Reviews (page 4 of 8)
This, for me as a (beginner) bass player, is a blessing. I knew „Them Changes“ before but never really dove deeper into Thundercat‘s Library. Again, i‘m not really a lyric-guy but some songs acoustically and lyrically sound funny to me.
.. here we are. Felt like a rollercoaster alternating between „Omg what a pretentious pseudo-creative boys club!“ and „Hmm I have the stong feeling, that there‘s much more behind it and I‘m the problem here!“. Ended up ordering the vinyls to give it more presence :D
Quite good. Great bass player. Brings the funk. Notable tracks include show you the way, walk on by, and them changes.
Good stuff -- funky, fun, easy to listen to. A modern classic.
This feels like if Frank Zappa had been into Rap instead. I don't know that I like it. I don't even know that I fully appreciate it. I am glad it exists though, because it is interesting. There are some really cool beats in here and it is just stuffed full of style. It also uses Meow as a key and repeated lyric in a song. Every track was at least enjoyable, and there are a few bangers with Them Changes and Walk on By being highlights.
This album SOUNDS like Adult Swim. It’d probably be a 5 for me if some songs were extended a little bit. Jethro, Where I’m Going, Inferno, the title track. All of them sound like they still have some steam in them but get prematurely cut short before they can really go somewhere. I don’t mind if it gets the run time to over an hour. I saw Thundercat live and he knows how to do a solo. Hell, it can go to 2 hours and I still wouldn’t mind that much.
Damn, the guy who featured on Gorillaz' "Cracker Island" made his own music? And it's **this good**? Well, damn! And if the Genesis Sonic samples ain't the cherry on top.
All my homies love Thundercat.
So, I’ve never listened to this in full with headphones in or anything like that – I had a small sense of what the album was like, or at least I thought I did. If you focus solely on the instruments, you end up with such a funky, bassy record that takes all of Thundercat’s best production beats on To Pimp a Butterfly, and then expands them to fit his own sensibilities lyrically. If you take the time to focus on the lyrics, you end up with all the phases of what it’s like to be drunk: the brief jolts of happiness, the random thoughts that creep in, the deep seated feelings that something isn’t right and you’re just kinda running away from something, and then the overwhelming sadness that comes as that drunk feeling starts to wear off. They meld together to make a really good soundscape, and ultimately, a really good album. I don’t think it’s perfect – I think some tracks go a little too short, I think some tracks didn’t quite click right with me on this first full listen, and there are some instrumentals where I went “I wish this was used for something with a little more depth,” but those are all nitpicks. The whole album is a great, great listen, and I’d recommend it to anyone. Strong, strong 4. Probably a 5 if you’re high.
I always liked this album. Not so much the rap type songs but the jazz and rock ones are great.
Cozy and chill music
This sounds so sleek and fresh, no doubt helped by the fact that it's the most contemporary album on here so far by half a decade. In fact, everything about it is wholly contemporary, and in all the good ways. I can see why this is already among classics at only 7 years old.
Drunk What I think I like most about it is the singular vision of it all. It brings in so many influences, classic 70s souls, video games, hip hop, films, tv, pop, jazz l, sci fi, anime etc and just sprays them across 22 tracks. The scattergun, skittish, low attention span eclecticism of it really expresses his obsessions and idiosyncrasies, and you feel as though you get a sense of who he is and that this really is the sound in his head - there’s no concession to adhering to a ‘normal’ structure Show You the Way, what a tune and love that he bought Michael McDonald and Kenny Loggins in on it. Brilliant idea. Captain Stupido, Uh Uh, A Fan’s Mail, Walk on By, Tokyo, Them Changes Sonically, I love it, obviously the bass playing is superb, and that squelchy sound, and the jerky, off kilter rhythms work so well together. It’s not a perfect album, and not every song works, but it’s a such an intriguing listen and a fascinating musical vision that it makes up for the dips and lulls. Almost certainly will get better with more listens, and when you put all the bits together (sound, influences, playing, ideas, themes, tunes and melodies) it’s a 4 for me ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Great, unique R&B album. ‘Them Changes’ is a really good song I’ve had in my recommendations from time to time, and the rest of the album is of a similar quality. It will probably be a touch dated later down the line, but otherwise, I liked it a lot.
