For all dogs :: OndaRock Reviews

I made an album for the book
They say they miss old girl Drake, don’t tempt me

Each Drake album is an event, regardless of aesthetic judgments about the music of the Canadian singer and rapper. Drake is not only one of the most popular artists in the world of the last twenty years, but he is also, in the company of several others, one of the pop figures who defined a new way of understanding music and, above all, a different type of pop star. The new ‘For All The Dogs’ is no exception, landing straight to the top of Spotify’s Global Top Albums, where he is currently the third most streamed artist in the world with over 83 million monthly listeners.
Moving away from the house direction of “Honestly Nevermind,” already archived through his collaboration with 21 Savage on “Her Loss,” Drake returns to the trap-pop-R&B blend he helped establish as one of the dominant styles. last decade: here is the “old Drake” again, so, as the phrase quoted at the beginning and appearing on the website dedicated to his new book proclaims, the ideal companion

album paper. However, with 23 songs in an 84 minute setlist sound it is expressed in a series of variations, rarely inspired.

The listening flows through confirmations and self-quotations, lured by the names of various guests and some of Drake’s phrases standing out in the flow of poetry, or, more often, details of glittering and luxurious productions. “Virginia Beach” opens with sample chipmunk soul the trap beat has rap as the backdrop for its dialogue, but the direction immediately seems uncertain: “Amen” softens into gospel, “Calling For You” seems to run out of gas halfway through and perks up with rhythm switch providential. The impression that the songs continue well beyond what is necessary is confirmed by the bombastic trap of “Fear Of Heights”, which also lasts only two and a half minutes.
At the climax of “Daylight” there is a push, a more aggressive Drake, from flow is unusually dynamic, and the subsequent “First-Person Shooter” (with J. Cole) and “IDGAF” (with Yit) keep the listener’s attention at a high level, also thanks to the presenters. However, when Drake returns alone to the microphone, boredom takes over, and so do I. beat refined and ultra-productive they can work a miracle: he is not a rapper or a singer who can support songs himself today, especially now that his style is well known.

The more melancholic “7969 Santa,” “Bahamas Promises,” and “Tried Our Best” break all enthusiasm, slow the flow of the song and drown in a mellifluous emotional paturnia, even less interesting when you consider that they come from a man who has now been in it for forty years .
If that’s not enough, the listener’s time is also used for inappropriate interludes such as “Screw The World” boom bap

Deformed is intended as a tribute to DJ Screw, which could perhaps be positioned as a follow-up to one of Dai’s songs beat relatively more iconic, like “8am in Charlotte”, the best song on the entire album and the only one that, despite sound undoubtedly vintage Gifted with Williams’ unique conducting touch, he radiates warmth and emotion.
When guests do help, sometimes they just seem to make lazy contributions, like Chief Keef on “All The Party,” a song that slows down until it floats around in synths for an inordinate amount of time, or Bad Bunny on “ Gettly” and Lil Yachty in “Another Late Night,” so we have to rely on the comparatively less popular Sexxy Red, the soul of the holiday “Rich Daddy” in which Drake serves as a supporting actor for a long time, and when he returns as the main character , he drains all enthusiasm to plunge back into the usual plaintive song.

The pre-publication advertising campaign itself merits further investigation, at least from the point of view music marketing. The announcements, delays, conflicts with fans and the need to avoid interfering with other rappers’ new music have demonstrated just how impressive the production is and how difficult it is for Drake’s new album to hit the market. The cover, designed by his son and also adorned with a special communication invention, depicts a goat (in English

goat) and, in hip-hop parlance, would call Drake greatest of all time: A self-congratulatory self-congratulation that represents the entire album well, a long and self-indulgent monument to the dominance of modern pop-rap that, while surviving in terms of numbers, now seems creatively lost. The pop-rap future that Drake has had for several years seems to be pointing to something different, and this eighth album does more than just represent sound tomorrow, looks at (his own) past with narcissism bordering on masturbation.

10/22/2023