Kendrick Lamar – Disaesthetic

Best of 2017

Kendrick Lamar on BET

This is it, my top three of the year. Deciding the final order has me fidgeting even now, unsure if I’ll feel differently next year. It should be obvious who won out. So many on this list were so deserving of consideration. Any of these albums could top the list not just this year, but most years. These artists just happened to produce some of their best work during the prime of this generation’s greatest poet.

Julien Baker
Turn Out The Lights
3

Well after midnight one evening in December of 2015, I sat at this community table smoking cigarettes. Nothing felt like it was working. I wasn’t in a band anymore, I couldn’t find a job, Karlsberg and my grandfather had passed away, and something felt off about my girlfriend. Everything was about to change, but I didn’t know it yet. I didn’t understand everything I was going through and what I was about to face. I found empathy in Julien Baker’s debut album.

It came out of nowhere, like everything I was going through. I remember listen to “Something” and wondering why my eyes got so wet. Her raw and bare expression said everything you ever wanted to say, but couldn’t. Sometimes we can’t find the words, can’t discern the thoughts, or maybe we’re too afraid to speak.

I saw her two weeks ago in front of a sold out crowd at The Irenic. We all stood in silence, hanging on her every word. When she raised her voice, the hairs on your neck jolted. So much power coming from this frail-looking woman. When she spoke, her voice was quieter than sneaking back home without your folks finding out. Watching her erupt shocked you. There’s so much strength, yet it looks like she’s barely even hitting 80 MPH. She can hit another level if she wanted to.

I walked away from that show with my roommate, both in amazement, from just hearing her for the first time two years ago to seeing her live. The hold she has over a listener equals her control of a live audience.

Turn Out the Lights, the follow-up to Sprained Ankle, finds Baker still mastering her unbreakable emotional grip over listeners while expanding upon her sound. There’s a bit of church infused on this new project. Pianos, strings, organ, and some passion for faith. No, it’s not a religious album. Baker goes to church and played music in church. Naturally, it’s influenced her style.

Photo by Angela Owens

The first single, “Appointments”, leads the album in with new ingredients. The effect-doused guitar loop layered over the piano melody lets Baker reach into you deeper. One can make out the themes right away. I can relate to working through the isolation and duality between depression and happiness when our time with someone in life or death leaves us.

“Televangelist” dismantles into barrenness. There’s simply piano and Baker’s voice rising at a measured pace. The metaphor here is one of shame and condemnation. Baker, openly gay, tattooed, and whatever else preachers on TV damn people for these days, probably takes some reproach.

In reviewing lyrics and reading interviews, I learned about Baker’s struggle with addiction. “Happy to Be Here” and “Claws in Your Back” dive deep into overcoming mental illness, drugs, and depression. I’ve never abused hard drugs but I have had my own issues. Cigarettes in particular. It’s better now but I still can’t get past a month without incident. I’ve had other challenges too but I’ve gotten past the worst of it, I’m happy to say.

My favorite track “Shadowboxing” symbolizes fighting our own invisible conflicts no one can see. The chorus unleashes Baker’s beautiful voice with equally earnest lyrics. Read them for yourself, so this next part makes sense. For me, I enjoy a woman’s attention. I’ve been fortunate this year and grown more confident in myself, but there’s still room to grow. As much as I enjoy having mutual interest, I yearn for someone to go out of their way for me. I’ve never had that experience and maybe if someone did move heaven and earth just for lil’ old me my confidence could break an old barrier.

Maybe after all the progress I’ve made this year I won’t need a miracle like that. I’m far more comfortable going after what I want. I’m not as skilled at the pursuit as I’d like but I’m improving steadily. I’m not afraid to say I worship Julien Baker’s work. It’s tough to say you love someone you don’t know, but I’m in love with the idea of her. Our experiences aren’t the same but I feel a kinship with her, just as her audience does. Experiencing Turn Out the Lights is church without damnation. Just love.

Turnover
Good Nature
2

I haven’t seen this one on anyone’s list, nor did I expect to. Turnover were just another solid band on Run For Cover’s impressive roster. I’d heard some of Peripheral Vision, not everything, but enough to dismiss them. I thought of them as a solid band, but not anything of what I’m about to say.

