This album starts off with “Muddy Sea”, and right off the bat, it’s much more whimsical and not as cloudy as we’re used to hearing from Lean. I’ve never had THAT much of an issue with his production, so this works for me. Now, let’s talk about these lyrics. Lean doesn’t sound nearly as childish and ridiculous as he usually does, he actually sounds like a much more mature MC for once. I still wouldn’t say that Lean has the most interesting or unique delivery. But in a really bizarre way, I feel for this, probably a lot more than other tunes Lean has dropped the past few years. Some of the Pop-Culture references are still a little awkward, but overall I’m into this as an intro. “Red Bottom Sky” is up next, and I have to say I continue to like the more whimsical production. Lean has always been a real pioneer in the world of Cloud Rap, and this is certainly brave new ground. Now, I’m sort of all over the place with my thoughts on this one. In one aspect, I feel like as far as these sung vocals go, Lean is on top of his game. He literally has never sounded nearly as impressive, it’s actually shocking. And as far as the sung melodies go, this is all really nice to listen to. But at the same time, as far as the beat goes, I really don’t enjoy Lean as much on this minimal of an atmosphere. I get what he was going for, I really do, so I’m really torn on this one. I think plenty of people are going to dig this so much more than me, and some aren’t going to be able to stomach this at all. But one thing I do have to continue to praise is how Lean continues to be lyrically not nearly as pathetic. Now, I instantly enjoy the beat to “Skimask” so much more. I feel like I can just take him seriously so much easier in this environment, even though it’s still a whole lot more minimal than his stuff in the past. But in a way, I think this is going to get him some new fans. Especially if in the past you weren’t into just how cloudy and hazy everything was. Lean continues on “Skimask” to sound so much more confident, which I seriously love. Like, he doesn’t sound like nearly as much of an outsider, he sounds practically like a veteran. I still feel like occasionally there’s a really bizarre moment that makes me take a step back and get weirded out by Lean. But still, as a minimal banger, this works. The very icy production continues onto “Silver Arrows”. Now, as far as the beat goes I really don’t have anything really bad to say about this one. But Lean is back to his old, corny self on this one and quite frankly is putting me to sleep. His one-liners aren’t coming off nearly as impressive. And once again, I feel like I’m just so torn on a lot of these tunes. This icy beat on “Silver Arrows” is so groovy and adds almost a sense of innocence to the music of Yung Lean. It’s just so catchy and likable as far as that goes. If Lean was more on point vocally, this would have been so much more tolerable. Up next is “Metallic Intuition”, and by this point, you should be used to just how chilly these beats are. This is honestly a really huge U-Turn for the world of Cloud Rap. “Metallic Intuition” overall is so much more in the right direction. I can’t help but keep praising his more aggressive bars here. Some of his lines are actually seriously brilliant, especially on that hook. Now, I’m not going to say Yung Lean is reinventing the wheel. But this is easily some of his most enjoyable material to date.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVIYe_KeQD0
But every time that I get comfortable listening to this album, I get tracks like “Push / Lost Weekend” and I’m left scratching my head. Remember earlier when I said that there was a real innocence to some of these beats and production? Well here, it comes off as plain childish. Even worse, Lean comes off like he’s trying to rip off Lil Yachty, just one that’s so much less interesting (Shoutouts to Lil Yachty). The autotune really doesn’t make Lean more interesting and certainly doesn’t make him more lively. And lyrically, this is easily some of the most repetitive and obnoxious material here. No thank you Sir. Then we get tracks like “Salute / Pacman” which may just be the best track here. I honestly feel like when Lean is doing some of his more Rap/Sung vocals here he ends up sounding so much more unique and interesting. Here, the autotune on his vocals actually does make things a whole lot more catchy. And while it’s the same sort of minimal, icy Cloud Rap, this one has so much character and hits hard enough to be memorable. Now, I feel like lyrically this is far from Lean’s most interesting or more enjoyable moments, but he does make it work. Not to mention, some of those more upbeat bars toward the end are spectacular. On the other hand, “Drop