Review Summary: 808s and Dark Grape Gatorades II
I get it. Unknown Memory features some of the most immersive and lush production in hip hop to date, exploring depths seldom seen in the genre. I understand Yung Lean is 18 and Swedish. I understand he grew up in a culture far-removed from the epicenter of hip hop, the epicenter being the boroughs of New York (sorry, Kanye). I understand the first Run DMC tapes were probably just being circulated around the near non-existent ghettos of Stockholm during the time he was conceived. I understand the years between 2001 and 2003 likely traumatized him beyond normalcy. I understand 808s and Dark Grapes II was unequivocally his album of the year for 2011. I understand his closest thing to a rap mentor was probably an Assyrian immigrant ironically going by the alias “Truth” emceeing about the ills of Sweden’s “oppressive caste system” in broken English. I understand it all. But, all things considered, do they forgive his abysmally torrid contribution on his own album? Absolutely not.
Case in point, take Yung Lean’s hooks into consideration. Hooks are pivotal to cloud rap’s aesthetic. When executed well, they can add to the airy, lackadaisical vibe of the music. His hooks are reminiscent of Squadda B and Mondre M.A.N’s own work, but come with the same charm as an ersatz parody. Pitiful, almost satirical imitation aside, he does seem to have a decent enough idea of melody. One can easily imagine how the choruses and refrains could have been carried out more tastefully (i.e. less melodrama and less of a serious attempt at singing). However, he harmonizes with all the subtlety and grace of a whale washed ashore desperately attempting to return to fresh water. The tone-deaf crooning ruins the aesthetic he aims for. Similarly, Yung Lean has zero concept of flow. He fumbles along the beat like he was half-drunk, half-asleep drooling all over the studio mic and all over the pad where he pens his bizarre, free-association rhymes. Moreover, his vocals completely override the instrumentals, holy unbalanced and effectively neutralizing any potential enjoyment derived from them.
Tying into his incompetent rapping and inability to deliver a single decent hook are his slew of indecipherable rhymes. When the nonsensical droning of lyrics such as "All these lights leave you blinded" can be easily misinterpreted as "Walrus face Aunt Jemima", it completely defuses any emotive weight behind them. The vocals are as if a blank canvas, where one can randomly insert their own words matching his voice so long as they roughly abide by the syllabic pattern of the actual lyrics. Even when understandable, Lean arbitrarily spits woefully clumsy non-sequiturs about how he’s Wario in Mario Kart immediately followed by boastful claims about how he tops music charts. It’s an awkward hodge-podge of random lines that could have easily been rearranged in any order. The melancholy of his vocal intonation renders such ridiculous albeit amusing lyricism over-the-top and cringe-worthy.
Despite the atmospheric, brooding soundscape of Unknown Memory’s instrumentals, Yung Lean proves to be his own downfall by diluting the overall quality of the record with his poor brand of cloud rap vocalization. Terrific production and bad rapping doesn’t always even out into a good album, and Unknown Memory is definite proof of this.
