We’re three years into this experiment we call Odd Future, and what do we have to show for it? When a sudden spike in popularity gave the L.A outcasts a push into the national spotlight, they relished every last iota of attention they could get from anyone who was watching. As for the audience, there were only three items of which we were certain:
A. That ringleader of theirs is going to be in the news.
B. The guy who sings the hooks might have a career of his own to look forward to.
C. That 16 year old is nasty.
Yes, Earl Sweatshirt seemed to be the proverbial Odd Future sleeper pick, as we all speculated that he would be the Eazy-E to Tyler, The Creator’s Ice Cube. After the news broke that our boy wonder was shipped oversees to Samoa, the crew’s lineup seemed much less intimidating, as Tyler, Hodgy, and Domo seemed to release enough material to keep listeners satisfied, but no full piece of work that could truly standup to their signature 2010 mixtape, Radical. The only true homerun they had since was not a rap album at all, but instead Frank Ocean’s silky smooth channel ORANGE. It seemed as though this group of rag-tag punks had more bark than bite, and Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All would fade into rap history as a short-lived fad with a core cult following.
That was until Earl Sweatshirt started popping up again. Now that he is back and has released his long-awaited proper studio album, Doris, the rap world is ready to give these kids another chance to stay relevant and elevate their jarring style of lyricism to a new level.
Doris is kicked off with an effortlessly cool verse delivered by SK Laflare on “Pre”, so before Earl can dive in at all, he is forced to puff out his chest and try to role with the big kids. He passes the test with flying colors, as the “Escobarbarian” slings double entendre after double entendre. This biggest-man-in-the-room, punch-throwing bravado resurfaces on “20 Wave Caps,” “Sasquatch,” and the newest Odd Future anthem, “Whoa,” as he raps circles around Domo and Tyler. This all culminates in the trunk-rattling “Hive,” where we find Earl fed up with the critics and delivering “that fucking flow that s-s-so belittles men.” He then makes good on his promise of channeling Gil Scott Heron for his second verse, drawing a link between his dissatisfaction with other rappers to the impoverished citizens of Los Angeles’ dissatisfaction with their living conditions. It’s all capped off with a killer appearance from rising star Vince Staples, as Earl proves that he is a force to be reckoned with.
While Earl shows off plenty of his cocky side, the greatest moments on Doris come when this brooding teen sheds some light on his insecurities. On the Pharrell Williams produced “Burgundy,” Earl shares the blues of a kid caught between civilian life and rock star status. It’s this feeling of entrapment between two worlds and inhabiting the grey area that is persistent throughout the album. Earl and Frank Ocean are forced between spending the day getting stoned with friends or focusing on their passion for music on the spacey, Chris Brown-dissing “Sunday,” not feeling completely comfortable choosing either side. “All my dreams got more vivid when I stopped smoking pot/ Nightmares got more vivid when I stopped smoking pot.” Good luck with that one, guys.
Earl delves deeper into these feelings on “Chum,” the most brutally honest song we have seen from Earl thus far, as he laments, “Too black for the white kids, and too white for the blacks/ From honor roll to cracking locks up off them bicycle racks/ I’m indecisive, I’m scatterbrained, and I’m frightened, it’s evident.” It’s almost enough to make you want to give him a hug, until you remember that he’d probably want to beat the shit out of you if you tried.
Like other OFWGKTL offerings before it, the album does have its duds. Don’t expect much from the hazy Mac Miller collaboration “Guild.” “Centurion” and the instrumental “503” feel like nothing more than mildly unsettling detours. However, Doris succeeds over other Odd Future albums because for the most part it skips out on the skits, side plots concerning multiple personality disorders, and all the other bullshit that has plagued offerings that have come before it. In their place, we find a surplus of lyrical gymnastics and unique production. “Hoarse” opens with echoes of guitar that sound like they are coming from the end of a long hallway, and the RZA produced “Molasses” feels like a stroll through the park interrupted by a heart monitor. All the while, Earl sounds like he is half asleep as flawless poetry seems to just roll out of his mouth with no effort whatsoever.
It’s already interesting enough that the RZA contributed “Molasses” to this project, but as the album’s closer “Knight” ends things with Domo and Earl teaming up on the same sample (although slowed down a bit) that was used on Raekwon’s “New Wu,” it brings back memories of when Rolling Stone penned Odd Future as “The New Wu-Tang Clan.” While they may never reach the same level as the Staten Island legends, if nothing else, Odd Future will always have Doris to its name, a truly awesome rap album from start to finish.
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