Denzel Curry - TA13OO

Ever since his arrival on the Rap scene a few years ago, Denzel Curry has been simply fascinating to me.  The first time I laid my ears on him with his "32 Zel" EP, I was pretty blown away.  He, like his contemporaries such as Danny Brown and Travis Scott, had a Rock Star mentality.  His personality was outlandish, and he sounded like an absolute monster spitting his verses.  He would go from talking about gang life and life on the streets from one minute to dropping cartoon and movie references moments later.  All of this was surrounding his gigantic and anthemic track "Ultimate".  It's a pretty stunning intro to Denzel.  But Denzel wasn't done yet.  In 2016 he released his remarkable, gritty, banger-fueled "Imperial" album.  This album was wildly energetic and entertaining from start to finish.   There were moody, emotional tunes like "This Life" and "Me Now", as well as wild performances like the incredible "ULT".  All of this, alongside Denzel's very colorful personality and incredible aggression, made for one of the most truly exciting Rap albums of the year.  Denzel returned in 2017 with the "13" EP, which was decent.  At 13 minutes, there wasn't too much going on, and "Heartless" may be the corniest track Denzel has ever touched, period.  But tracks like "Zeltron 6 Billion" and "Bloodshed" reminded us just how charismatic Denzel was, and was big enough and vicious enough to carry this EP on their own. SO Denzel is back with a brand new, three-part album, and I'm so beyond hyped to chat about it.  These singles have been absolutely nuts, and I can't wait any longer.  Let's chat.

This album is split up into 3 short acts, the first being “Light”.  This first act starts off with “TABOO I  TA13OO”, and right off the bat I just love how dreary this one is and just how dreary it is on top.  There’s a certain suffocating feel to this that’s actually pretty infectious.  But more than anything, this is some very emotional stuff here.  We see Denzel here really branding out and focusing more on singing more than anything for a few minutes.  And while no, this isn’t going to be “track of the album”, it’s a wonderful introduction here.  There’s this seriously carefree feel to it even if it is on the more depressive side.  And when Denzel does start dropping his more aggressive bars, I can’t help but get all sorts of hyped.  Then we have “BLACK BALLOONS I 13LACK 13ALLOONZ”, which on the other hand, may just be “Track of the Album”.  The very dreamy vibes of this album continue on and almost touch down on a more Jazzy tone here.  And to be honest, this is one seriously classy tune.  There’s some fantastic funk elements to the instrumentals, and I love some of these pop culture references.  Not only that, Denzel just sounds so comfortable on this beat.  Even Twelve'len & Goldlnk who are featured here, and I’m not fans of at all, just sound like they belong on this track.  Not to mention, I just love how genuinely catchy and memorable the hook is here.  In every way, this track is pretty perfect. I really have to give Denzel credit, because as this album rolls on he continues to try and branch out so much as far as the beats he touches go.  “CASH MANIAC I CAZH MAN1AC” has a sunny, very “conscious” Hip Hop feel to ti, as well as some really great lines referencing Classic Rock.  Once again, we do have a seriously memorable hook as well, but none of that takes away from how genuinely vicious Denzel comes off.  But if this is the “Light” portion of this album, there continues to be a serious amount of emotion that we’ve never heard from Denzel before.  But hey, we’re 4 tracks in and I don’t know about you, but I’m hungry for a banger.  And my friends, “SUMO I ZUMO” is an absolute banger.  Denzel here sounds like an absolute madman ranting and rambling over this fantastic beat curtesy of Charlie Hear.  Like, this is easily one of Denzel’s most wild performances here, but he comes off dripping in charisma, and sounds like he’s absolutely out of his mind.  There are brilliant Pop Culture references once again, and it’s just so great to hear Denzel freak out.  Like I’ve said for years now, Denzel has a Rock Star mentality, and this is all the proof I need right here. 

