Greetings, all. If you read my last post, about Kanye's most recent Mess-terpiece (ha!) you may have noticed the line begging Christopher Francis Breaux, a.k.a Frank Ocean to release his next album, a follow up to 2012's Channel Orange. This new album, apparently named Boys Don't Cry, was SUPPOSED to be released on July 2015, at least according to his tumblr. It's now February 2016 and no album has been released, much to the exasperation of myself and, I presume, millions of other fans. Basically, RELEASE THE FUCKING ALBUM, FRANK. It's okay if it's shit (simply not possible) -- we just want to hear your voice and make sure you're still alive, and that Kanye didn't just find a Frank Ocean imposter (to match his Future imposter, Desiigner) to do that last epic bit on Wolves.
CHANNEL ORANGE RANT TIME!
Anyone who knows me well knows that Channel Orange is an album that I hold in very high regard. Several people have witnessed me say that it is the best collection of music (i.e. album) ever assembled. This is a declaration that cannot be taken lightly, and one that some people may think is ludicrous, but I stand by it, because when I first listened to the entirely of Channel Orange, it was the most magical 62:18 of music I had ever experienced, and I have yet to find another album that has taken me back to that place of utter musical nirvana. There are, of course, other truly fantastic albums to listen to, but personally, not many have affected me as much emotionally or have made me sing in the shower, dance by myself, or just straight-up vibe as much as this one has. And at the end of the day, to me, that's what music is all about.
HOLY SHIT that album was good. It gives me the chills just thinking about the first time I listened to it. As incredible as Good Kid, M.A.A.D City was, also released in 2012, I much more frequently find myself coming back to listen to Orange, even nearly four years after it's release. Of course since then I have become a little weary of a few tracks (like, Sweet Life and Lost), but I also have gotten closer to several that I initially overlooked. Some of the toned-down cuts, like "Sierra Leone" and "Pilot Jones" --which don't immediately grab your attention next to jams like "Super Rich Kids", "Pyramids", or "Monks" -- are actually, in retrospect, some of the best songs on the album... and perhaps the ones with true staying power, because they don't overwhelm you, not in spite of it.
"Crack Rock" continues to be one of my favorite tracks on the album, and is a song I think is criminally underrated -- the instrumental is incredibly smooth, with a killer drum beat, bass line, and organ chords that shine through, and its subject matter feels real and grounded in reality, in contrast to many of his other songs. Monks has a killer snare beat that makes it impossible not to drum your fingers along to, and is an upbeat entryway into "Bad Religion", the emotional epicenter of the album. Listening to that song, you feel as though you get to the core of Frank Ocean, and you get a glimpse of his suffering as someone "cursed' by love. Such a beautiful fucking song. LISTEN TO IT NOW. Moving on -- "Pink Matter" is a great song to have sex to, and Andre 3000 kills his verse as usual. "Forrest Gump" is a bit of a silly track, but also an appreciated light-hearted ending to otherwise very emotional final third of the album, and I don't think anybody was expecting an ode to Forrest Gump ending to the album..
"I was screamin' run 44!"
Part of the reason why I cherish Channel Orange so much is because it took several different musical genres and coalesced them into this unique mosaic... Specifically, there's: Classic R&B, Contemporary R&B, Hip-hop, Soul, Pop -- oh yeah, and Andre 3 Stacks.... Sweet Jesus! "Pyramids" is emblematic of this idea. In a nine-minute span, we get some Pop, EDM, R&B -- lyrically, we get some allegorical references to ancient Egypt and modern day strip clubs -- AND a jaw dropping beat change around the halfway point, with a badass rap verse, where Frank rhymes about twisting up cigars and sipping champagne. I think Frank could be a popular rapper if he wanted to be... if you don't believe me, check out his verse on Earl Sweatshirt's "Sunday", a song on Doris.
I emptied every canteen just to wear that straight edge varsity you think’s cool/
They thought me soft in High School, thank God I’m jagged/
Forgot you don’t like it rough, I mean he called me a faggot / I was just callin' his bluff/
I mean how anal am I gon' be when I'm aimin' my gun?/
WORDPLAY 4 DAYZ. This dude is versatile as fuck. Basically, if you haven't already, please go back and listen to Channel Orange, and Frank's first release/mixtape Nostalgia, Ultra. I promise you won't be disappointed. Also, while you're at it, listen to "She" from Tyler The Creator's album, Goblin.
-- Quick aside, I was once told I looked like Earl Sweatshirt, which is one of the cruelest things anyone has ever said to me -- FAAAAACK
And with that, here's a list of my 10 favorite Frank Ocean songs, because lists are fun:
1) Bad Religion
2) Thinkin Bout You
3) Swim Good
4) Crack Rock
5) Pilot Jones
6) Songs 4 Women
7) Pyramids
8) Pink Matter
9) Super Rich Kids
10) Sierra Leone
To sum it up, music won't be whole again until Frankie O comes back to us. Until then, Channel Orange will continue to be one of my most treasured albums, and it should be celebrated accordingly --
P.S. Anyone else miss the old Odd Future days as much as I do? 2010/2011 was such an exciting time for hip-hop because of them... I could have sworn Tyler & Co. were going to take over the world --- C'est la vie.
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