Everybody wants to be a cat!
I like the sound. A little long
Words cannot adequately be put into a sequence to describe this album. I had never heard of Thundercat before - so I went into this not knowing what I was about to experience. Weird. Funky. Odd. Offbeat. Unique. There are some words. These songs are good, some great. Some leave you scratching your head wondering who paid this man money to record what you just listened to. Overall, a very good album. I will listen to it again, and give it some more time to enjoy and savor. This also makes me want to review his full catalogue. I am cautiously looking forward to that.
Groovy, sexy, funny. Just what I want from thundercat
Hey, look at that. A fairly modern album. You don't see a lot of those on this project, so it's pretty cool to get something new regardless of if it ends up being good or bad. Fortunately, I really liked this album. Let's start with the positives. I think the sound and production on this album is excellent. Thundercat clearly has a talent for music, which can be easily seen through things like the production of the album, as well as his bass playing. I also like his singing. It's nice. Another thing that I like is the whole feel of the album. It's nice, but also thought provoking. It manages to have songs about death that aren't completely depressing for a change. Speaking of which, the writing is alright. Some lines are kind of silly, but there's a charm there. I have two problems with this album. For one, it is a bit long and some of the short filler tracks are a bit unnecessary. Finally, the features could've been better. I think they do fine enough, but they don't really enhance the songs as much as they could have. Overall, this is a very nice album and a change of pace from what I usually get. Also, Fantano was wrong. This is not a 6/10. It's at least a 7. As for my own 5 star rating, I think I'll give it a light 4/5.
Definitely deserves another listen, there was no song that was similar to another. I initially thought it was an older album because of the album art, but after hearing the unique production on. Each song I was surprised to see that it came out just 6 years ago
Not entirely my cup of tea but I do like the strangeness.
Weird and wacky is the best way to describe this album, but that is not a bad thing. Low 4/5
Sounds Drunk as hell
Thundercat is a ridiculously talented musician, I’m not sure if his songwriting instincts are always there, but he never stays on one idea too long, and does really explore different sounds and styles. Overall its a fun, if silly, record.
Didn’t know of Thundercat before listening to this and didn’t know what to expect. This was a really cool listen. A lot going on.
Very interesting sound throughout but pretty long
I think I'm becoming a Thundercat convert. On paper, really none of this should work, but it all ranges from "kind of works" to "really really fucking amazing." I don't know enough about this music except that it sounds like an extended album of the "History of Japan" YouTube video, lol I've always been a little intimidated to listen to this music, it's just so many notes! Hard to take in at once. But it's somehow easy listening. Some absolutely essential nice harmonies and grooves. And I love Thundercat's super earnest, if a little deer-in-headlights, innocent and smart delivery. The lyrics and sounds of a de-realized, nihilist-but-it's-all-good-though new post-Internet future. I really get a sense of Thundercat's inner, vulnerable state here, it's kind of endearing. The Michael McDonald, Kenny Loggins features are so cool and really gives you the context. It's sick. It's a little bit of a daze, a little disorienting, to be going on for so long. He gets a lot of mileage with this kind of beatmaking, beats-first-songs-later workflow. And the bass is somehow SO impressive and never showy. Essential for an instrumentalist-artist. (We just had a string of Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton, so that's what I'm thinking of). Thundercat just likes making music and bass and creating cool things and anime and Mortal Kombat and Japan, and I'm here for that kind of! A little long, could have been tightened. 4/5 great overall effort.
como el vino cada vez mejor
Really good. Amazing music. Lyrics are not completely nonsense too. Definitely takes you places
Braver.
Finally listen to this on the record player, 2 years and 2 months after I got it on this website... Worth the wait, great album with interesting melodies and jazz lines. Great song featuring kendrick as well. Was more chill that I had anticipated but overall a great album.
