Protomartyr-Formal Growth in the Desert: This is the sixth project from Detroit post-punk band Protomartyr. As customary for a Protomatyr album, you'll get sprawling guitars and walls of atmospheric sound. Also, you'll get lead vocalist and lyricist Joe Casey's passionate vocal performances and great lyrics. "Fun in Hi Skool" is a great song seemingly about the inability to let go of the past to the point where it ruins your present and future. "Let's Tip The Creator" is my favorite on the project; I think it has some of the best guitar playing and drumming. Protomartyr has always been adept at shifting tones and adding sonic layers as tracks progress. With Joe Casey's lyrics being thoughtful yet abstract at times, it invites more and more listens that'll be sure to reward with time. 8.0/10

Dream Wife-Social Lubrication: Dream Wife's third full-length album is much like their previous efforts, a selection of songs where youthful exuberance meets thoughtful contemplations and some righteous rebellion. There's "Who do you want to be?" A call to mobilization instead of stagnation. The title track speaks to being buttered up and being made to get comfortable with getting screwed over. "Leech" is about men, companies, people, etc., who exploit and use women for what they provide—all great tracks. You still get simple punk tracks like "I Want You" or "Orbit," a song about an attraction that almost feels meant to be. Sonically, the band switches between straightforward punk and a post-punk sound, which is more beneficial when trying to get a message across. It's their 3rd straight great album, in my opinion. 8.0/10

Noname-Sundial: Sundail is the third full album by Chicago rapper Noname. Noname is a rapper who has always been adept at rhyming conscious, straightforward, but abstract at the same time. She's an artist who wears her culture on her sleeve and cares deeply about the state of it. She's also someone who has just gotten better and better at rapping over time. She's always had an agile and fluid flow, but this is her least quiet album yet; she's come through with a more substantial presence on the mic and more charisma. Topically, "Hold Me Down" speaks to black people only holding each other down when it's convenient, particularly monetarily. "Balloons" on why there was a musical hiatus for Noname in the first place, which is the exploitative nature of selling black trauma to voyeuristic white people entertained by black trauma. "Beauty Supply" tackles the self-loathing that inherently comes with adapting Eurocentric beauty standards. There's no turn on this album where Noname has nothing to say. There's very little wasted space on the album. Yet there are lighthearted and fun moments here like "Boomboom" or "Toxic." It's a great album that will reward with more listens. 8.5/10

Nas & Hitboy- Magic 3: Nas completes their fantastic run with their third installment in the Magic series Magic 3. To the surprise of no one, It's another high-level project that features excellent production and rhymes from Hitboy and Nas. From the production standpoint, Hit-Boy dives more into a soul sample style here, with many soulful beats and vocals floating in the background of these tracks. Meanwhile, Nas showcases his skillset; rapping well is a prerequisite for him at this point, so it's really about the direction and how the tracks meld together. "I Love This Feeling" track 4 on the project, is the first song that I think is steller on the project; it has a great soulful, almost jazzy sound, and Nas is just sharp and speaking to loving the place he's in. "Based on True Events pt1" and "pt 2" find Nas getting into his storytelling bag, both efforts are vivid. The first one is seemingly a little more personal, with him speaking about investigating a friend's supposed suicide and honoring Havoc of Mobb Deep's brother, who was murdered. Pt 2 echo's a song like "Nigga's Bleed' the late great Notorious B.I.G. "Blue Bently" and "Jodeci Member"are both bangers on the album tracks you could ride in the car too. The album tetters between celebratory and contemplative, and Nas is great at both. The lone feature on the project is Lil Wayne, who shows out his flow is fluid, and he rises to the occasion. It's another great effort from Nas & Hitboy, and in the end, this is an excellent send-off to their run. 8.5/10

By: Patrick Griffin II

#Music #Nas #meet me @ the altar #protomartyr #owl city #Paramore #Dream Wife #Noname #Killer Mike #Hit-Boy #aly and aj #Logic #7xvthegenius #statik selektah #Weezer #Aly and AJ #Princess Nokia #Jae Skeese

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