Album Review: Drake – Nothing Was The Same

Drake’s fans have been waiting oh so patiently for his new album Nothing Was The Same until this week. Hotly anticipated, the album of course leaked spreading all over the Internet around a week before it’s official release.

On first listen to this album, aside from the released singles and dropped tracks, I was initially disappointed. I came away feeling like the record was quite a ‘non- event’. This judgement was made looking at the record as a whole. Of course, I knew that a knowledgeable, sound, opinion of music cannot be made on one listening. So I gave it another chance 2 days after the leak. Since then I have had a big change in opinion of Nothing Was The Same.

NWTS is a grower. It’s a body of work that takes several listens to understand. Continue listening to this album and you understand more and more each time you hear the tracks. Drake, as many people criticise him for, is deeper than other rappers and has no qualms about saying what is on his mind. This record reflects that in every sense. Drake talks plainly about his life rather than creating a smokey, false image of what the high life is. The album is slow with only few other club tracks than what has been released and dropped. But at the same time, it’s displays the perfect mix of rapping and singing showcasing Drake’s impressive skills.

This is certainly one of the best hip hop albums of the year proven by the fact that a majority of the tracks are great, solid songs. We are brought in deep very quickly by the first track, ‘Tuscan Leather’. No chorus, just plain rapping. Drake shows he is the most confident he has ever been with his tenacity to create an introductory track lasting over 6 minutes.

The tracks go from strength to strength. In ‘Furthest Thing’, Drake gives a vibe that is reflected in a lot of the album asserting that he is pretty normal and far from perfect. A lot of the joints off this record demonstrate elements of confession, and reflection. ‘Wu Tang Forever’, from the title, is very different to what would have been expected. It does indeed pay homage to Wu Tang through using some lines that feature in their tracks. But ultimately it is about Drake’s thoughts about a woman who he was once close with. The next track ‘Own It’, which features his OVO signing PartyNextDoor is almost like a smartly flipped continuation of ‘Wu Tang Forever’.

Although the bulk of the record is about Drake’s personal progression and the issues he has faced during it, the tracks demonstrate his impressive bars to show how is rap skills are ever progressing. He also asserts this through tracks ‘Worst Behaviour’, and ‘The Language’ which are the rap tracks in which we hear Drake brag about his money, success, and flocks of women. It acts as a warning signal to any of his competition who thinks Drake is too soft, especially his haters and fake fans.

There are certainly some amazing tracks on this record completed by some excellent features. One of my favourite tracks is ‘From Time’ featuring the sweetest voice making appearances in hip hop currently, Jhene Aiko, who delivers a brilliant hook. Listen carefully to the chorus on ‘Wu Tang Forever’ to hear Aiko’s voice. Sampha’s soulful addition on ‘Too Much’ also helps Drake to make a touching track which delves into his family issues. And of course another huge highlight on this album cannot be forgotten with Jay Z on ‘Pound Cake’. The beat here is amazing, with some remarkable verses from Drizzy and Hov, which is given a futuristic touch through Timbaland’s addition.

Drake works alongside some unique production. Yet his strong lyricism keeps him above it to ensure that the production does not take anything away from Drizzy. Trusted OVO member Noah ‘40’ Shebib appears on much of the production. Other names also included Hudson Mohawke, Detail, Chilly Gonzales, and Jordan Evans.

There is the correct balance of singing and rap on this album with songs which are top tracks, and ones that will take time to grow on you. This simply demonstrates Drake’s movement in hip hop. He has now moved into the realm where he can experiment with is music, alongside a loyal fan base and talent that will always help him to succeed. At the same time, Drake is aware of his strengths, with his ability to sing and spit great bars. He is right with his recent comments to choose never to make a straight rap album because he is certainly aware of what makes him unique in the rap game.

Overall, a great album for hip hop this year from Drake. This record should serve for some regular listening as we scope out Drizzy’s intelligent lines, and get a look into the rapper’s mind through this excellent body of work.

 

Album Review: The Weeknd – Kiss Land

Last week The Weeknd officially released his debut studio album Kiss Land, and it is definitely an impressive effort. This record re-affirms to us yet again how talented Abel Tesfaye is with some undeniably great music.

It’s really odd to think that this is actually The Weeknd’s first studio album. Of course his previous record was Triology which was a compilation album which reworked many of the songs that featured on the mixtapes that have made him popular; House of Balloons, Thursday and Echoes of Silence. But Kiss Land certainly adds to the quality music he has previously released.

The tracks on Kiss Land show The Weeknd ‘staying his lane’. The songs all stick to his very niche style of music which is often aptly labelled as ‘dark RnB’ and so the new record does not drift far from what he has produced before. Nevertheless because the music is so great, this does not set back the album. Kiss Land has that theatrical, dramatic sound which we enjoy so much from The Weeknd. The lyrics are mysterious and cover the singer’s graphic experiences.