If it weren’t for the next album, Good Nature would have been my top album. I played it more than any other record this year. Most of this list champions artists sharing their private and vulnerable experiences. Things most of us never share with anyone, let alone publicly. Turnover deviates from everything on this list and what I normal enjoy.

Good Nature emanates joy. My mood improves whether I’m groggy or having the best day ever when I play these songs. Nothing negative can infiltrate these vibes.

Genres get created every day, but dream pop is an apt description for Turnover’s sound. They lull you into the most joyful fantasies. Singer Austin Getz has said “Super Natural” made him feel relaxed when they wrote it. Fitting that he made it about romantic love. Call it dream pop or whatever you’d like, I find the experience romantic. It sets a mood of being with someone with no superficiality.

Turnover

“Nightlight Girl” affirms romanticism isn’t about pussy or whatever Top 40 music wants us to celebrate. “Your bones have curves, your skin’s got lines, and that’s the way that you were designed.” I hum that to myself every time I hear it. I’m not looking for some social media, Tinder facade in a mate. These natural perfections draw me. All of these songs talk about living in reality, which we try to escape, rather than appreciate the goodness of the world and not just its quandaries.

Look this one’s simple compared to the rest of this list. I’m at ease when I put this on wherever I am or whatever mood I’m in.

Finding re-listenable albums in the streaming era seems futile. It reminds me of losing cable television. Living with my parents, I could always find Lord of The Rings and relax for a few hours. Good Nature is one of those rare experiences. You’re in all the way for forty-two minutes. Even if it turns up on shuffle or a playlist, you’re in for that song at least.

What I enjoy most though, is the allowance to daydream about the experience of being with someone again. I look forward to private moments of being together and building an experience. Perhaps I’m building up an impossible fantasy but why dream at all if you don’t have any real goals or hopes of what you want in life? Put maximum effort and energy into your desires. For me, even if I fail, I can live with that, rather than asking what would have happened if I tried.

Kendrick Lamar
DAMN.
1

“I think a player in his time is going to be great in all circumstances” says Howard Mudd, famed Offensive Lineman Coach, of Dick Butkus. I hope I don’t need to tell you who Butkus is. Watch this if you need to. I think of certain musicians in the same way. It doesn’t matter when or where they rose from. These people have timeless talent. Whether it’s destined or a blessing, these are the ones who outlive themselves.

I’m ready to call Kendrick Lamar the greatest artist of his generation. He’s the most important and notable musician of this decade. DAMN. crowns him the throne and the honor that comes with it. I’ve likened him to Metallica in the past, through each album release. To Pimp a Butterfly is his …And Justice for All.

Both push their makers’ ambition and abilities to the very edge of their abilities. James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett never played more progressive and challenging guitar. Those lyrics attack the glory of war, cherished laws, and legal processes. Kendrick raises the collective fist of Black America, infuses freeform jazz, chronicling the social climate of those ideas, and the coming Trumpian future.

After pushing yourself artistically to the best of your abilities, what’s left? Metallica asked themselves that question entering the nineties. You can play fast forever but someone will always come along and play faster or better. What’s left? They responded with a record that stands up against any record past, present, and future with The Black Album. I compare Kendrick with them because their narratives mirror each other.

DAMN. established him above everyone else, if anyone doubted him. Drake may always sell more records and have more temporary popularity, but he’ll never carry Kendrick’s reverence. No one has the same level of important albums in this decade.

The first single “HUMBLE.” made it clear that, not only would this be his year again, but he had a song as timeless as “Enter Sandman” or any Beatles song. I’ve heard friends and critics downplay in comparison to TPAB but, in the words of Rick Bobby, if you don’t like “HUMBLE.” then fuck you. The track hooks listeners like heroin to an addict. “DNA.” does the same. It’s the most furious track in Kendrick’s repertoire since M.A.A.D City. Also, who doesn’t dig the Rick James sample?

