Review Summary: I'm faded, swear to God I'm faded
PARTYNEXYDOOR. No spaces. Just all capital letters in bold. It's not really the
best pen name in the world, but it is telling. It's in your face and hasty, just like a friend calling you up at 10 PM telling you that he just found out about a party. That is exactly what Jahron Brathwaite brings. An album that throws images of late night parties and sexual tendencies. And if The Weeknd's
House of Balloons is the music found during the sexually fused waning hours of a party that Tyler Fisher described, then PARTYNEXTDOOR's self titled is the soundscapes foreshadowing those post-party moments.
And its seen throughout every aspect on this album; the subtlety of the lyrics, the ambiance of the production, and a voice that's able to document every feeling a party brings. Brathwaite has an ability to belt a soulful hook at one moment and the next moment showcase a rapped verse with precision. Unlike The Weeknd, whose hip-hop styled verses tend to sound forced and awkward, PARTYNEXTDOOR has a style that makes it cohesive. The reason is because of a percussive wordplay that sounds more like hip-hop than R&B, but it's sung through the soulfulness of R&B. Because of this, its flow is more smooth than the reciprocal. However, this does make moments such as the bridge from ''Wus Good / Curious'' stand out more, and not in a good way. Crooning lyrics like,
Good, lovin, feel so, numb/ Ride me, til I'm, 'bout to, cum/ I see, you are, 'bout to, clim-/ ax so, oh girl, don't be, shy feel even more cringe worthy sung than they would have been if rapped. These moments are thankfully found in very few moments and never take away from what the mixtapes true star is; the production.
Where
House of Balloons presented a visceral feel of the lingering bridge between the party ending and the orgy beginning, PARTYNEXTDOOR's production is the party at its climax and dwindling down to its end. "Right Now" and "Make a Mil'" provide the hi-hats of trap and silky synths coinciding with what sounds like a flute playing atmospheric notes alongside Brathwaite's crooning voice. "Tbh" sets the mood with sorrowful synths and clear bass drops to set the tone for the only time on the album we hear Brathwaite's voice completely unadulterated, without any auto-tune or computerization, and it's beautiful. And that is exactly what is so magnificent about the production on here. It's has the ability to mix the two different spectrums of music and sound great doing it. You'll hear trap beats and a noir-ish saxophone in the same song colliding artistically on "Wild B
itches" and wonder how it could possibly work. But it does, and masterfully so. The production on PARTYNEXTDOOR, which was self-produced, is undoubtedly the star of the show and a spectacle to take in.
There will be many claims of similarities to artists like The Weeknd, Frank Ocean and Drake associated with PARTYNEXTDOOR's style, and rightfully so. If you could combine The Weeknd's sound, Ocean's voice and Drakes subject matter, you would birth PARTYNEXTDOOR. And while it can seem rather unoriginal, especially seeing as all three artists have blown up in the past 3 years, the mixtape is still a party that should be attended. It's a party that you've been to before, but never regret attending.
