Click HERE to purchase this album.

This album was released on May 6th this year. I gotta be honest; I was pretty hesitant to review this album at first. In iTunes, this is classified as an Electronic album. This website is obviously focused on Hip Hop music, but someone requested a review for this on Twitter, and I’m mostly familiar with Kaytranada because of the work he’s done with Mick Jenkins & Freddie Gibbs. I have no experience with Electronic music, so I really have no idea what to expect. I like the shit I’ve heard from Kaytranada tho. I’m expecting this to be decent. I don’t think I’m gonna like every song, but I’ll be shocked if this turns out to be wack af. That album cover is dope af by the way. That’s definitely one of the best covers I’ve seen so far this year. Leading up to this album’s release, Kaytranada came out the closet. I guess that’s a big deal. Good for him. Honestly, I don’t even know why I brought that up. I thought I’d have more to say about that, but I really don’t… Anyway, I usually don’t review instrumental albums, but the majority of these songs have features, so those’ll be the ones that I rate. I’ll still give my opinions on the instrumental tracks tho. Every song is produced by Kaytranada.

Track 1: Track Uno

Okay, I’m pretty bad at talking about production, so I don’t know how this review is gonna turn out. This beat is dope af. Fuck. That’s all I have to say. See, this is why I didn’t review Pete Rock’s latest album. If I’m listening to an instrumental track, the beat has to be really fucking good for me to not delete it. I actually think I’d come back to this tho. I just wish there was a little more variation. It’s over five and a half minutes of the same beat. Well, it actually kinda switches up after three and half minutes, but that still feels a little late. I definitely like the beat tho. This song is dope. It’s background music for me tho. It’s not the type of shit I listen really closely to. The beat switches up again after four minutes, which is cool. I just wish more happened in the first three and half minutes. It’s dope tho. I fuck with this song. You know what? I’m just gonna go ahead and rate the instrumental songs. 4/5

Track 2: Bus Ride (Co-Prod. Karriem Riggins & River Tiber)

This is another instrumental track. Oh shit… OH SHIT. This beat is fucking incredible. This is the smoothest shit I’ve heard in… Well, I won’t say all that… It’s REALLY smooth tho. As soon as this track started I just pictured Kendrick spittin’ over this. I think that’s Karriem Riggins on the percussion. He was playin’ the motherfuck outta those drums. This is dope af. Fuck. It just ended. I like that they kept it short too. They don’t give you any time to get tired of this beat. I definitely fuck with this. This is dope af. 5/5

Track 3: Got It Good Feat. Craig David

I just had to Google who Craig David is. He’s a singer from the UK. This beat is dope af. Craig David did his thing on the hook. The first verse was cool. He sounded pretty good. The lyrics are nothing special tho. The shit he’s singin’ about is just kinda lame to me… “When it comes to me and you, girl our time is priceless / There’s no need for hesitation when you’re swiping / I wanna show appreciation, so I buy it / Buy it, go try it, girl if you like it.” He’s buyin’ this chick whatever she wants because “I got it good.” Good for you, Craig. I don’t wanna hear about this shit tho. I don’t think it’s that bad of a song. The shit he was singin’ about was just dumb tho. I don’t think I’d ever wanna listen to this again. This is alright I guess. 3/5

Track 4: Together Feat. AlunaGeorge & GoldLink

I wasn’t really feelin’ GoldLink’s album, but I guess this song could be decent. It’s starting now. Aluna’s on the hook. It’s alright. It’s definitely not bad. I’m not really blown away tho. Okay, GoldLink’s goin’ in now. This is the first track that actually feels like Hip Hop. Well, I guess the second track did. GoldLink just had one verse. It was decent. I just can’t get into him. I don’t think this is a bad song. I just don’t see myself ever coming back to it. It’s alright. I guess. 3/5

Track 5: Drive Me Crazy Feat. Vic Mensa

This beat is dope. I just listened to the whole song. It’s not that good. It’s not really bad either tho. I’m just not that big of a Vic Mensa fan. His verses didn’t really do anything for me at all. The bars were pretty average to me. Same goes for the hook. It’s another average song for me. 3/5

Track 6: Weight Off (Co-Prod. BADBADNOTGOOD)

