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March 28, 2024, 10:02:09 AM

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Kendrick Lamar - DAMN.

Started by Ja'moke, April 14, 2017, 01:50:59 PM

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Ja'moke



Out now.

On my second listen. Lots to unpack. I love how he brings a different style to each song. There's definitely a story running through this like his previous two albums but it isn't as clear to me as on GKMC and TPAB. Someone dies?

'Element' is the stand-out so far. But really every track has something to enjoy. He's also spitting harder than on TPAB. No guest rap verses. Instead we get Rihanna and U2 - surprisingly U2 don't ruin the entire album - their song was not what I was expecting; in a good way.

Anyway, listen.



The Masked Unit

Fucking great isn't it. It's somehow exactly how I thought it would sound, as I couldn't see him repeating the style from TPAB . Really looking forward to becoming better acquainted with it once I've propery studied the lyrics and got a grip on what it all means, courtesy of Rap Genius.


I haven't looked into the evidence yet but there seem to be a lot of people on Reddit that have decided there's a second album coming out on Sunday (his resurrection, having been shot on the first track). That would be phenomenal if so.

Oh and speaking of the first track, I just knew I was in for something special when I heard that. Sounds liek something from a Western.

up_the_hampipe

Kendrick is so good he can make me enjoy a song with U2 involved.

Ja'moke

I think people expecting a second album on Sunday are massively reaching.

I mean, I'd love it to be true, but I have barely started to digest this one!

The Masked Unit

Loving the Alan Partridge cameo on God.

Malcy

#5
I'm on track 4 or 5. It's certainly no 'To Pimp A Butterfly'. I think that's what i was hoping for. Not fucking Rhianna & U2. Wanted more input from Terrace Martin, the almighty utter legend that is Bilal & Thundercat.

Anyone else into Bilal?

The beats are nice though. I'm getting into it. When's that Gorillaz album out? Thought it was today as wqell but no sign on iTunes.

EDIT - downloaded this on my phone earlier. Playing through VLC because it is .m4a. Shit is playing the tracks randomly. Bastard.

Another EDIT - playing in order. Didn't even notice Rhianna and XXX FEAT U2?! LOVE IT. Superb. I think i like this album...

kittens

it's o.k.
like, i was hoping for much better. that track with rihanna is a write off. all sounds like radio 1 stuff doesn't it. that being said some of it is certainly good. just not nearly as good as i was expecting after untitled unmastered last year. that first track had me so excited, but then a lot of it was kinda lame. this is only after first listen and also i'm drunk. he's better than me though, i'll give him that

Quote from: Malcy on April 14, 2017, 09:36:10 PM
When's that Gorillaz album out? Thought it was today as wqell but no sign on iTunes.
28th April. It's the date all Albarn's recent projects have come out on. No way is it gonna be as good as this, though.

Malcy

Quote from: kittens on April 14, 2017, 09:40:31 PM
it's o.k.
like, i was hoping for much better. that track with rihanna is a write off. all sounds like radio 1 stuff doesn't it. that being said some of it is certainly good. just not nearly as good as i was expecting after untitled unmastered last year. that first track had me so excited, but then a lot of it was kinda lame. this is only after first listen and also i'm drunk. he's better than me though, i'll give him that

Track 2 on Untitled Unmastered is amazing. Up there with 'The Blacker The Berry'. I just wish Dre would have more productions/features with Kendrick. He's the only artist in a while on Dre's roster that has created a great buzz and critical acclaim. So many artists, old and new didn't come to fruition while with Dre. Rakim, The Last Emperor, Eve( remember her?!?!) Stat Quo, GAGE etc.

I don't think Kendrick needs that but i would like to hear it. I'm a long time hip-hop fan and he's the first to grab my attention in a long, long time.

I like this album on first listen. Defo going back to a couple of tracks straight after.

One question though. I fucking detest Drake. As in, piss off wth your shite you are fucking terrible, but some of this sounds like the shite i've (briefly) heard of Drake that he puts out. Trap beats i think they call 'em.

Rambling but Kendricks's top 3 moments for me...

Swimming Pools - just got my own Gaff, went on a bit of a bender this had just came out, loved it.