Groovy, sprawling, playful, it sounds at times like a soundtrack to a bizarro game show. One wishes a few songs (e.g., "Lava Lamp," "Walk On By," "Show You the Way") had gone on a bit longer and a few others had been satisfied to be conventional. The mood and vibe are resolutely contemporary, but with strong retro overtones. Whole lot of Brothers Johnson touches and vibes. Good cameos, the novelty of Michael McD and Kenny Loggins (is that really him?) matching the quality of Kendrick and Wiz Kh. Not sure the social/environmental commentary lands with much impact, other than adding some atmospheric worry. The woozy, oft-disorienting vibe feels a little awkward at times, too, like some uncomfortable drunks one has known. Does run a bit to samey by the end, as if we/he didn’t need the last drink, as if the buzz/bender were optimally concluded 10 or so minutes sooner.
The hits FAR outweigh the misses. There's some filler, no doubt, but some classics as well.
drink dat
Modern classic. Motherfucker got Kenny Loggins and Michael McDonald on a track.
Good! The kind of spacey bullshit I like sometimes, right in line with Tame Impala. Must be a good 🍄 listen.
Jethro favourite track on this
Really enjoyed this, annoyed now that I missed him when he was supporting a band I was seeing as I hadn’t heard of him
OK! I like this! It's more a whole bunch of sketches of musical ideas than SONGS for the most part, but I don't hate it. Some good grooves here.
lindo lindo 8/10
I've returned to this album every few months since it came out. Definitely my favorite of his. While I don't always identify with the lyrics I absolutely see where he's coming from, and songs remind me of specific people in my life. Storytelling is both humorous and pointed. Grooves are absolute fire.
Thundercat is an exceptional musician but not an exceptional songwriter. Some of the tracks did start to sound repetitive and could have been cut in my opinion, but it was an overall enjoyable listen. The guest selection was a lot of fun and the groove in “Them Changes” still slaps.
Oddly enjoyable
I oddly liked this. It was very different than I expected.
The soft, relaxed vocals mix extremely well with the erratic bass playing. Each song, in their own way, could be considered the best on the record. Only thing holding this record back for me is it has no real concept/theme, but musically this is the easiest album I’ve ever listened to. Also, the Kendrick feature was a nice follow on to Thundercats inclusions on To Pimp A Butterfly. Favourite Track: Walk on By
A refreshing surprise that this made it amongst the dad-rock.
Saatana miten hyvä levy! Pakko ostaa jostain 4/5
Solid
Dużo dobre, dziwne czasem, ale dobre
4.5
Next album to top the "latest album" list at 2017, surpassing You Want it Darker. This is great because Thundercat is a god on the bass.
Been awhile since I've listened to this. Holds tf up. Love Thundercat's bass and jazzy tones on these songs. It's so recognizable and interesting. Wild to see an album with Kenny Loggins, Wiz Khalifa, Michael McDonald, and Kendrick. Also such a nerd spending all his cash in Tokyo on anime (Yes!) "Goku fucking ruined me" lmao he's so silly. Great listen there is some incredible keyboarding/synths going on in some of these songs that give that trippy vibe.
Space noodling jazz funk. Odd and brilliant.
I was expecting nothing from this jazz-funk offering and was BLOWN AWAY. Good good, the badass bass lines. I’ve got Friend Zone on repeat and I am living for the goofy-ass humour on full display. The only way that this would be better is if there were less self-indulgent guest artists. Even Kendrick didn’t add anything to this that Thundercat didn’t one-up.
25% of this album is 5 stars, 50% is about 3 stars and then 25% is pretty awful at 1 stars. Thundercat frustrates me to no end, man has a ton of talent but needs to ditch the pop/hip hop crap. Giving it 4 stars because he played in Suicidal Tendencies.
Masterful musicianship spiked with exuberant immaturity. Tedious though as about 5 tracks too long. Great representation of modern soul/R&B
I can understand the negative reviews. The first couple of tracks felt like some sort of joke. But as I got deeper into the album, it started to come together for me. Some good beats. Very mellow like a micro dosing funk.
Favorite songs: Lava Lamp, Friend Zone
I'm still not really sure if this was a piss take of the genre or not. So many silly and often ridiculous songs that didn't make sense. But I found the different take on the genre refreshing...
WooooohoooohooooHOOO so that’s what Thundercat is about. Dark jazzy psychedelic 3am on the floor vibes, I loved this
Cool and also not what I was expecting.
