![]() ![]() “Daddy’s broke/What a joke/Future’s bleak/Ain’t it me?/Now you can’t even sleep/And that shit’s on me,” he rasps on “NIL BY MOUTH.” On album closer “the rot,” layers of loosely strummed acoustic guitars, orchestral samples, and muted drums slowly erode as Blunt and collaborator Joanne Robertson sing, “I am waiting on an old dream/Holding onto someone new/For a moment, I’ve been waiting/Stranger in a dark room/See it going down, down, down.” And with that, Dean Blunt retreats back into the shadows, plotting his next timely return. Released this June, the short BLACK METAL 2 maintains the first installment’s atmosphere, though the sonic contrasts and minimal lyrics are more distressing. That it remains an incredibly unique listen is no exaggeration no one else does exactly what Blunt achieves on BLACK METAL. In 2014, enigmatic London-based avant-pop icon Dean Blunt (Roy Nnawuchi) released BLACK METAL, a genre-defying work that combines his menacing vocals (more melodically spoken than sung) with folky acoustic guitars, noise textures, and drum samples, all set in an anxiety-inducing reverberant space. Rough Trade Records stream (LP and CD shipping in October) Listening to Solar Power feels like sitting on a beach nice enough to presently enjoy, but not special enough to remember. ![]() However, the actual songs feel empty, a dump of “close to nature” meditative hippie nothingness. Early fame evidently exhausted her (“Teen millionaire having nightmares from the camera flash,” she sings on album opener “The Path”), and her retreat from celebrity is commendable. ![]() Over its 43 minutes, Lorde sings about ditching her phone, sunbathing, and “wearing SPF 3000 for the ultraviolet rays” over Antonoff’s by-the-numbers production (here built from sparkling acoustic guitars and light percussion). In contrast to Melodrama’s breakup themes, in a strange, melancholically sentimental way Solar Power is content, sunny, and breezy. Mastered by: Chris Gehringer at Sterling Soundįour years after her highly acclaimed Melodrama, Lorde returns with Solar Power, another LP mainly produced by her and Jack Antonoff (who’s produced several other albums this year). Mixed by: Mark “Spike” Stent, Laura Sisk, and Jack Antonoff Produced by: Lorde, Jack Antonoff, and Malay Universal Music stream (LP and discless “music box” configurations available) It’s not his best or most consistent work, but CLB proves that Drake still surpasses any competition, his reign having no visible end. As always, there are some cringeworthy lyrical moments: the “say that you a lesbian, girl, me too” line on “Girls Want Girls,” the entirety of “Pipe Down” (“So I don’t get how you’re yelling at me/How much I gotta spend for you to pipe down?/How deep I gotta dig for you to pipe down?”), and the “Knife Talk” line, “Checked the weather and it’s gettin’ real oppy outside.” Certified Lover Boy is too long and could use some edits (for example, “IMY2” sounds like an outtake from Kid Cudi’s underwhelming Man On The Moon III: The Chosen), though its atmospheric production is stellar. While analyzing his manufactured public persona is as useless as examining K-pop stars, Drake sounds more paranoid than ever, which on songs like “Champagne Poetry” and “No Friends In The Industry” (clearly referencing his idol-turned-archnemesis Kanye West) is especially apparent. ![]() As expected, the lengthy CLB (21 tracks over 86 minutes) is Drake going through the motions, alternating between chipmunk soul tracks about anxiety, woozy R&B cuts about infidelity, and braggadocious trap. “Anxiety’s a drug that I use to get the job done,” Drake raps on “The Remorse,” the closing track of his new, long-awaited album Certified Lover Boy. OVO Sound/Republic Records stream (no physicals yet) Curated by AnalogPlanet contributing editor Malachi Lui, Review Explosion focuses on the previous few months' new releases and reissues.) ( Review Explosion is a recurring AnalogPlanet feature covering recent releases for which we either don't have sufficient time to fully explore, or that are not worthy of it. ![]()
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