Kendrick on BET

These songs aim for every ear. I give Kendrick a lot of credit for “LOYALTY.” and recruiting Rihanna as the feature. It abandons an M.O., at least that I’ve had for him. I wouldn’t expect him to work with someone I don’t regard with his artistic legitimacy. The combination works and gives Kendrick a recognizable radio song while giving his catalog more diversity. “LOVE.” also adds more dimension. It’s a pop/r&b song but it’s not something I’ve heard him try on M.A.A.D City or TPAB with its simpler chorus and overall palatability.

“XXX.” should satisfy TPAB fans with its free ranging structure. There are a couple of different songs in one here. Much like TPAB, each part seems as arbitrary as a jazz song, but the mess masks the intentional confusion to the uninitiated. This album seems meant for those who were just discovering or are still somehow unaware of Kendrick. Bono’s appearance seemed random at the time, but now it makes more sense with how they’ve worked together.

Just this month, the Collector’s Edition came out, reversing the initial track list order, which we came to find out was how the album was meant to be released. It’s like two different albums, even though the songs are the same. I enjoy the Collector’s Edition experience better. “DUCKWORTH.” and “GOD.” prologue the coming adventure better.

You can transition from TPAB‘s “Mortal Man” straight into the Collector’s Edition. It’s seamless. Starting with “DNA.” fits better with the current political climate. More abrasive and incensed. How you want to experience DAMN. depends on how you’re experiencing America today.

Either way, Kendrick created the best album of 2017. I must say, in another year where Kendrick doesn’t release a studio album, Julien Baker and Turnover would have won this spot. 2017 had so many great albums. There were obviously so many left off this list. They’ll get their dues elsewhere. Kendrick deserves this acknowledgement. This year helped solidify him as the greatest artist of this generation.

Collection Update 4

I finally got to visit Normal Records after they moved over to the next block on 30th street. They have the best record store in North Park. I was really happy to finally pick up Mad City on vinyl. I could have had it $10 cheaper on Amazon but I still get joy out of perusing a record store to find something I wasn’t ready to drop plastic on yet. Sure it was on less online, but when I held it in my hands finally and could take it home… My decision was easy.

There were some other choices to make. I almost picked up Pinkerton too but I felt like it could wait. I was far more fixated to take home one of the best records this decade, and Caleb, Normal’s owner, had three copies of Pinkerton. Clearly a reprint I could find again later. It’s also not a summer record. Seems more like a moody winter record I’ll probably grab then. Good Kid was made for many things, and summer was one of them.

To add on my summer vibes, Normal finally got in a copy of Skylar Spence’s Prom King. It’s a throw back to summer uptown in the 70’s. It’s New York underground disco’s, Nile Rodger’s guitar picking, mixed with modern dance. It’s nearly two years old but songs like “Fiona Coyne” have stayed in my rotation for half a year. I get the vibe Prom King‘s popularity has bubbled for months now. We’ll see but it’s one I’m happy to have in my collection for chill sessions and kickbacks at the pad. Matches well with my Pineapple Express soundtrack.

Last little item I got was Loud Love on tape. It was too good to pass up. It was an old pressing and you know this one can’t turn tapes down. I haven’t added a tape to my collection for a while. I’ve mostly added records to the bin. I’m not as interested in buy new records on tape as much but an old one like this was a no brainer. My little library continues growing. Check my collection here and here.

Halfway 2017

kendrick_alex_markow

When I daydream, my thoughts usually think tank around records and shows. What am I really digging right now, what am I looking forward to, and which tickets I need to prioritize. These are all questions I can ponder for hours. Around this time of year I compare last years crop to this one’s and look forward to summer, fall, and winter. 2017 has the luxury of quantity and quality. Last year didn’t seem as strong but looking back on my top 10 the high tier of records were supreme.

Currently I have a list of 25 albums, some unreleased, without any order. Other than two records, everything else on the list is fluid. Obviously 15 of those albums won’t appear on my top ten but will certain get their dues. Compared to last year there are so many phenomenal releases to choose from. I know my friends will post completely different lists from mine on our private feed. I’m sure we’ll even discuss our differences on hierarchy. My close friend Andrew Murray placed higher praise on AMERIKKKAN BADA$$ after posting his initial review stating “it damn well might end up being my favorite of the year.” My opinion is aqueous at the moment but I haven’t revisited the album as much as Andrew. If I did, our positioning would likely aline closer.