I love this record but it’s definitely too long in places. Master of the new wave of jazz/funk artists out there
Chill
I really enjoyed this album. It brought a fresh coat of paint to the jazz fusion I’ve heard from the 70s-80s, and is both easy on the ears and notably musically complex. I’ve heard a few songs off this album and some of Thundercat’s other work, and my high expectations were met. I was worried by the album length at first, and while some songs lost me a bit, I was continually engaged through the end. My favorites have to be the last 3 song stretch, them changes obviously, and captain stupido. Definitely will be revisiting.
Lots of great ideas and sounds. Consistently original while still calling back to traditional R&B, prog rock, Stevie Wonder, and more. Breathy vocal style gets tiring after a while. Some editing could easily have made this a 5.
His vocals suffice, while the musicianship is fantastic. Good features. Lot of great moments but it also drags sometimes.
A lot better than I remember it would give it 4.5 than I could, Drink Dat the only cringy downside.
Smooth as.
I got into this album! Very funny and good vibes. 4/5
Out of the gate I found myself liking this a lot. I've only recently gotten into Thundercat through Dragonball Durag (not on this album) and his feature on the new Gorillaz, so I was going to listen to this on my own eventually anyway. Well while it does start out really strong, I found my enthusiasm slipping after a while. It's still an overall really good album and one I will go back to. Hopefully I like it a bit more on repeat listens.
Very cool. Will keep around. Every song is like a whole individual universe
This was a tricky one! It is really interesting and I think some of it is really good... But some of it is not really my thing, probably the ones that are more R&B sounding. Kendrick's verse in walk on by is great, but I don't think I like the rest of the song particularly.... I thought "A fans mail" was probably the second best song about a cat that I've heard. Tokyo was funny but also fairly weird. Jameels space ride was interesting too Drink dat and them changes were really good. Could possibly lose a handful of tracks and I probably would've enjoyed it more, but it was really interesting and don't think I've heard anything like this before. At least 3.5 but it's getting a 4
This is an album that gets better towards the end and I think will get better the more I listen to it. I also really like that there are a lot of short, fast-paced songs which makes for a fun listen. Will definitely get this in the rotation. fav song - Friend Zone
Incredible bass
Bass obviously phenomenal, the rhythm and groove of the album is great, the lyrics are not great, but is a fun album to hear. Nice take on how to make jazz fun to new generations
Spastic, psychedelic jazz and r&b. Like an early 90’s magic mushroom dorm room black light party and there’s a DJ mixing a sun-warped George Benson record with Stanley Clark’s Journey to Love at 45 instead of 33 rpm. The bass playing is great, the songs are interesting and more than a little weird. Easy 4/5. Oh and btw…some of you need to lighten up.
4.5
sonzao bem diferenciado, mas se torna um pouco cansativo depois de um tempinho
Grooves en baspatserij, beetje dromerig, vloeiend geheel
surprisingly enjoyed a fair bit
Jacob Collier vibes.
Great blend of genres
Fun and funky album with some solid tracks. On the other hand, there are some stale tracks in there as well.
much good
Only listened once, I see the Zappa humour comparisons in terms of immaturity but it doesn’t stare down it’s nose at you so it’s infinite times more likeable. Funny and funky.
I've been listening to a lot of Louis Cole recently and I've heard Thundercat is a similar style. This definitely has a similar vibe, and it's great! Inferno was a top track for me. It's got a great combination of laid back but also very nuanced playing, so I'll be listening again for sure.
Great album, and I really enjoyed the whole thing. 4.25/5
That was pretty cool, a lot of it reminds me of Outkast’s funkier interludes, with a couple of prerequisite singles sprinkled in. I had fun, but at the same time it isn’t very filling, it’s almost like it’s all appetizers, no main course. Will come back to it, but I’m not in love yet. B
Fun and funky, production really stood out to me. A really enjoyable project I can't wait to revisit
Beautiful album. Not a genre that I would usually gravitate towards, but I'm happy it was my album of the day. Very atmospheric. My favorite song on first listen was Tokyo.
quite unusual album
Pretty funny but also a god vibe
Oh my god that's some funky shit!