Deep Water on Dr Dre's Compton. What a verse. I know it word for word.

The Blacker The Berry - had this on repeat at work. Cracking beat.

Holy shit Duckworth is good. Love that sample. Ludacris used it on 'Splash Waterfalls' off of 'Chicken & Beer'.

EDIT 3 - Another album to be released on Sunday?!?! https://genius.com/a/investigating-the-theory-that-kendrick-lamar-is-dropping-a-second-album-on-sunday

This would be amazing if true. Also seems like something he would do.

Ja'moke

Loving this more and more. 'Fear' is the magnum opus of the album, filling a similar role to 'Sing About Me, Dying of Thirst' on GKMC and 'Blacker The Berry' on TPAB. He runs through each era of Kendrick to where he is now.

'XXX' is fucking mental too. When those sirens come in. The beat switches are insane.

Also, what is that sample in 'Elemental' that sounds like a British lass rapping?

up_the_hampipe

Quote from: Malcy on April 14, 2017, 10:02:27 PM
Holy shit Duckworth is good. Love that sample. Ludacris used it on 'Splash Waterfalls' off of 'Chicken & Beer'.

Ah, thanks! I was wondering where I'd heard that sample before. Chicken & Beer is a fucking great album. I bought it when I was 10 years old, heh.

Quote from: Ja'moke on April 14, 2017, 11:09:23 PM
Also, what is that sample in 'Elemental' that sounds like a British lass rapping?

Isn't that on 'Lust'? Sounded like a child to me. Probably not though.

Ja'moke

Quote from: up_the_hampipe on April 14, 2017, 11:19:15 PM
Isn't that on 'Lust'? Sounded like a child to me. Probably not though.

Oh yeah, my bad. Sounds like a young M.I.A. Whoever it is, I like it.

EDIT: According to Genius it's "a pitched-up sample from "Knock Knock Knock," a 2015 song by British indie rock artist RAT BOY, taken from his Neighbourhood Watch mixtape."

The Masked Unit


Ja'moke

Kendrick's Coachella set was great, although the crowd was kinda weak. Full set here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1btE0bvs31caENkWklVcWYwVzg/view

The Masked Unit

Is there any doubt at all that Kendrick is , as he has proclaimed, the greatest rapper alive? He's just completely phenomenal on every level. Even somebody like Killer Mike doesn't come close.

Osmium

I felt the album was a bit soft after one listen. An entirely redundant opinion given I tend to not even hear what I'm listening to until after multiple listens.

I don't know about him being the greatest rapper alive, but you would have a hard time putting together a list of rappers with a discography as consistently strong.

Dr Syntax Head

I'm a massive hip hop fan but admittedly as an old fucker the likes of Gang Starr, Tribe, Ice Cube, Rakim, 3rd Bass, Main Source, PE..... etc are more my thing. I don't think I'm supposed to like modern hip hop (I love the odd stuff like Clouddead, run the jewels, Prefuse 73 etc) because I just heard HUMBLE on 6 Music and all I could think of was this genius

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk4Nu_5vSR0

The Masked Unit

Give DNA from the new album a go. It's more run the jewels than run the jewels. Alternatively, his last album to pimp a butterfly bears practically no resemblance musically to the latest one and is all jazzy and that.

I think it's a huge shame for long term hip hop fans not to like the music he uses, because on a purely lyrical and technical level he's as good as anyone who's ever done it.

Dr Syntax Head

Quote from: The Masked Unit on April 18, 2017, 08:36:07 PM
Give DNA from the new album a go. It's more run the jewels than run the jewels. Alternatively, his last album to pimp a butterfly bears practically no resemblance musically to the latest one and is all jazzy and that.

I think it's a huge shame for long term hip hop fans not to like the music he uses, because on a purely lyrical and technical level he's as good as anyone who's ever done it.

I'm not giving up on him. I'll be buying back catalogue and I'll be committed to listen without my old school stupid prejudice

The Masked Unit

That's the spirit. I'd recommend not particularly worrying about anything prior to good kid maad city, and luxuriating in tbe Comptoniness of it all. His stuff really benefits from having the lyrics and themes studied, rap genius being a great resource for such things.

monkfromhavana

I'm very much inclined to Syntax's starting point, although I don't have his grace and willingness to give it a thorough go.