Andrew, myself, and seemingly everyone else agrees on Father John Misty’s Pure Comedy too. Without much effort, social media kept me aware of his activities over the last few years. Fear Fun back in 2012 was a solid debut but my interest waned until this year. I couldn’t escape the buzz around Pure Comedy during it’s promotion and release. If it weren’t for Japan, my disinterest would have continued. It’s a throwback to a time when we actually stayed in one small space to listen to music, so it was perfect on my trip. When I arrived at Narita International I had to take a lengthy train ride to Shibuya-Ebisu. Time went by as I took in Japan for the first time with a perfect soundtrack. It’s slow burn in every sense of the phrase but if you have the time to kick back with a record like this appreciate it the privilege.

Looking out from my seat and watching the country go by felt like felling in love. The title track forever ingrained that feeling and associated itself with my memories of Japan. “Leaving LA” felt like an EP within the album. A short film in the movie. It’s a not an album I’d normal rave about but timing created an opening for Father John. Pure Comedy may not make my top 10 but I’ll remember the album when I think about Japan, or this year. There’s nothing extra to impress in the mix, nor an attempt for thrills. Otherwise, the vibe wouldn’t create the serene detachment I felt across the ocean.

These were just two of many of the great releases this year. Kendrick Lamar, by this post’s header, shows just how dominate he’s been this year. While a half year remains, this has been Kendrick’s year and we’ll never forget that. He’s been the dominate rapper of this year and the last few. I don’t want to get into final thoughts about DAMN. until the end of the year; however, it’s already his most iconic. It reminds me a lot of Metallica or Springsteen when they transcended far above relative popularity. Their iconic albums, The Black Album and Born in The USA, respectively, like KDOT helped them dominate sales, charts, and year’s narrative.

1984, you could argue Springsteen had the best album of the year. Those songs capture America during those years of Reagan, post-Vietnam, and the decay of the American Dream economically, socially, and politically. 1991, Metallica brought metal to commercial success and mainstream recognition no one ever though the genre could achieve. The record still dunked on average 5000 units a week last year and is still the highest selling record of the last 24 years. 2017, after being snubbed by Macklemore and finally winning a Grammy for To Pimp a Butterfly, Kendrick took himself to a higher place. TPAB explored modern inequality and injustice for African Americans in this country. Back to the Metallica comparison, TPAB reminds me of Injustice’s stretching the artist’s musicianship and social/political ideas as far as possible. We will never hear another record as unrestrained as those from either artist.

Metallica pondered what their next logical step was after Injustice. They simplified and we all know the rest. Kendrick has accomplished the same. I’ll reserve my final overall thoughts on DAMN. for my end of the year ritual; however, it’s already an iconic album and shaped my memory of 2017.

Let’s not over shadow the first of half the year as we look forward. Code Orange has punished audiences with Forever for six months now. Probably not on many’s list, Oliver Houston came out of nowhere with a debut reminiscent of The Promise Ring and Cap’n Jazz. Japandroids came back with one of their best yet. While a slow burn compared to the rest of their catalog, Wild Heart received due praise for maturing with its audience and perhaps standing as one of the lone pure rock ’n’ roll bands. I never got to review Uniform’s glitch noise monster Wake in Fright. Seeing such frantic fury at The Hideout engraved their place among my favorite active artists. It’s hard to say if they’re even in their prime yet, which says a lot about what’s ahead for them.

Logic’s Everybody briefly dominate rap for a few days. Pitchfork and some others had some unfair criticisms citing crammed and coercive agendas. Pay attention to “Take It Back” and judge for yourself. To me, they either didn’t listen or simply if Logic was Kendrick they’d be giving him domes. Real Estate pushed out their 4th album earlier this year. This took some time to grow on me. Japan and summer kicking off really help feeding into them again. Atlas left underwhelmed after Days became on of may favorite albums of this decade. I melt into whatever seat when I hear “Holding Pattern” come on. Pretty song for riding trains in Japan, smoking cigarettes at the cafe, or cracking open a cold one with the boys.

