Denzel Curry - TA13OO (#5/5 Outside Albums of 2018)

Last, but definitely not least in this series of non-metal albums to come out in 2018, I have to give it to Denzel Curry for undoubtedly my favorite hip hop album of the year. Hip hop has been moving in such an odd direction over the past few years, with so many artists focused more on the hardness of the sound of their beats than anything else. We’ve had our first wave of Soundcloud rappers coming up with some harder, underground production, but we’ve also had the fucking Lil rappers like Lil Skies, Lil Yachty, etc. doing so lil lyrically and turning the genre into a hype-off. And then this year we had the most relentless wave of sad rap with guys like Lil Uzi Vert and of course Post Malone making a pretty big mark on the year with his new album. We had a man named Juice Wrld actually making it big this year, along with the release of the long-dreaded debut full-length from Lil Xan. And of course while all this was going on, the world could not keep its eyes and ears off the tactless aggression, stupid antics, and heinous crimes of the now-thankfully-jailed 6ix9ine. As dumb of a name as Juice Wrld is, no rapper name has made me roll my eyes nearly as much this year as 6ix9ine did when I first heard it, and that’s the least of my issues with that dude, oh God!

As much as hip hop may seem to be getting gradually taken over by people looking to make a quick buck out of its transformation into something so palatable to either radio or sad/aggressive kids, there have been a lot of names finally getting deserved recognition this year, and one of them is Denzel Curry. As a fan of heavy music, I have enjoyed hip hop’s trend toward abrasive, even curiously nu-metal-esque production, but I have not enjoyed much of the half-assed filler lyricism that has come with this new wave, which is why I have enjoyed Denzel Curry so much over that past few years. He came up around 2013 or so in the first wave of Soundcloud rappers, and even though he made the XXL freshman list soon after his appearance on the scene, it’s taken until 2018 for him to finally be getting his just desserts. The metalhead in me has enjoyed the metalhead in Denzel’s ear for energetic and off-the-wall production, and the rest of me has appreciated that he has still focused on crafting witty bars and intricate, unique flows to elevate his sound rather than simply coasting on ad libs over the fine work of his producers. And TA13OO is such a fantastic culmination of Denzel’s continuous improvement of his craft in every way. On this album Denzel’s delivery is varied and well-rounded, and his lyricism is smart, wisely focused, and packed with witty double entendres from front to back. The song “SUMO | ZUMO” takes the hyped flow of current Soundcloud rappers and turns it against their mindless hedonism over similarly bass-abusive production and tons of slick bars. It’s cheeky and well-aimed. “VENGEANCE | VENGEANCE” is another instrumentally and performatively energetic posse cut with bombastic performances from Denzel and his two features. Up-and-comer JPEGMafia delivers as tight verse and the roughly shouted verse by ZillaKami is music to my metalhead ears. On the other side of the spectrum, the song “SIRENS | Z1RENZ” takes a well-aimed shot at the state of American political affairs while the song “TABOO | TA13OO” opens the album with a somber verse about Denzel offering condolences he knows to be selfish to a woman broken by a dysfunctional family. The deservedly hit single, though, is the song “CLOUT COBAIN | CLOUT CO13A1N”, which may be the closest Denzel gets to emo rap on the album, but his well-sung, emotive, infectious hook on the song and his poignant critique throughout the verses of the clout-chasing and its fatal exploitation is so sticky and memorable in all the right ways, it’s definitely one of my favorite songs of the year. And this is still just scratching the surface; bangers like the independent artist anthem “PERCS | PERCZ”,  the brooding “SWITCH IT UP | ZWITCH 1T UP”, and the dexterously energetic “BLACK METAL TERRORIST | 13 M T” (which comes with a satisfying growl near its end to scratch my metallic itch) all continue to pad the album’s already stacked track list. It’s been a pleasure watching Denzel grow, and it is so fulfilling to see his making the waves he has long deserved to be making. TA13OO is the perfect representation of his artistic progression, and definitely one of my favorite albums of 2018.