Whoever did the artwork for this album did a fucking amazing job. This is another instrumental track. That’s honestly a good thing because the tracks with vocal features haven’t really been that good to me. Okay, it’s starting now. This bassline from BADBADNOTGOOD is pretty dope. Oh fucking shit… This shit is so fucking smooth once Kaytranada finally comes in. Goddamn. The percussion isn’t really anything special. I really like the way the track slows down at the halfway point. When the percussion comes back it’s even smoother than it was before. I think I like this song even more than Bus Ride. This is dope af to me. I definitely fuck with this shit. 5/5

Track 7: One Too Many Feat. Phonte

This should be good. I’m a big fan of Little Brother—mostly because they’re from the same city as me—but I’m not as familiar with The Foreign Exchange. I’m lookin’ forward to this track tho. It’s starting now. Phonte’s singing his motherfuckin’ ass off right now. This hook is dope af. This beat is pretty dope. The subject matter isn’t super interesting to me, but Phonte’s doin’ his thing. “Drinks and girls of every type / I had one too many.” This isn’t really the type of song that I’d listen to casually… It’s definitely not bad tho. I really liked the production, and the verse at the end was pretty good. I just don’t see myself coming back to this. I kinda enjoyed it, but it has pretty much zero replay value for me. It’s alright. 3/5

Track 8: Despite The Weather

This beat is REALLY dope. It’s smooth as fuck. I don’t really know what else to say. It’s just another fantastic beat. It starts evolving a bit more after the halfway point. The instrumental tracks on this album are surprisingly the only ones that I’d ever consider coming back to so far. It’s dope af. 5/5

Track 9: Glowed Up Feat. Anderson .Paak

Just like with most albums these days, the single with Anderson .Paak is the most popular song. Oh fuck yes… This beat is dope af. This is definitely the most mainstream sounding beat on the album so far, but it’s still great. Anderson .Paak is rapping on the first verse. It was pretty good. I’m not blown away or anything, but I enjoyed it. The hook is pretty dope. The second verse was awesome. Oooh shit. I love the way this beat just switched up. This is amazing. This second part of the song is way better than the first part in my opinion. This is so fucking smooth. Anderson .Paak is singing his fuckin’ ass off. This is so good. I definitely fuck with this shit. This is dope af. The music video was pretty cool too. 5/5

Track 10: Breakdance Lesson N.1

The way the previous track transitions into this one seems really abrupt. It’s not really that big of a deal tho. I’m not really in love with this primary loop. It kinda sounds like some shit I’d hear in a disco. Oh fuck. Once the bass comes in it gets a lot better. After the original loop fades out this shit gets so fuckin’ dope. Goddamn. This beat is insane. I feel like the instrumental tracks have much better beats than the other tracks. That’s probably because I’m focusing more on the production on those tracks. It’s also probably because Kaytranada had to keep the listener’s attention with more dynamic production. This track lasts a little too long for me personally, but I still think it’s very good. This is dope. 4/5

Track 11: You’re The One Feat. Syd Tha Kid

I really have no idea why this album is taking me so long to review. I just keep losing interest after each track. It might have something to do with there not really being a prominent set of vocals. When I listen to an album I like the artist to tell me something interesting. I don’t get that from albums like this. Even the features aren’t really telling me shit. I feel like most of them are half-assing this shit. Well, they may not even be half assing it. They might just be that bad. I’m not really a fan of any of these features aside from Anderson .Paak & Phonte. Aside from them, most of these artists are extremely hit or miss with me. Mostly miss tho. Okay, this song is starting now. My left eye has been twitching for the past four days and it’s annoying the shit outta me. I just googled “why is my eye twitching” and it’s saying it’s because of stress. I guess that makes sense because it didn’t start until my first day of exams. Why am I talking about this shit? This beat is dope af. I’m not really that familiar with Syd Tha Kid. I know she was with Odd Future when they were still a functioning group, but I don’t think I ever actually heard any of her shit. She seems to fit really well with this production style tho. This is pretty much a Pop song. Not a bad one tho. I usually can’t fuck with Pop music, but this sounds pretty good to me. Is this Pop music? Or would this be classified as R&B? I guess it’s R&B. I could see this being a hit in the mid-2000s. Again, this isn’t really my cup of tea, but I don’t think it’s bad. They did what they were trying to do well. I just don’t really like what they were trying to do. It’s not for me. I think it’s a good song tho. I just wouldn’t listen to it again personally. 3/5

