Release Date: May 17, 2019
Genre(s): Rap
Record label: Columbia
Music Critic Score
How the Music Critic Score works
Buy IGOR from Amazon
IGOR starts with a crackling, hyped-up overture that paints a scene of Tyler, The Creator at the wheel, reacting beside his singing passengers to the positive results they're receiving from the all-important car test: "Ridin' round town/They gon' feel this one. " Tyler and a motorcade's worth of supporting vocalists fulfill the promise and threat with what plays out, a creatively vital and emotionally heartsick set with as much pain, vulnerability, and compulsion as a classic soul LP. Having found his seam with the Grammy-nominated Flower Boy, Tyler continues to make headway by constructing nearly the entirety of his self-produced follow-up out of songs that ache and swirl like "See You Again" and "911/Mr.
In 2011, as the head of Hip Hop collective Odd Future, Tyler, the Creator's disturbing visuals and controversial lyrics launched him into viral fame. But with 2015's Cherry Bomb, Tyler peeled off his Slim Shady-esque mask and got more vulnerable. This was further explored on 2017's Flower Boy, a jazz rap album which had him opening up about his sexuality and garnering worldwide recognition.
The Lowdown: Following Tyler, the Creator's metamorphosis from a cockroach-vomiting goblin to a flowering, introspective songwriter has been one of the decade's true treats. With each record, Tyler has become more focused, honing his production skills and discovering that the art of crafting albums is more rewarding than shock value and banger clout. This growth culminated in 2017's Flower Boy, an album many believed to be a career-defining effort filled with lush orchestrations and intimate examinations of loneliness and sexuality.
The multi-talented LA rapper, musician and producer continues to flourish as a songwriter on his sixth solo project Tyler, the Creator wants you to listen to his new album. No, we mean really listen. "No distractions," he instructed fans in an all-caps social media post the evening before 'IGOR's arrival. "No checking your phone, no watching TV, no holding convo; [focus your] full attention towards the sounds where you can form your own opinions and feelings towards the album." In an age where we consume a copious amount of media during every waking hour, Tyler's request for us to do nothing but give our full attention to his latest opus might come across as slightly optimistic.
The moods of Tyler, the Creator's albums have largely been defined by absence--of his father, of critical acclaim, of love. He responded to what was missing with antagonism, album after album, until 2017 when he looked back at his life with a sunny lens and twinge of nostalgia to deliver his best work, Flower Boy. That Grammy-nominated album is eminently pleasing, the sound of an iconoclast succumbing to his better judgment.
a monster 'bout to come alive again I kind of hoped something like this was coming. When "Enjoy Right Now, Today" closed out Flower Boy, when Tyler spent the second half of 2018 dropping Cherry Bomb instrumental tracks, especially when I heard the gorgeous all-sung loosie "QUARTZ". But I was still surprised as IGOR spun to a close: Tyler, the Creator finally made his Donuts. IGOR is, of course, not a beat tape in the same vein as J Dilla's classic.
Rating: NNNN There are breakups and then there's moving on. That moment when the person you're intensely "researching" on social media is no longer a massive distraction. Life begins anew. Tyler, The Creator's fifth solo album builds to that impasse. But Igor's penultimate song, I Don't Love You ….
A few hours ago Tyler, The Creator released his new album 'Igor', his first since 2017's 'Flower Boy'. It's another multi-faceted offering, controversial and highly personal in equal measure, with Tyler surging into fresh ground. Nick Roseblade has been grappling with it all night - here's his First Take on the album... - - - Since he first burst on an unsuspecting world Tyler, The Creator ushered in a breath of fresh air to hip-hop.
It's May 2011 and me and my mate are lying side by side on my single bed. We are fourteen years old and Odd Future is everything. We downloaded the mixtapes, watched all the videos - the freestyles, the group antics - we have even made our own spin-off - logo brandished on phone home screens - and we've been looking at Supreme clothing, which of course we can't afford.
is available now