The Melodic Blue
Continuing the high momentum off the back of his collaboration 'Family Ties' with Kendrick Lamar (his cousin) and his surprise appearance on Donda, Baby Keem has dropped his highly anticipated album The Melodic Blue. Blending influences from Kanye West, Travis Scott and of course Kendrick Lamar, The Melodic Blue is a well-produced first album from the 20 year old Californian rapper that proves he is one of the best new faces in the game.
First of all, 'trademark usa' is an insane way to open an album. The production on this track is crazy, and the multiple beat switches and flows make for an energetic introduction to this new album. Rosalía has a surprise chorus but ultimately it's Keem's hunger that carries this track. 'range brothers' is another stand-out track that features Keem and Kendrick throwing verses back and forth over a hard-hitting beat. It is however almost derailed by an extremely goofy and syncipated outro where Kendrick does his best impression of a leprechaun by repeating "top of the mornin" a little too much. The track also suffers from overly complicated production in parts but nonetheless is still a banger.
There are parts of this album that draw heavy inspiration from Kanye's 808's & Heartbreak with tracks such as 'issues' featuring heavy beating drums over a softer melancholic beat. Keem’s vocals are significant throughout the majority of The Melodic Blue but shine on this song in particular. His experimentation with sounds and samples is clear not only in ‘issues’, but also in songs such as 'gorgeous' which feature some beautiful echoing vocals complimented by fantastic production infused with a plethora of layering sounds. I hope that in the future, Keem continues to thrive in this creative mindset when making his music as these tracks are two of the best on the album.
.LEFT: The Melodic Blue album cover
I want to also mention the last track '16', as in my opinion it is the best song on the entire album. It has a similar sound to 'Hold On, We're Going Home' with some retro influences apparent in the production. Keem's voice sounds fantastic over the beat and the whole track left me feeling happily nostalgic. To have both the intro and outro tracks be two of the best songs on an album is a rarity, and The Melodic Blue hit the nail on the head in terms of energy and feelings both going into and out of this album.
There are some tracks that don't hit home as well as others, such as 'first order of business' and 'lost souls', which feature uninteresting beats and lethargic rapping from Keem. 'south africa' felt as though the production or mixing was off, as the darker chords of the grand piano felt overbearing compared to Keem's sluggish rapping. The track 'pink panties' has an entertaining chorus and interesting production and although I can appreciate the oddness of the track, I personally can’t see myself listening to it again. The Melodic Blue continues the recent trend of lyrical repetition made popular by the likes of Playboi Carti, but comes off feeling stale after only a few songs. Maybe I'll come 'round eventually but repeating a word, line or phrase over and over feels like lazy writting to me.
Overall, The Melodic Blue is a quality first album. Over the course of 16 tracks, Keem flaunts his unique flows over hard-hitting beats and melodic instrumentals. He plays around with sounds and styles, letting his creativity shine through in an impressive way. The features from Kendrick Lamar, Travis Scott and Don Toliver are well placed and compliment the tracks they’re a part of without stealing the spotlight from Keem himself. The album certainly has it’s short-comings; over-production, repetition, and some bland beats but when you consider that at just 20 years old, Keem wrote and produced most of the album by himself, I’d say that the sky’s the limit as he looks to the future.
STREAM AND DOWNLOAD The Melodic Blue HERE
