Lil Yachty albums

2023

Let’s Start Here - 80%

       I admire Lil Yatchy's zeal, he made an album that is said to be influenced by the sound of 1970’s era Pink Floyd but incorporates modern hip hop tropes and patterns within. It makes songs like "Black Seminole" with its hypnotic groove and meaningful lyrics all the more interesting. The psychedelic quality is more modern as well, as rock music influences – the straightforward trip of “We Saw the Sun” is a perfect example of this, where at some point the vocals themselves just fly up into the stratosphere. And what exactly is happening in "I’ve Officially Lost Vison”, merging the accessible and the outright weird in a beautiful way and probably my favorite song on here.

      Other great experiments include the power ballad of all power ballads mixing rock and R&B effortlessly in “Say Something”, the tricky rhythm of “Should I Be” opens all sorts of new pathways, “Reach the Sunshine” is the meaningful closer all brooding and menace and letting all of Yatchy’s demons rise to the surface channeling Portishead and well as Funkadelic. Honestly, the album is a bit schizo as side one tries to please his rap crowd a bit more and side two is the truly adventurous one that will stand the test of time better. The album is long, dense, and quite frankly more fun than most hip-hop albums I have heard this year, and it makes a permanent statement very clear that Lil Yachty is just doing his own thing. What a concept and its executed very well; I look forward to his next one.

Best Songs: I’ve Officially Lost Vision, We Saw the Sun, Should I Be, The Black Seminole