I actually really liked this album. Really nice vibe to it from start to finish. Funky hip hop jazz. 7/10.
charming, great vibe, 4.5
4.5/5. If hangxiety was an album. Deep, somber, sometimes funny, and tons of self-reflection. Thundercat does a great job slappin da bass. Little disappointed that Mac Miller's feature was left off the track list.
Amazing vibe, groove atmosphere, might be the greatest bass player out rn. The album is a little long though so sitting through it in one sitting is difficult, but i still loved it. Favourite songs A fans mail Lava lamp Tokyo Them changes(duh) DUI 8/10
This was very interesting. I never saw myself enjoying a "bass album," but Thundercat and his hip-hop inspiration considerably make me appreciate these songs.
Well that's quite the transition from Pet Sounds... Loved it even more. Loved Thundercat pushing the envelope of funk music, loved his singing and his playing, the ensemble is never not locked in, just a fantastic album.
Un très bel album, juste trop de morceaux
le prochain album est un Live de Bob Dylan de 1h30 priez pour moi
Although not a style I usually listen to, I enjoyed this immensely. Excellent musicianship and feel. Highly recommend.
listen
Wow. Drunk is a pretty decent title, this collection of many short songs which are a blend of jubilant and lamenting, somewhat disjointed but in a very fun way. I enjoyed it!
This is a fun album. Thank god cause it’s been a rough two weeks. A bit long for 5 stars but an extremely solid 4 stars. Some of the base playing just makes you say whoa
There were times when I was really digging this. Covers a whole lot of genres. Pretty impressive songwriting at times.
I loved the vocals on this - so much of it reminds me of The Beachboys (Inferno, for instance).The guest singers do well - Pharrell can sing the phone book as far as I’m concerned. Kenny Loggins can still hit the high notes. There’s a jazzy feel, overall and the bass-playing is often sublime (Them Changes). I loved the title track - in fact I loved the whole album. I own Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp A Butterfly, but had no idea this cat was involved in that. He’s definitely got great form.
Had to listen multiple times to decide on this album. Rap and jazz is an interesting combo, but some of the songs were a bit too much.
Instant classic, creative, great production
Really different. Really enjoyed it
Favourite track(s): Show You The Way; Walk On By; Them Changes The album is a journey - one just needs to read the titles in order to realize that. Thundercat is probably a bit crazy, but genius and crazy are also probably very close together. The instrumentals and vibes are amazing and the vocals underline both flawlessly. However, he seems to work best if collaborating with others. Other than the collabs on this album, the tracks sometimes seem to be no more than ideas. With interesting musical elements, sure. But for my liking, a few more "real" songs would have made the album more listenable. The tracks are certainly real in another sense of the word. But some do feel like interludes and I do not like those too much. Still, great album.
Jazzy
Já, mjög óvænt og mjög skemmtilegt. Væri mjög til í hlusta oftar. Svolítið grín, svolítið funk, svolítið soul, flottur bassi og clavinet, og já. Bara mikið stuð. Gæti trúað að þessi myndi hækka við frekari hlustun.
Very interesting style. Maybe a few songs to listen to again and I liked that it was a pretty chill sounds throughout
Immediate reaction was surprise, I didn’t expect such a newer album to be on this list but I do agree it’s really good. Interested in listening to the whole thing as I have heard a good amount of songs from this album and also listen to a lot of thundercat. Listening to the album as a whole it’s very sad, background on the album is that thundercat’s friend had died and this album was to commemorate him. The minor tones throughout the album as well as the deeply introspective lyrics on life and death can be a bit hard to listen to, his funky instrumentals and unconventional melodies also add to this. Lyrically he is very transparent which can be offsetting for some but I enjoy when artists do this, adds more sincerity to the album. I wonder if future generations will listen to this album and think that it is a product of its era, as the other albums on this list have done very well. It may be hard to decide if that’s the case when it’s been released only a few years ago to when I write this.
This one is just fun. Bass led, funky as hell, and just good. Thundercat may be the biggest nerd I've heard in this lame. Maybe making him less cool on a wider scale but I'd chill with him lol. Black nerd to rival ghost dog. Saving for later for sure
Not what I usually listen to, but I like it.
