Kicking off 2018 with his major-label debut album, November, SiR has taken another solid footstep for Top Dawg Entertainment into the world of contemporary R&B. Over the past few years, the label has taken a handful of singers under its wing - a different but also calculated move, which paid off wonderfully last year when SZA unleashed her album Ctrl, becoming her own critical darling and bursting through into the mainstream spotlight. So SiR, the newest signee on the label, is faced with a very high bar to reach on November - he doesn't quite make it, but it's without doubt an admirable attempt.
This album is bite-sized, smooth, and sweet. The instrumentation is low-key, with subtle piano and slow drumming maintaining an easy-going vibe across its mellow 33 minutes. SiR's singing is also a very pleasing part of the album, being soft yet deep enough to complement the beats. The proper opening track, 'That's Alright' kicks things off with a powerful thumping bassline, and lyrically addresses what becomes the go-to subject matter for this album - love, relationships, attraction, sex. Nothing ground-breaking or all that new, but his voice makes up for this, which is very gratifying to listen to. These vocals are present on almost every track here, being especially great on cuts such as 'War', & 'Better'. He also finds success when he switches up his tone, such as on 'Never Home' - a track where SiR finds himself softly talk-rapping to himself. It's actually one of my favourite tracks, as he takes a step back and approaches the song much more conversationally than the others. It's focused on how being an artist and working long stretches of time away from home can affect relationships, using a collection of voice mails from his girl and his own verses to create a back-and-forth perspective from both sides of the argument. It's perhaps the most fleshed-out track on the album and a sure highlight. Not long before this track, however, the album encounters it's only true-blue dud; 'I Know'. It has a good beat, but SiR goes for some really strange vocal effects, for some unknown reason - it makes him sound like a cross between a warped version of a warbling lean-soaked autotuned Lil Wayne crooning and Travis Scott singing as badly as he can, and throws the track completely off. The lyrics don't help the situation that much either, being about an attractive stripper that has kids, so nobody wants to get with her because they would have to provide for them too? Instead of spinning this track more about the single mother's plight, SiR takes the track in the direction of how hot he thinks this girl is; "Ya, papa knows she the champ, heavyweight from the waist below / Stripper club, she the star of the fuckin' show" and adds in the blandest hook of the album, "she got badass kids" x5, "I know who your baby mama really is" x5. Not a fan. Luckily, it's November's only lull, and it picks right back up for the second half of the album. There are some great beats to be found here, such as 'Dreaming of Me' which samples Dre's 'Xxplosive' - taking the signature horn line, slowing it down, and building a lush and calming instrumental around it. SiR sings angelically on this cut, too, making amends with the lady from 'Never Home'; "Lately I've been puttin' in overtime, life on the road can get lonely / I was never good with time away and it gets a little harder everyday / Everything is better when I'm by your side, I mean the world is amazin' / All I ever really want to do is make my way back to you" which goes in stark contrast to what he said earlier in the album; "I know that I should call back, but let's face facts / I don't really feel like arguin', I be out partyin'". The final track, 'Summer In November', solidifies the rekindling of the two's fire, stating that he finds her as rare as a summer would be in November (fun fact: impossible, in either hemisphere) and he comes to the realization that even if he had no money and nothing to his name, she would still care for him the same. A classic tale of love, but also slightly cliché. Aside from the mid-point mishap, November is a solid R&B project. Whilst definitely not as grandiose, fleshed-out & determined as Ctrl, it's definitely not from a lack of trying, and SiR has made a well-worthy attempt. It's a great introduction to the artist, and it shows what type of music he is capable of making - good music. Now, all I'm waiting for is for him to apply it to a longer, bigger, more ambitious project. There's potential here, and I hope that it's fulfilled because we could be in for something great. As for November - a short, but sweet treat, which is easy to listen to either in the background or intently, and makes a solid case for TDE running an R&B roster alongside its rappers. 70/100 |
201820162015Scores0-30 = Bad
31-49 = Sub-par 50-60 = Average 61-70 = Decent 71-80 = Good 81-89 = Great 90-99 = Incredible 100 = Perfect Archives
September 2018
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