Earl Sweatshirt - Doris

Doris - Earl Sweatshirt - Mellope Album Review

1. Pre (Ft. SK La' Flare) (8.1/10)

A bold and fearless rap part trap opening that felt like it was made to assert their dominance in the opening. Great intro.

2. Burgundy (Ft. Vince Staples) (8.2/10)

Raw bars are about life in an alternative rapping style that was mastered well by Vince; I respect it.

3. 20 Wave Caps (Ft. Domo Genesis) (7.8/10)

Earl raps about the positives and negatives of his actions and how others around him are connected to them. The song follows into a simple loop where the vocals take centre stage as the main part before having a small key effect near the end that switches between keys before fading. Good song, I can see the art in it.

4. Sunday (Ft. Frank Ocean) (7.5/10)

I didn't like Earl's flow, but as the song progressed, it kind of got better. I just don't like that style of rap as much.

5. Hive (Ft. Vince Staples & Casey Veggies) (7.4/10)

Slow tempo but big impact is a way to describe this. The drums and the instrumental partly felt like a BandLab beginner, sadly, but I honestly think the effects of the deeper sound that sounds a little mysterious and hard to pinpoint really brought up my score of the song. And in terms of rapping-wise, this is definitely a step up from "Sunday."

6. Chum (7.9/10)

It's like a mix of Kendrick and Tyler that blends from a story of struggles into a drum loop that sounds like a synth may be in the background lightly... the ending was extremely dragged out and not needed, and sadly sounds like a beginner move. The first half still carries the song, but I think Earl should know better.

7. Sasquatch (Ft. Tyler, The Creator) (8.1/10)

Tyler brings even fresher feels to the album with experimental music that blends his own style into the song to create the right amount of fusion between the two styles.

8. Centurion (Ft. Vince Staples) (7.7/10)

Everything about this feels important to the song, and that's a sign of a good song. It passes with ease.

9. 523 (7.3/10)

A short rapping segment that was on point and usual for the other things I've heard. Not much more to say.

10. Uncle AI (6.9/10)

A decent under-a-minute rapping segment; it's not the easiest to digest in terms of the quick lyricism, but for what it is and what it serves, I'll take it.

11. Guild (Ft. Mac Miller) (6.3/10)

Wow… a song about drugs with Mac Miller on it makes me feel sad knowing what happened to him (R.I.P.). Onto the music, I'm not a Mac fan, so I wasn't expecting a high bar from this. As much as Miller always brings this edge to a song where his style is a little more wacky and out there, I don't really like that approach, and on this I'm not too keen on it either.

12. Molasses (Ft. RZA) (7.2/10)

The input line of "I'll f*** the freckles off your face, bitch" reminds me of the Wu-Tang Clan, and it honestly is a good part of the song. For the rest of the song, it feels like it could use a little more perfecting on a bit of everything, but it's still fine.

13. Whoa (Ft. Tyler, The Creator) (8.4/10)

Abstract and boom bap with some really weird yet wonderful synths that bring a feeling that fits spooky. If you know me, then you'll know I love Tyler, the Creator, so I was expecting to like this. Tyler obviously delivers with his experimental style being brought to the song in an effective and powerful way. Love it!

14. Hoarse (5.4/10)

Not too much into this; the slowness kind of added a dullness to the song, especially since you've got to add a feeling to it, which Earl didn't really give me that well.

15. Knight (Ft. Domo Genesis) (6.5/10)

A song that speaks about how they both grew up without a dad and where it led them. The song wasn't anything special; it had a nice outro and a few alright bars, but I can't say I'm blown away.

OVERVIEW:

I wouldn't go as far as to say that this is a must-return, but I must respect the level of effort and amount of time that sounds like this record has in it. It's definitely telling a story, and it's definitely got its own brand that has appeal… but the problem is that this is a little too uplifted into a good range by features (with quite a few songs that feel special... mainly features make it more interesting), but as a whole, I think I'll return to this; I just can't say it'll be at the top of the to-listen list. If you're into something conscious and maybe like Kendrick Lamar or Mavi (especially Mavi), then this could be more up your street. Although as someone who likes Kendrick, this is a little like him but not too much for me to like or feel something.

RATING - 7.6/10