Thundercat's bass playing is innovative and melodic. Sometimes fast paced at other times slow and steady. Overall a great album
Kooky funky jazzy hip hop
An album that I am familiar with, and have never really had a settled opinion about. Some of it just is too much for me, but then for the 'future R&B' bits I think it is great.
Thundercat is great
Great jazz R&B blend
I wished a lot of the songs were longer, but I loved the sound of the album.
Real fun
I enjoyed this way more than I had anticipated. Lots of quirky beats and rhymes, some reminiscent of old NES music. I'll definitely be listening to this again (after listening to it twice yesterday).
it's pretty funky, i think thundercat has a talent for this type of neo-soul bass noodling, but sometimes it can fall flat. i do like his sort of humor in the lyrics, it's probably a highlight of this album. where i think this album sells what it does well, are captain stupido, uh uh, blackkk, them changes, and drink dat. however, the places where i think this album can really underperform are bus on these streets, a fans mail, lava lamp, jethro, jameel's space ride, and inferno. still a pretty good album, just not one of the greats
I've had this one downloaded on my phone for a long time. I can't get enough of T-Cat's funny lyrics and nostalgic sounds and references, especially the anime and video game ones. This was a great listen and a wonderful way to start my day
Liked.
Badass
Well I had never heard of Thundercat, so this album was a total mystery to me. I like it a lot! I love the bass, drums and the melodies. Lyrics are weird, but that just makes you pay attention to them more. Someone said this is lift music, but nothing wrong with that. Just put the music on and let your thoughts wander.
Great first half but gets weird in the second
Some of this is really cool. I really like the whole vibe of the cool bass with the ethereal vocals. But then there are also like...fart sounds and a few other things which keep me from giving this a 5. But it was close.
On paper, I shouldn't have liked this album; and it was kind of weird...but it's weirdness was in a way that strangely appealed to me, so I kind of want to give it a high mark, because it pleasantly surprised me.
Rating: 8/10 Best songs: Captain stupido, A fan’s mail, Jethro, Them changes
Geggjuð plata. Öðruvísi. Góðir gestir á henni.
Quirky, silly, goofy, funky. I’m surprised I never heard this one m, but glad it came up on this list. Love me some Flying Lotus production. I think the vocals get a little old just staying in the falsetto, airy style, but the production and features do well in breaking it up. 8/10
Noice
Couldnt decide if its sexy or funny or jazzy or experimental or meditative or just random. His singing reminds me of me when im walking around the house just randomly describing things in singing voice.
Funk-soul-jazz... Está bien. Un 4.
I’ve heard thunder at quite a bit through Kendrick’s music and other stuff but this is my first album of his. Overall, really good and has a lot of standout songs. Them changes is still good despite tik tok getting it’s hands on it
This was a welcome surprise - I'd been meaning to listen to this album for years but never got round to it. I'm glad I finally did hear it though - that's a soulful slice of funk. At points it veers towards going too jazzy, but then it pulls it back. Any album that can include Kenny Loggins, Kendrick Lamar and Wiz Khalifa, and making it all sound like it should belong together has to be respected. One to listen to next to a pool on a hot day with a cold beer.
This album excels in its willingness to be fun and freewheeling while still managing to smuggle in serious topics and discussion into its stream-of-consciousness delivery. The instrumentation is wild and distinct across each track, giving a cohesive feel to the LP while allowing each track (even the tiny interludes) to have distinct personalities. Overall, a fun ride with hidden undercurrents that warrants endless relistening.
Muito bom.
It's good, it's somehow too understated and I think he's gotten better since this album. Love listening to the basslines. I feel like there are a lot of little jokes and intricacies in this album that I haven't fully grasped yet.
