(warning explicit album)
Travis Scott’s third studio album, ASTROWORLD, released on August 3, 2018, has been doing big numbers with 3 songs currently on the Billboard Top 100. Sicko Mode Ft. Drake is currently sitting at #9 being the most popular of the three.
Initially announced in May of 2016 before the release of his album Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight making astroworld a long awaited release. ASTROWORLD, Though worth the wait, I don’t think this was a perfect album. Therefore, I wanted to share my opinions on the high and low points of this record.
Starting with the high points, the best track for me was easily track 3 “Sicko Mode” Ft. Drake, Big Hawk, and Swae Lee. This was due to Travis’ flow and Drake’s musical performance, which was better than most of what was delivered on the two part Drake album, “Scorpion”. With 3 beat switches on this song you might expect it to sound like a mess, but they all mesh together making the different parts enjoyable in there own way, leaving little to be desired from this cut.
Track 5 “STOP TRYING TO BE GOD” Ft. James Blake, Kid Cudi, Philip Bailey, and Stevie Wonder was another highlight track for me. Kid Cudi and Philip Bailey’s soft hook fit well with the overall aesthetic of the song. It then cuts into Travis singing rather than rapping like most tracks, which was a great choice for the more serious tone the song. Finally, the song ends with bridge by James Blake and a harmonica solo by Stevie Wonder, making for a beautiful ending to an already great track.
Track 12 “YOSEMITE” Ft. Gunna and Nav was the last high point for me on this album with a beat reminiscent of a more alternative style. Opening with Gunna singing about his lavish life of jewelry and designer clothing, Travis follows suite with his verse being generally about the same thing. The song ends with Nav singing about his team having expensive jewelry and him having expensive sneakers.
A low point on this album for me would have to be track 10 “NC-17” Ft. 21 Savage. Even though I like some music by 21 Savage, his verse on this track seemed like a filler for an all ready lackluster auto tune mess that was the Travis verse. With a rather annoying beat to top it all off, this song was a big let down for what these artist are capable of producing.
Track 2 “Carousel” Ft. Frank Ocean was another flop on the album. The background ad libs and use of voice echo make the Travis verse annoying. The first Frank Ocean verse sounds decent but nothing special, however his second verse sounds like he’s going for a Young Thug-esq impersonation which does not fit his style.
Track 4 “R.I.P SCREW” Ft. Swae Lee was another song that didn’t quite hit the mark for me. The distorted audio at the beginning from Swae Lee does not really add much value to the song nor do the ending echos. In some of the Travis lines they go on for much longer than necessary, making it even less enjoyable.
Though most of this album is an enjoyable listen I just wanted to share my thoughts on what I thought was good and what could use improvement.
The Bobcat Times 