Additional Editing by Anouska Liat

Unifying in the burrows of a Kanye fan forum, BROCKHAMPTON were a hip-hop collective destined for superstardom after the fabled SATURATION trilogy (and still are), but 2018 dragged them all into a state of turmoil. After the eviction of sexual misconduct-accused member Ameer Vann and the divisive iridescence album, the self-proclaimed ‘boy band’ abandoned plans for a second trilogy and took a breather. That being said, fans were still adequately supplied. De-facto leader Kevin Abstract’s third album ARIZONA BABY serves as a primer to some of the sounds and ideas on the full group’s sixth project, GINGER.

Specifically, elements such as indie-rock flourishes on ‘Georgia’ (courtesy of Jack Antonoff) and airy dream-state of ‘Corpus Christi’, glittering with electronics, extend themselves into an album that looks to observe what made the SATURATION records such a spectacle. A look at the album art shows two figures hugging, one being band member Joba with his distinctive coloured mullet, and the other having the same shaved head as SATURATION-era Joba. Could this be symbolic of a reconnection with the spirit that coursed through that time period? A binary answer won’t suffice.

Contrary to the bursts of energy that race out the gate on previous LPs, GINGER lifts the curtain to a double-helping of R&B throwbacks with a dark twist - ‘NO HALO’ brings short verses that touch down on individual mental troubles atop a guitar-twanged beat. A particular highlight is Matt Champion’s introductory tale in which he sees the reality of a failed relationship, told in a tone that is bereft of the youth and attitude seen in their earlier tracks and this continues into ‘SUGAR’. With voices all masked in autotune, the track throws it back to classic Timbaland, allowing a filtered guitar lick to loop forever. Although it may appear to be laidback and sensual, the content is anything but. Each of them is desperate for companionship, be it through a friend or lover, to balance them in a continued difficult situation. Resident lyricist Dom McLennon describes their feelings perfectly: “My instability's trademark, copy-written in all my decisions”. BROCKHAMPTON’s opening one-two punch shows that the boys have had to grow up quickly to face their misfortunes.

