Thanks for the responses guys, I thought maybe this would be a pretty contentious subject. I think I'm usually pretty on the mark when it comes to musical popular opinion and I found it pretty surprising when I heard that so many people think TPAB was good.
Now I'm not one to limit a genre of music to it's boundaries, I say push as far as you can go, try out new ideas and experiment with it. I'm just saying that the direction TPAB goes doesn't work for me.
There's no doubt Kendrick Lamar puts a lot of subject matter into this album and he's got a knack for being pretty spot on when it comes to content. So here's my issue as concisely as I can put it.
Hiphop is a lyrical artform, often hiphop tunes dispense of song structures, melody and even tuning in favour of lyricism. In a recent article GZA (Wu-Tang) said: "Hip-hop started with street poets with great lyrical skills, and that’s what hip-hop has always been about for me."
Now, it can be argued that the success of Wu-Tang Clan lies in their production. RZA's production on their first record and ever since has been nothing short of total innovation, he spearheaded a new lo-fi sound in hiphop with heavy references to B-Movie culture that had never been done before...but...his production was always in balance with the lyrics. The music never tries to over-power the MC, the MC is always at the front of the stage.
This is my fundamental problem with TPAB. The music doesn't support Kendrick Lamar's ideas, it tries to overtake them. It tries to tell the story rather than leaving that to the lyrics.
babyBlueSedan had some pretty interesting points I'd like to address.
I do agree that A Tribe Called Quest owe a lot of their popularity to their production but then they'd also be nowhere without Q-Tip saying "Can I kick it?". I'd also argue that Yeezus is a bad album.
I also agree that Hiphop is as much about style as it is about lyrics in that the style and lyrics must compliment each other. It's no good writing a symphony for an MC because symphonies are written as broad musical journeys rather than nuanced lyrical quips.
There's a subtlety to rapping that needs room to be communicated and successful producers can write a beat that supports the MC but doesn't compete with the MC. There's a skill in doing that successfully and great producers like DJ Premier, DJ Muggs, RZA, Clams Casino and J Dilla understand this.
I have always been in the mindset that TPAB is a superior album to Good Kid. Good Kid is phenomenal, and maybe as you alluded to, more directly concise than TPAB but I think that's part of the beauty of TPAB. TPAB has taken me many many listens to scratch the surface of what Kendrick's message(s) is. Nothing about that task has been daunting or mind-numbing. It's always a pleasant experience.
Now, yes, some of the songs on TPAB may run a little long for even my liking, but to me if the artist feels that's how long it takes to make their point or add to the story then so be it. I think you can see examples of that on both Pimp and Good Kid.
I think ultimately where I pick TPAB over GKMC is the musicality of it. And to my ears, there isn't anything pretentious about it. The instrumentation and composition of the fusion/funk/jazz parts adds so much to TPAB and what makes it one of my all time favorite records. It just sounded effortless for him to incorporate. Whether it's the ending of The Blacker The Berry, which gives the listener a great come down point after the onslaught of the rest of the song, or the complete free jazz sound of For Free?.. I don't see any pretentiousness there. I can't imagine Kendrick wanting to incorporate those genres of music for any other reason than to let it benefit the music. I also love the features and think they work perfectly. Be it Snoop, Rapsody, or George Clinton, they fit perfectly.
The poem Kendrick recites is fucking brilliant. At first it may seem a little annoying to hear the same lines over and over, adding only a little at a time, but it culminates into a beautiful and worthwhile message. I think the poem along with the Tupac interview makes TPAB a true landmark. _________________ Attention all planets of the solar federation: We have assumed control.
The problem I've always had with this album is that it's less about production and lyricism and more about how the vocals are executed. Generally speaking, I don't feel kendrick being aggressive enough in regards to vocal inflection to make the production and lyricism work well.
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