I've listened to a few, and it's not for me. Which is not to say that it's bad, just that I don't get it. I suppose for me, I've always been more about the production and the music rather than the lyrics, and a lot of hip-hop for me now seems to have production designed for crowds to sway slightly whilst waving a beer above their head and attempting to look like they're some kind of Charlie Big Time.

Or maybe I just like tracks based on samples of old jazz/funk/soul tunes.

Mini

I'd also consider myself to have more of an old-school hip-hop sensibility, and it's the deep jazz and groove elements that first drew me to To Pimp A Butterfly, then the introspective and political lyrics that kept me going back to it.

Ja'moke

Quote from: The Masked Unit on April 18, 2017, 10:06:30 PM
That's the spirit. I'd recommend not particularly worrying about anything prior to good kid maad city, and luxuriating in tbe Comptoniness of it all. His stuff really benefits from having the lyrics and themes studied, rap genius being a great resource for such things.

But Section 80 is a fantastic album with some absolute top songs. It's not as structurally sound as his albums that came after but I'd still start with that one and work my way through.

Utter Shit

Just giving this a first listen through now. Fucking hell my ears think it's rubbish. Can't work if it's shit or, as with Doc Sinners, I just don't like the modern style of hip-hop. Far more likely the latter. The only tracks I don't actively dislike are Feel and Loyalty so far.

I'm glad to see I'm not completely alone in not getting the Kendrick love. I'm wary of saying it because I know how pretentious it sounds, but I honestly think his pre-breakout stuff is so much better. He hasn't come close to reaching the brilliance of Keisha's Song, ADHD, Poe Man's Dreams or Rigamortus off his debut IMO. Good Kid Mad City and To Pimp A Butterfly just left me completely cold.

EDIT: Damn picks up slightly towards the end - Fear and Duckworth are nice. But then that's what happens when you get Alchemist and 9th Wonder in instead of a bunch of people I've literally never heard of haha.

Ja'moke

I think Loyalty is the weakest track on the album. Everything else I love. Not sure how anyone can listen to DNA and not lose their shit. I GOT I GOT I GOT!

Mini

In 3 listens my opinion has gone from "good but it's no To Pimp a Butterfly" to "another masterpiece from Tupac incarnate." Like Butterfly it has that haunting quality that will keep me going back to it.

The Masked Unit

Quote from: Mini on April 20, 2017, 10:54:57 PM
In 3 listens my opinion has gone from "good but it's no To Pimp a Butterfly" to "another masterpiece from Tupac incarnate." Like Butterfly it has that haunting quality that will keep me going back to it.

My feelings were the same a few listems in. I must've been through it 20 times by now and I still love it, but for me personally there's too much of a dip midway through to put it on the same footing as TPAB, although I'd probably give it equal billing with GKMC at this point, all things considered. Regarding that midway dip, Loyalty is actually pretty enjoyable for what it is but just lacks the depth of the avererage KL track. Pride is far too repetitive and the sniging annoys me. Humble is fine but I tend to skip it as I listened to it loads in the runup to the album dropping. Lust is ok but again, the falsetto is a bit annoying. Love is just a bit shit isn't it. XXX, Fear and Duckworth are all geat but God is back to annoying singing. I think I remember seeing him quoted as saying he'd be interested in bringing out out an all singing album so based on his efforts here that would probably be where I pull the plug.

Still love it overall though and he's still supreme in the current landscape, and has cemented his place as one of the all time greats. His rapping on the second part of DNA, if all in one take as it sounds, is preposterously good.


Mini

Yeah I still wouldn't put it quite up there with TPAB, but it comes DAMN close. I should write for NME.

up_the_hampipe

Butterfly has better lyrical content, it's proper deep like. But I prefer DAMN because I'm a slut for good production and this album has TPAB topped in that department.

Quote from: The Masked Unit on April 18, 2017, 08:36:07 PM
Give DNA from the new album a go. It's more run the jewels than run the jewels.

I loved RTJ 3 way more than this album. I feel like they can't be beat right now.

phantom_power

RTJ3 is an amazing record. I think they are operating on another level, lyrically and musically, to anything else around at the moment