It / Scooter” right off the bat is just painful to hear. This honestly comes off like an unused track from one of his first few awful mixtapes. Lyrically, I’m back to feeling like I’m missing the punchline completely. His delivery isn’t anything to write home about either. Hell, at moments he sounds like he’s literally asleep. But I think the biggest problem at this point, is that I need a switch up. All of these beats, while they’re enjoyable, are incredibly one dimensional. However, I do get a massive switch up with “Hunting My Own Skin”. I wouldn’t say this is necessarily a banger, but ironically this heartfelt ballad of a rap tune is much more hard-hitting. Lyrically, I feel like this is much more of the personable side of Lean that is just so much more interesting to me. Not to mention, Lean sounds so much more invested in what he’s doing. “Hunting My Own Skin” is intoxicating, and I do have to say that I’m enjoying getting to know Lean on a personable level. He sounds like so much more of a person compared to an internet Meme, and I respect that. Then we have “Iceman”, and is it just me, or do half of these tunes does Lean sound like he’s sampling a tune from Super Mario 64. Now, once again on this one I’m just so torn on this one. As far far as the instrumental and production goes, I’m actually really into this. I love just how more heavy hitting this one is without getting out of the sort of minimal vibe of this album. But Lean’s performance on the other hand is just so lackluster. It’s when he get’s into his usual drug worship that I just can’t take him seriously. Not to mention, his delivery once again is so sketchy. So as much as I like the production on “Iceman”, I have to give it a thumbs down.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NJjGDe68Eg
Now, I don’t care how short of a track “Snakeskin / Bullets” is, this track is unforgivable. Lean here sounds absolutely abysmal as he slurs his way through a minute of rubbish. The production here can’t save him. And while I don’t want to focus too much on this short track, this really just left a bad taste in my mouth. On the other hand, I love the very jolly and vibrant instrumental on “Fallen Demon”. Lean also sounds refreshed and wide awake for a change. It’s moments like this that make me really think that Lean is on to somewhat with this much more whimsical blend of Cloud Rap. This one is of his more drug ballads, which may affect some of you, and is something I’m usually not into from Lean. But here, I think he makes it work. But the absolute last thing I wanted to hear at this point from Lean is a damn piano ballad. However, that’s exactly what we get with “Agony”. I get that this is a personal album for Lean. But this is just so ridiculously cheesy on so many levels. Not to mention, on other tracks his singing has come off seriously well, or at least a leap from where they once were. But “Agony” quite frankly is unforgivable. This is why I really can’t take Lean serious at the end of the day. Sure, there are a handful of really solid tunes here that show Lean maturing as an artist. But then I hear this, and I never want to listen to this album ever again. “Agony” is so bad, that I’m actually excited when the very minimal beat of “Yellowman” drops. As a matter of fact, this one is actually mighty beautiful, with some of the piano parts coming off incredible. Not to mention, Lean sounds really great when it comes to his vocals once again, or at least so much better than on that last abomination of a tune. Now, I’m not going to give “Yellowman” a complete pass, because the melody here is sloppy and I feel like Lean really threw this together quick. But there are some actually really beautiful moments on this one, ending the album off nicely.
Rating: 6.9/10
Give A Listen To: “Muddy Sea”, “Skimask”, “Huntin My Own Skin”, “Salute/Pacman”
Genre: Cloud Rap / Hip Hop / Alternative R&B
Overall Thoughts: Well. Let me start by saying I thought this was going to be so much harder to sit through. I think this is easily Lean's most enjoyable project yet, and I think that he's made some big strides. His sung vocals are WAY better than anything he's ever touched, and his lyrics (for the most part) aren't nearly as cringe-worthy. It's Lean's most personal album yet, and it's a great thing to hear. But at the same time, the bad moments here aren't just bad, they're completely un-listenable. Between some cheesy lines and some awful ballads, this album's low points are absolutely awful. Lean has some great ideas, and with this much more whimsical album I think he's really onto something. It's not quite there yet, but at least I'm interested to see what he does next.
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