Track 12: Vivid Dreams Feat. River Tiber

I just realized that none of the tracks on this album have gotten anything less than a 2. That’s a good thing. That means that even the songs I disliked aren’t really bad. They’re just not for me. I have no idea who River Tiber is, so I’m gonna Google that shit real quick. Okay, according to Genius, River Tiber is “an indie alternative producer/songwriter from Toronto, Canada.” I don’t know if that’s a good thing… Lemme just start the track and see what happens… Oh I guess this’ll probably be another instrumental track. Nope. Never mind. He’s singing. It sounds pretty good tho. This beat is pretty good. Oh shitfuck. When the percussion comes in…

The vocal contributions from River Tiber were very minimal. This sounds like the background music that my mama would put on. That’s not really a bad thing. Even tho I made the Cosby face when the beat dropped, I don’t think this song is dope af. It’s definitely dope tho. I fuck with it. It doesn’t have as much replay value as some of the other tracks that I liked, but it’s still good. I like this River Tiber guy. He sounds like someone that Kanye would work with. It almost reminds me of Justin Vernon’s contributions to Kanye’s work. This is dope. 4/5

Track 13: Lite Spots

Eeeehh… I’m not really feelin’ this sample… Oh shit… I’m still not really in love with it… I gotta admit that it gets a lot better once the beat finally drops tho. The only thing that I don’t like about this track is the sample. The electronic elements that Kaytranada added are dope. The sample isn’t horrible. It’s just not really doin’ anything for me. I don’t know… I kinda like this song. It’s just another one of those tracks that I wouldn’t come back to again. It’s decent tho. I like the way it ended. The music video was pretty creative. I enjoyed the song, but I just don’t know if I’d ever listen to this again. It’s alright. 3/5

Track 14: Leave Me Alone Feat. Shay Lia

I don’t know who Shay Lia is. I’m assuming she’s a singer. This beat is really dope. Eh. I’m about a minute in. The hook is pretty underwhelming. Same goes for the first verse. The beat sounded like it was gonna be really good at first, but I’m not really in love with the direction it took when it finally dropped. This really isn’t my type of music. The song just ended. It’s a pretty underwhelming track. It just feels like more of the same. This is easily the most underwhelming song on the whole album so far. I’m not really feelin’ this one. 2/5

Track 15: Bullets Feat. Little Dragon

This beat’s pretty good. I wonder if Little Dragon helped with the production at all or if this is really just a Yukimi Nagano feature. The first verse didn’t really do anything for me, but this hook is actually pretty good. The beat’s great. It just ended. Yeah. No. Again, this isn’t terrible. I guess I just don’t really like Electronic music that much. I enjoyed this song while it was playing, but it’s another one of them songs that I’d never have the desire to listen to again. It’s okay. 3/5

Final Thoughts:

That was pretty good. I guess. As I said during the final track, I think I just don’t really like Electronic music that much. I definitely prefer instrumental Electronic music. The production was very good throughout this album. The majority of the features were just really underwhelming to me. There’s really only one song on here that I thought was wack. Most of the shit I didn’t personally like just wasn’t that interesting or memorable. It wasn’t wack tho. I definitely would’ve preferred an instrumental album from Kaytranada. Either that or an album with mostly Hip Hop features. The track with Vic Mensa wasn’t that good to me, but that’s mostly because I don’t really fuck with Vic Mensa like that. He’d have to choose some better MCs for me to really fuck with his album. I know he’s worked with Freddie Gibbs & Mick Jenkins before. I’d love to hear more collaborations with them. This is a pretty good album. I don’t even really fuck with Electronic music that much, but I enjoyed this album overall. There’s something here for everyone. It’s dope.

Favorite Song: Glowed Up

Least Favorite Song: Leave Me Alone

Verdict:

73%

Tell me if I’m trippin’ in the comments below

If you enjoyed this article share it on Twitter & Facebook

Watch the videos below for more thoughts on this album

Follow me on Twitter: @OGNickMarsh