17202937_10154494479217773_2472546905740055612_n

We can digest the rest of Volumes’ Different Animals with a revamped line-up. I’ve peaked at a few early reviews and none of the pieces I read have the same familiarity with the band as I. “Finite” focuses on Myke Terry’s clean vocals. Clearly they’re honing in on his talent as the band reaches a wider audience now. I haven’t had enough listens yet but it’s a transitional album for them. They’re building towards the next project. This incarnation hasn’t spent enough time together developing continuity and their djent hip-hop hybrid style.

Different Animal doesn’t have cohesion but rather a collection of good ideas. Will they lean toward a certain style or can they concoct a fully concentrated album? I think they’re pretty close. I’d like to see more tracks like “On Her Mind” featuring guys like Pouya, who can rap, along with “Finite” and “Feels Good” which keep the integrity of the band’s base sound while continuing to enhance their catchy emotive choruses with Terry’s clean vocals. Half the album I also find pretty forgettable. The challenge for them lies in putting together a comprehensive record where all the songs work together.

No one seems aware Us and Us Only are finally releasing a full length. They’ve been pushing bandcamp since 2010 but seem to have a legitimate operation running now. “Bored of Black” polishes those effort into their best material yet. Cigarettes After Sex debuted their first LP. Big Thief quickly followed up last year’s Masterpiece with their second album. Seems everyone has caught on now, so I don’t expect to see them for $10 ever again. It’s been a great half year and unfortunately can’t keep up with all these great releases. I hear singles off most of the records I add to my library but can’t seem to get around to going through a full album.

The Dirty Nil’s Minimum R&B deserves a full listen at some point. “Fuckin’ Up Young” has those Weezer Blue Album, bros chanting together, choruses along with keeping the rock in the garage. Occasionally going to the dive. BROCKHAMPTON’s Saturation seems fire according to vibes I see online. Their mixtape last year reminded me of Odd Future as a collective with more ambitious ideas. I found Oso Oso’s The Yunahon Mixtape through The Ringer but haven’t finished the whole thing yet. I’ll save it for a beach day.

The rest of the year has a lot on the horizon. Of Mice & Men could potentially wreck my list if an album drops later this year. The Contortionist may end up as the year’s most disappointing album. I love this band. Intrinsic was the best album of 2012 for me. I get what they’re going for on the new single. The first few minutes start strong and remind me of 10,000 Days era Tool but turns bland quickly. I’ve read a lot of comments over at The Circle Pit and other Facebook accounts and pages rave about how pretty it is. While true, it sounds as interesting as the new Linkin Park abomination. They also push back on criticism with the obligatory “sorry it’s not heavy” which isn’t even the problem. That transition occurred back on Intrinsic which was one of the reasons I loved the record. Hopefully the rest of Clairvoyant won’t sound as straight forward or dryly repetitive.

There’s still plenty of albums to come this year. Sheer Mag’s debut album comes out July 14th. Downtown Boys’ 3rd full length drops in August. I’ll be hearing Haim’s new album all summer long when my roommate get’s the LP. The first single sounds pretty good, but I’m not crazy about heighten production. Remove the echoing strum and leave the keys, perfecto. I’m probably in the minority with that opinion. Ride will release it’s first album in over twenty years.

Some familiar faces will potentially be back too. Apparently there’s a Kanye album on the cusp but it’s unclear what to expect. A$AP Rocky seems due for his next album cycle to start. Seems like there’s word all over the place Jay Z will have something new as well. There’s no really proof I’m aware of but it’s been almost five years since Magna Carta, which I’d forgotten about until writing this.

I look forward to the rest of 2017 and can’t wait for whatever surprises are still in store. Something unexpected will eventually drop unannounced on streaming services this summer or fall. Someone I didn’t mention, Frank Ocean or Tool perhaps, will overwhelm us and help shape how the year will be remembered forever.