History
So, let's talk about comedy for a second. For those of you that have not seen the fantastic TV series "Community" I highly recommend picking it up as it is not your typical TV sitcom and has fun using its own brand of referential humor. I bring up this show as the character Troy is played by none other than Donald Glover or as it relates to this review his "alter-ego" Childish Gambino. Now after watching Donald play in Community and noting his other comedic works writing for "30 Rock" and his own sketch comedy group "Derrick Comedy." It is very important to note that going into this I did not expect much other than a few parody songs in the vein of Weird Al or maybe a few songs that were so overtly serious that one could tell it was poking fun at the whole hip-hop genre itself. While half of this ended up being true I must say that the album Because the Internet took my by complete surprise with its contemplative lyrics, catchy instrumentation, and dark undertones.Now as a side-note this may be a tad different from a majority of my review as:
1. I do not usually cover rap
2. I will delving in a little deeper into the context of the song more-so then often
It is because of these two factor that if you would like to know my quick opinion on Because the Internet I would say it one of the best albums have listened to since Vessels by Twenty One Pilots and highly recommend this to anyone who can appreciate music as there is something for everyone to enjoy. For further song recommendation please check the Buy It, Hear It, and Trash It sections below. Now without further ado
The Review
Singles:
Sadly another album on this site that only has one single at the time of review. The ninth track on the album entitled "V. 3005" is the lead of single for Because the Internet and it is a pretty solid "party" song. The song starts as a seemingly pretty generic love song about having a fun/partying but slowly devolves into Gambino's feelings on life from fake friends, master plans, and even sanity. The production design is quite great and my only problem with the song is that it was not released earlier in the year as it screams "summer anthem."
Seriously though... would it kill you to attempt a smile?
The Rest of the Album...
Now the album itself is broken down into introductions and chapters with a majority of the songs being proceeded with extensions such as I, II, or V. The beginning of the album "Crawl" and "WORLDSTAR" are juxtapositions of what to expect from the album. They show both the deep existential thought process and party boy repertoire that weave together throughout the whole album. It is here we should talk about the production work through the album as it is superb. The low bass notes do not blast too hard in the musical landscape as to wash out other more interesting effects and instrumentation, which has become a common complaint in a variety of hip-hop/rap.While the album can be incredibly serious to a point of exhaustion, it does allow for a few moments of pure hilarity. The funniest/most tongue-in-cheek song on the album is "IV. sweatpants" as Gambino plays up his status as a rapper who has money based on his talents though a majority of people would awesome that all rich people are assholes. At first listen one could confuse the song for another anthem of how awesome his life compared to yours but its during the second verse that he actually stops the music to explain "Fiskers don't make noise when they start up... just so you know," that one can tell he's purely playing up the stereotype for laughs. It is a much needed song as after this and the first verse of "V. 3005" things turn the darkness up to eleven as Gambino lets us deeper into his psyche.
This would be the moment that this album completely turned around for me as I was ready to give up on it from the first listen. This is mainly because I was not understanding the lyrical content Gambino was laying on the tracks and decided to give it two songs to change my mind. The next chapter starts with "playing around before the party starts" which is just a calm piano line with people talking in the background but it slowly mesmerizes as "I.the party" starts playing. This song shows Gambino still talking about how amazing life is but has a more ominous tone to it, eventually ending with him screaming, "Get the fuck out of my house," establishing that he is sick of the facade and the mask is coming off.
"II. No Exit" probably the song most repeated in my car as it is such a left turn from the rest of the album. It has this deep synth phasing lead, techno drums, and washy piano that just beautifully paints the picture of Gambino's look on life. The hook from Miguel is just amazing and fit perfectly within the rap verses Gambino throws up on the walls regarding his feelings at night time and inability to truly rest. "I. Flight of the Navigator" along with the a majority of the ending tracks scream a Kanye West influence without the feeling that Gambino is just ripping off his idol. The brilliance in "I. Flight of the Navigator" lies in the strangeness of its progression starting within a spoken word verse (auto-tuned to helium heights) before allowing Gambino to show off the vocals chop he's merely teased at this point. The song has a semblance of loneliness and helplessness as he croons out, "Just hold me close my darling," a sentiment that has been touched upon throughout the rest of the album but not truly delved into until now.
Actually I take it back... Let's go back to that other thing...
"II. Zealots of Stockholm" first, can you a cooler sounding name for a song? Second, this song is an amazing example of starting a song in one direction and ending in a complete other since it starts as Gambino spots a beautiful young girl in a club (in the most ominous sounding verse yet). It slowly transforms into a telling of his feelings on the world now-a-days mentioning topics including god, same-sex marriage, love, and 3D printed guns. This huge song culminates in a line about missing "heaven by two inches," the two inches referencing greed and lust.The ending chapter of the album still holds itself in the deep thought of the previous two but instead of the darkened, eerie musical score, we are presented more pulse pounding songs such as "I. pink toes" and "II. earth the oldest computer." These songs are majorly rapped and sang by Gambino himself relying very little on vocal samples and allowing one to see his true merit in both lyrical and hook engineering. If one is looking for an intense club sounding ballad about living forever be sure to check out "II. earth the oldest computer" but, it's the finale that Gambino truly solidifies the album as amazing.
Where most artists may drop the momentum made throughout the past two songs Gambino takes a literal "breather" before launching into his thought process for walking away from the comedy he's been safe in. The song, "III. life the biggest troll" itself can feel quite monotonous at moments compared to the majority of the soundscapes found on the album but, once Gambino opens his mouth the emotion that he draws upon makes this song abundantly engrossing. He details his lack of understanding where the line is between himself (Donald Glover) and his alter-ego he's created Childish Gambino and does something that was sorely missing in "My Evil Twin" by Eminem. He contemplates why he made the choice to create the alter-ego within the content and even takes us what the music itself has done for him and is a song that definitely succeeds in providing a fitting finale for the roller coaster of an album that proceeded it.
In all, Childish Gambino's Because the Internet is an intense, thought provoking, and well crafted album that deserves to be heard. The retelling of his stories of loneliness, self-doubt, and "putting up a front" are all something that every one has either been through or is dealing with. While I know rap is not usually the forte here at "D3C0D3D" with a new year comes new change and we're hoping to expand our horizons going forward. We hope you enjoy the first article of 2014 and look forward to seeing you next time!
**Quick Note: The transition songs such as "the library" will not be judged as they are considered party of the song they proceed.
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