After releasing three great to fantastic projects over the second half of 2017, the self proclaimed “boyband” is back less than a year later. BROCKHAMPTON has had a very eventful last few months featuring multiple album name changes (embracing their inner Kanye) as well as the removal of one of the groups members Ameer Vann. All of this built people’s expectations for the project, Saturation III even made it into my top 10 of the year. It left us fans all hoping that the music would continue to push the boundaries of what mainstream rap can be.

IRIDESCENCE is BROCKHAMPTON’s most boundary pushing and well written album yet. It is an incredibly varied listen, but remains cohesive throughout most of the project with exception for a couple transitions. The album comes in hard with “NEW ORLEANS”, a hype banger that you can’t not move to. Merlyn’s verse and Kevin’s chorus on this track are highlights. The song transitions incredibly smoothly into one of my least favorite songs on the album “THUG LIFE”. I see what this song is trying to do, and there are things I really like about it, like the lyrics that are repeated and pulled from “NEW ORLEANS”. The vocals on this song really just don’t do it for me…

The album immediately picks up again with one of the loudest tracks on the album “BERLIN”. This song seems to take a lot of inspiration from Kanye’s use of bass lately (Feel The Love), but the album drops in quality again immediately after this highlight with my least favorite song on the album. “SOMETHING ABOUT HIM” is the worst song BROCKHAMPTON has ever made. Once again, I see the potential in it and the creativity present but this song was completely unnecessary. The vocals and instrumental are irritating and the song isn’t even long enough to leave any sort of good impression.

From this point on though, IRIDESCENCE remains pretty damn fantastic. “WHERE THE CASH AT” is a perfect track that geniously picked Merlyn, Joba, and Matt for verses. “WEIGHT” is an emotional rollercoaster that focuses on the memories that are currently haunting the group. “DISTRICT” is another perfect track that blows me away everytime the beat drops. On top of all of this, BROCKHAMPTON finally perfected their interludes! “LOOPHOLE” is the first interlude in one of their albums that I don’t feel the need to skip.

“TAPE” features quick flows over borderline Aphex Twin style drums. Dom’s verse at the end of this song is one of the most impressive moments on the album but not the most… I am convinced “J’OUVERT” is the second best song in BROCKHAMPTON’s discography (very slightly behind “SISTER/NATION” off of SATURATION III). Every single verse on this song in phenomenal. Matt Champion starts the song off smooth but menacing, before Joba comes in. This is the best verse of 2018. The anger that builds throughout his verse is unbelievably, making me more and more terrified every two bars. The song then features a beat switch that is fantastic followed by Merlyn’s verse which was the perfect way to follow a verse of such frantic vocals.

“HONEY” is an average track that doesn’t stand out too much in the grand scheme of the album but is still pretty great. It also samples “Dance For You” by the great Beyonce which is pretty cool. “VIVID” is the last song on the album you could really call a “banger” and its another great track.

The last three songs on the album mark the most cohesive closing to a BROCKHAMPTON album yet. “SAN MARCOS” feels like an emo ballad until it turns into a beautiful sounding gospel song with an amazing choir performance. “TONYA” is the “single” for the album but it has been changed a lot since the first time we heard it. The album ends in typical BROCKHAMPTON fashion with a more uplifting track, and once again it’s great. This song features a fantastic buildup that ends with booming drums and one of the best refrains they have ever put on record.

BROCKHAMPTON impressed me once again with their creativity and prolific nature. I am really enjoying the aesthetic of their new material and I really hope the rest of “The Best Years of Our Lives” trilogy follows suit.

B+

Favorite Tracks: BERLIN, WHERE THE CASH AT, DISTRICT, J’OUVERT, VIVID, FABRIC

Least Favorite Tracks: SOMETHING ABOUT HIM

Review by: Owen Ashley