There are a number of tracks on this album that are notable amongst a very commendable 10 track piece of work. ‘Professional’, ‘Adaptation’ and ‘Belong to the World’ are all amazing, solid tracks which one can easily get hooked onto. ‘Wanderlust’ is reminiscent of a Michael Jackson sound with a funky beat which moves away from the slightly dramatic songs. With many of The Weeknd’s tracks, they all give us a feeling that we are being involved in something that we should not know about. It’s like feeling like a fly on the wall, but feeling a little awkward and intrigued at the same time. The tracks give us a look into Abel Tesfaye’s deep, dark mind. For example with ‘Belong to the World’ which has already been released as a single, we get an insight into The Weeknd being with a prostitute who he has fallen for.

Many people may comment that The Weeknd really doesn’t provide anything new with this album. This is a fair comment, the themes and lyrics all cover similar issues that we have heard of the The Weeknd’s past discography. Yet for the world, this is still quite a new sound. The Weeknd does not get as much exposure as he could do as he hardly ever seems to give interviews and really only talks to the public through Twitter. These tracks still pass off as an ‘underground’, unusual feel. The OVO signee has kept things simple. The production of this album has been handled by himself, DannyBoyStyles, Jason “DaHeala” Quenneville and the only feature we get on the standard version  of the record is with Drake on ‘Live For’ which is not the first time the two have worked together.

A good as this album is, The Weeknd will have to be innovative on his next. It would be interesting to hear how he collaborates with other artists especially because he has such as unique sound by himself. According to a recent Reddit conversation with his fans, he will be working Diplo and another artist on a big track, but is unlikely to feature on his next piece of work. Nonetheless, The Weeknd is madly talented and shows his impressively music making abilities on Kiss Land. With his raw skills, it is exciting prospect what he next brings to the table.

Album Review: Naughty Boy – Hotel Cabana

I am a big fan of Naughty Boy. First and foremost, he makes great, intelligent music. He represents the UK, British Asians, making worldwide movements in music. Naughty Boy has been on the music scene before release of ‘Lalala’. Naughty Boy, who is otherwise known as ‘Shahid Khan’ has worked with Cheryl Cole, Emeli Sande, Britney Spears, produced for Chip, Wiley, as well as working on records with Tinie Tempah, JLS, and Jennifer Hudson.

Khan has an interesting background in his road to music. From Watford, he dropped out of university and started off making music in his parents’ garden shed. Khan applied for money to assist him with creating his business, ‘Naughty Boy Recordings’ as he decided he wanted to follow his dream and make music. He applies for money from the Prince’s Trust and was awarded the sum of £5,000. He subsequently upscaled to a studio in Ealing. Khan was also financially assisted by winning £44,000 on Channel 4’s Deal or No Deal. Getting recognised, he then signed a deal with Sony ATV and Virgin Records. Although he has had some luck with the money, he is raw,homegrown talent who has worked off his own back to follow his dream.

There has been some careful planning with the release of Naughty Boy’s debut project Hotel Cabana. It is no ordinary album, with is a bigger meaning behind using the metaphor of Hotel Cabana Each track has a take on the ideas fame, the music industry and the rise to success. The album predominantly includes UK talent showcasing some of the finest names that we have in the music scene today. Hotel Cabana is a place that everyone wants to be but it does not come without it’s problems, creating a love-hate relationship. .

George The Poet features on this album to provide a sound narration and to make us think. ‘Welcome to Cabana’, and ‘Wonder’ address the realisation and excitement of fame at the very beginning, the awe-eyed wonder of the game, but also the naivety. Slowly, tracks such as ‘Hollywood’, which features the glorious voice of Gabrielle, gives us a wider look into the harsh realities of fame revealing the struggles and frustrations. Gabrielle is a good fit for this song, as an artist who is likely to have seen it all.

‘One Way’ is a great track featuring Mic Righteous and Maiday. Mic Righteous provides some great lyrics on this track as the song acknowledges the bitter-sweet elements of success. It’s identified as being drug like, you know it’s bad for you but you can’t stop. Flowing on from this point, we hear a number tracks that show the acknowledgement, resentment of success. Emeli Sande features heavily on this album. On Pluto the track discusses being left in a place where one cannot trust. It also features Wretch 32 who delivers a great verse at the end.

‘No Ones Here to Sleep’, and ‘Top Floor’ which feature Bastille and Ed Sheeran respectively show Naughty Boy’s ability to appreciate different kinds of music which is something that really makes a top producer. This helps give a varied sound on Hotel Cabana providing something for everyone.

The tracks do not necessarily flow explicitly as a story and in some ways finding a solid pattern takes some deep listening plus speculation. Each track however provides alternative messages. The Hotel Cabana idea ends with track 14 which is the epilogue from George The Poet, and then we hear tracks that are familiar, with an interesting cover of Daft Punk and Pharrell’s Get Lucky and more sounds from Emeli Sande.

Emeli Sande’s role on this album could potentially be annoying because she features so much on this. However, we have to realise that Naughty Boy’s is intent on making the best music with the best sound. We can safely expect him to continue to produce for a variety of artists both in the UK and around the world. Overall this album really shows his versatility, and ability to make some great music.