[Lowkey]

Really nice write-ups so far, I look forward to what you end up loving this year.

side note: I think that you may dig Future's mixtape Monster. If you listen, get back to me with your thoughts as I'm interested to know.

[Satie]

[Satie]

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Meek Mill - 4/4

Genre: Trap Rap
Sounds Like: Michael Bay if he hated Drake
First Listen: January 26, 2016
Current Rating: 3/10
Yearly Ranking: N/A

January 26, 2016
So, I figure 12 minutes can't do that much harm. I've heard Meek Mill's name a lot in connection to Drake, and anyone who dislikes Drake has at least that as a redeeming quality. Meek Mill seems like he's like the king of disliking Drake, so maybe that means- Holy shit what is this first beat? I've literally been laughing out loud for like twenty seconds straight. So this is what that disposable, over-the-top absolutely fucking insane trap sound sounds like when Waka Flocka Flame isn't pulling it off right. This is the kind of trap that makes Jesus weep. Okay, well, curiosity satisfied. Meek Mill's lyrics are all just this repetition of the trope that he actually came from the bottom or whatever, and then a lot of the standard braggadocio without any sort of fun wordplay. The flow is really standard and just kind of acts as an extension of the cliched production. Altogether, loud, in your face, adrenal music that can't even pull off the feats of that chemical and leave you shaking a bit after. I don't hate it or anything, and I'm not necessarily upset I listened to it. I don't wanna come off as humorless, but I really didn't get much out of this at all. 3/10

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[Anti]

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[Satie]

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ANTI by Rihanna

Genre: Contemporary R&B
Sounds Like: [INSERT APPROPRIATE BUT TONGUE-IN-CHEEK DESCRIPTION OF ALBUM'S SOUND]
First Listen: January 27, 2016
Current Rating: 5/10
Yearly Ranking: N/A

January 28, 2016
A second listen knocked this down a bit. In trying to correct for my let-down expectations, I might have inflated how good the record was. Without the possibility of anticipating the next song being the one that was gonna really wow me, this sorta revealed itself as more mediocre than I had thought before. I stick by the middle stretch being better than the rest as far as production picking up in excitement, but the rest is pretty standard, and the end is a real slog starting with that dreadful Tame Impala joint. 5/10

January 27, 2016
I woke up this morning to "Work" being released as a single to tantalize us for what is apparently an impending ANTI drop. Maybe this got updated and I was just out of the loop, but I was under the impression ANTI was supposed to build on the sound of "Bitch Better Have My Money." I've liked a lot of Rihanna's singles from a lot of eras of her career, so it wasn't a deal breaker, but it was unfortunate to hear a song that went away from that direction. Between that song and Rihanna's grittier presentation here with the album cover and all, I was hoping for something like her Yeezus. Drake also sucks enough to have gotten me to actually sit through that EP last night, so that didn't add to my hype at all. Then I get home, and the fucking thing's leaked! So I don't even have time to start waxing doomsayer before we get a confirmed tracklist from TIDAL accidentally posting the album and someone leaking the music online. What a whirlwind! Maybe they'll just launch it for real tonight at midnight and that was just a bad test run on TIDAL. Seems like lots of would-have-been surprise release type things keep getting ruined by the fact that big artists have no idea how to use simple music streaming services like TIDAL and Soundcloud. Anyway, "BBHMM" was completely absent, which at least meant that the album wouldn't somehow try to incorporate that sound and the sound on "Work," but yeah, not the best news ever.

But the final result is pretty good! I'll probably give it another spin or two in the coming days to really flesh out my opinion on it, but the album works. Every song has something going for it, and there's a good variety to the production. The drum sounds are awesome, and there's a lot of good textures. The album starts a bit slow, but that might have been my ear adjusting to not hearing the Rihanna cum Total Freedom onslaught that I've been dying for for a year now. Once I let the album be what it is, there were some really tight grooves to be found, and the middle stretch even has a bit edgier feel while never spilling over. "Desperado" is one of the highlights for what I'm talking about here. The end of the album trails off a bit with a meandering seven minute song that of course is a cover of Tame Impala, and somewhere in there (at this point, I was rapidly losing focus) there's one or two other tracks with some acoustic guitar picking bland whatever that shows Rihanna hasn't completely left behind that TERRIBLE "FourFiveSeconds" (what I like to call FFS) direction. Maybe I missed something I'll pick up on a subsequent listen. All in all, doesn't live up to the heights I had kind of hoped it would, but it's a totally serviceable album with tons of craftsmanship put in, even if it rarely, if ever, transcends that billing. 6/10

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[Anti]

Did you listen to this on TIDAL or elsewhere?

[Satie]

[Satie]

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Arc by Agoraphobic Nosebleed

Genre: Sludge Metal
Sounds Like: blowing out a bong rip until you puke
First Listen: January 30, 2016
Current Rating: 5/10
Yearly Ranking: N/A

January 30, 2016
I've never been particularly tickled by the more chugging, incessant metal subgenres like sludge and stoner metal with the exception of one or two albums early on in my exposure to metal that got me to re-orient my ear to listen for riffs and things like that. I probably wouldn't have listened to this album were it by anyone else, but I was very curious seeing Agoraphobic Nosebleed's name attached to the genre. As long as I can remember, they've been a really killer grindcore band. Altered States of America is still one of my favorites in the genre, an absolutely ridiculous 100-track monstrosity with all the necessary humor to pull off something like that. Agoraphobic Nosebleed have always seemed like good sports who make really good music that doesn't quite make fun of the genre but comes off as more obviously self-aware than a lot of the other grindcore material around.

So, seeing a 30-minute EP that goes in the opposite extreme and only has three tracks left me a bit confused but intrigued. Unfortunately, despite the lyrics possibly bordering on self-parody as they do in most metal genres, the music doesn't have any texture or levity to it. It's the same stoner sludge morass that I've waded through a few times before trying to figure out what exactly is supposed to be so interesting. With the exception of a bit of skip in the step of the opening portion of the first track, there's not much excitement to be had. I don't really dislike the record by any means, and there are enough good vocal moments and riffs (even if they could be trimmed down into a really good short song instead of needlessly extended over 12 minutes) to make it charming, even if I probably won't revisit it. 5/10

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[undefined]

Agoraphobic Nosebleed are the last metal band I'd expect to go stoner or sludge. Didn't even know this was a thing. Have they ever released a song longer than like 45 seconds before this?