This album rolls on with it’s next act, the “Gray” act.  With “SUPER SAIYAN SUPERMAN I  ZUPER ZA1YAN ZUPERMAN” I continue to love just how barren these beats sound from time to time, it just adds to the overall somber feel to this album.  I continue to just be absolutely blown away by Denzel’s flow, this guy has so much confidence and for good reason.  And while I was originally not as into this track, his absolutely blistering flow is masterful.  Sure, I sort of wish this one had more of a banging chorus, but I certainly can’t complain.  Now, maybe you haven’t noticed, but I absolutely LOVE this album.  However, “SWITCH IT UP I  ZWITCH 1T UP” is my least favorite of this bunch.  Now, I actually really love Denzel’s performance here.  We see him on this one go on this completely manic, bizarre performances that’s just so animated.  And that’s something I actually would love to hear more of.  But the beat here isn’t nearly as flawless as every other one we’ve heard here.  The production is average at best, and the backing ad-libs aren’t nearly as well executed as other ones here.  Plus, the chorus is just asinine. Thankfully, “MAD I GOT IT I MAD 1 GOT 1T” reels me back in quickly.  I love just how dismal and emotional this beat comes off.  And while I’m still not nearly as interested in the chorus here, I’m still loads more into this track.  The production is Icy, Denzel’s performance is aggressive, and I actually really dig his sort of half rapped, half sung verses.  I wouldn’t say it’s necessary, but it just really shows how versatile Denzel is becoming.  Plus, I love how this one just completely disintegrates into something so much darker in the last minute or so.  When Denzel really starts getting into the groove, he really does get unstoppable.  “SIRENS I Z1RENZ” once again shows Denzel Incorporating so much more singing and harmonies, but it’s just done so classy.  I love the aggressive, Political edge to this one, and just how genuinely angry this one comes off as.  But not only is this one angry, it’ intelligent, and that’s the key.  The beat is just so minimal as well, which just puts so much more focus on Denzel.  This track is absolutely flooring.   It’s also one of the longer cuts of the bunch for the most part, showing that Denzel can really expand on his ideas wonderfully.  Not to mention, those last 10 seconds or s, are some of Denzel’s wildest bars of the album. The very emotional, distressed sound of this album rolls on with “CLOUT COBAIN I  CLOUT CO3A1N”.  But Denzel does a fantastic job of adding in elements of a much more easily digestible Rap, making this album far from sappy or wimpy.  Once again we see a very dreamy, minimal beat that I feel like only brings out more of Denzel’s performance.  Which, honestly is a little toned down for this one.  But Denzel’s wordplay and imagery is absolutely on point, and Denzel remains one of the most visceral MC’s in the game right now. 

This final “act” is upon us friends, “Dark”.  It starts out with “THE BLACKEST BALOON I  THE 13LACKEZT 13ALLOON”, and I love just how suffocating and gigantic some of this production is.  But as far as Denzel’s actual performance here goes, I’m iffy on it.  This is easily one of his lowest points here as far as songwriting goes.  Even his performance here just seems radically unsure.  Thankfully, Denzel does enough with this gigantic, banging beat and this nocturnal production.  But I sadly do really need a little more.  Thankfully Denzel pulls it together and absolutely nails the final three tracks here.  First, we have “PERC I  PERCZ”, which shows Denzel bounce back with an intense, wild, and animated track.   Here, he just sounds so damn hungry, like he ’’t want to waste a single second.  I love the sort of futuristic production and just how streamlines this comes off.  Also, Denzel is back on his more conscious side, and that’s just fine by me.  But none of that takes away from just how bombastic this track is, and the amazing one-liners Denzel packs into it.  Then we have “VENGEANCE - VENGEANCE” which keeps going down a more synthetic and futuristic route.  And holy hell does it ever work for Denzel.  This beat is absolutely nuts, his performance here is out of control, and I love just how genuinely animated and absurd this track is.  It’s still absolutely vicious, but still has time to reference Jimmy Neutron and South Park.  It’s a wild track that just makes me want to hear more from Denzel.  Now, I do have to point out at this point that the structure of this album is a little weird, like, no one NEEDED this to be in 3 parts, and they’re really not radically different.  But still, this is one brutal track.  This album wraps up with “BLACK METAL TERRORIST - 13MT”, an oddly bluesy and very dark track.  There’s absolutely a sense of finality to this track that I can’t deny, but you wouldn’t realize that from just how genuinely wild Denzel sounds and how much energy he’s showing off.  I mean, my only real critique is that I feel like the low-key and spacey chorus does mess up the flow of this one.  But between the metal vocals of the finale and the very nocturnal feel to this all, this rules. 

Rating: 8.8/10

Give A Listen To: “BLACK BALLOONS I 13LACK 13ALLOONZ”,  “SUMO I ZUMO”, “SIRENS I Z1RENZ”, “CLOUT COBAIN I  CLOUT CO3A1N"

Least Favorite Track: SWITCH IT UP I  ZWITCH 1T UP

Genre: Hardcore Hip Hop / Rap 

Overall Thoughts: Denzel Curry in the last few years has, for my money, become one of Rap and Hip-Hop’s real Rock stars.  But the material on “TA13OO” has transcended him to an entirely new level.  His performances here are some of his most energetic to date, and if you’ve listened to his early material, you know that’s saying something.  The production here is cloudy and nocturnal, and to say that this isn’t Denzel’s most emotional and depressive album yet would be a lie.  It’s Psychedelic and artsy, but also aggressive and often tortured, with very few moments that aren’t refreshing and genuinely wild.