![]() ![]() ‘Ivy’ follows up with lo-fi, grainy guitar arpeggios and warbling strums, evoking a bareness and intimacy that pop music’s move toward more minimalist R&B (see The Weeknd) bypasses in favor of shrouded mystique. ![]() ![]() The opener also serves to introduce Frank’s main lyrical themes Blonde tracks are filled with juxtaposition between Frank’s personal relationship-inspired musings (“You got a roommate he’ll hear what we do / It’s only awkward if you’re fuckin him too”) and moments of greater existential clarity (“We’ll let you guys prophesy / We gon’ see the future first / Living so the last night feels like a past life”). Echoing backbeats that sound like they’re churning through murky water lay a foundation upon which Frank sings in a pitched-up, autotuned vocal that feels hollow and weak next to the strength of his natural singing voice, which finally enters the fray amid a cacophony of acoustic guitars and harps. Opener ‘Nikes’ introduces the off-kilter, minimalist production aesthetic the 28-year-old chose for Blonde, which stands in stark contrast to the lavish string and synth arrangements present throughout Channel Orange. Although Endless is a strong enough record on its own due to the gargantuan talent of its creator, Blonde is a modern masterpiece a deconstruction of both traditional genres and the traditional album structure that also succeeds in poetically gracing themes of dating culture, drug usage, nostalgia and sexuality, all backdropped against sports cars speeding through hazy Los Angeles summers. Ultimately, Frank dropped two albums a visual album, ala Beyonce, titled Endless, and a more traditional LP, Blonde. ![]() The enigmatic Frank Ocean rewrote the book on R&B with his landmark second album, 2012’s Channel Orange, and the anticipation surrounding his latest release has been bordering on sensational. ![]()
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