4/21/2022 Today's Album: "Drunk" by Thundercat - Before hearing this album, The only thing I knew of Thundercat is that he produces tracks for a lot of hip hop artists, usually showcasing a prominent and technically proficient bass guitar in the mix. Given that, this album is just about what I expected, but just like super fucking weird. His production shines through to make almost every track really nice to listen to, even if his vocals may be a bit weird at times. In fact, he's kind of singing like one of those improv voice groups where it's a lot of notes that don't technically belong in the scale, but are used to transfer to and from notes that are. I think a ton of personality is shoved into this record, with very strange lyrics that relate to the overall theme of the album, which is being drunk. I like how the last track takes the melody from the first to give the whole thing a nice bookended feel. There are songs that fall flat and either lose my attention quickly or just sound too off to be likeable, but I like how the tracks that aren't as good are usually fairly short and don't waste too much time before moving on to another idea. I don't exactly know how to pin the genre, but it's some sort of groovy R&B lo-fi type of deal and I think it's really likeable if you're into either of those genres. I think it might take a few songs to get over some of the oddities of this record, but it is very enjoyable to just vibe to it, especially when drunk or high. Listen to this one if you like any track with Thundercat as the production credit or just like oddball lo-fi R&B. Score: 7/10 Weird, but unique and overall a nice vibe. Highlights: Uh Uh, A Fan's Mail, Lava Lamp. Jethro, Show You The Way, Walk On By, Tokyo, Jameel's Space Ride, Them Changes, Where I'm Going, Drink Dat, 3AM, DUI
I was really surprised by this one. I knew of Thundercat from different things, he was (of all things) in the Book of Boba Fett. This album reminded me a LOT of the first couple of Frank Zappa albums of Frank Zappa, and Mike Keneally's "hat" album. It was very collage-like. The songs had that 60s Zappa-like feel too, which is always a plus for me. I liked the guest stars, and I keep meaning to check out "To Pimp A Butterfly." This gives me more of a reason to do so. So yeah, I really dug the feel of this, it kind of was in my wheelhouse. Definitely something I will be looking for. The cover is a little... disturbing, but not worse than I had seen before. Probably give this a 4.2 or 4.3, might go up with repeated listens.
Strange but cool album. Total 70's throwback look and feel except with modern lyrical twists. Dude can slap the bass - case in point, Uh Uh (such pace). His cheeky lyrics really grew on me after multiple listens. Captain Stupido and A Fan's Mail were a little too silly but Tokyo (my favorite on the whole album), Jameel's Space Ride, Friend Zone, and Drunk were just the right amount of funny and observation. Great beats too. Favorites from a musical standpoint were Lava Lamp, Jethro, Blackkk, and Where I'm Going. His collaborations with other artists (Show You the Way), Walk on By, Drink Dat, The Turn Down) were also pretty good. Definitely need to give it a few listens to appreciate it, but it's worth multiple listens.
I first discovered Thundercat when a friend shared the video for "Them Changes" with me a couple of years ago. I loved the song and the video and honestly have no idea why I never went on to check out the rest of the album that it's from. The album has a good balance of modern and classic sounds. I love the synth and Thundercat's bass playing is really good. The theme seems to be about life's distractions and the subject matter is handled humorously on some tracks and a little less so on others. The McDonald / Loggins track was a nice surprise and the Kendrick Lamar track after was great also. Overall the album has a lot of music packed into just over 50 minutes with most of the tracks clocking in at less than 3 but none of them sounding partially finished. A great album and I look forward to hearing more of his music.
So I don't really have a good introduction for this review other than to say that I like the album. From the start, I knew that I'd like the album since it started out so fucking goofy. I hate fart sounds, so I'm glad that they last only 5 seconds instead of the entire album like Encore. The references in this albums are really good. I might be a little biased, but the Johnny Cage reference made me super happy. Whenever artists reference Mortal Kombat, they mostly just reference Liu Kang. Production on this album is super funky, which I think is refreshing. Most album that I've been recommended are just from the 80s with super basic production. Which I don't think is a huge issue with the time it was released in, but I don't that 80s rap is really good. The cover art is meh, best part is the face Thundercat makes Now the album does have some problems, and the first one is the length of the tracks. It sounds like these are just snippets of tracks that haven't been finished yet. I have no idea how long most of the tracks are, but they could easily have been greater if they were a little longer. I have no idea if Thundercat fans have an issue with this so I might just sound like a fucking retard, but it's just weird. I don't really consider this a rap album. Maybe I just didn't listen enough to this album, but it felt like the only rap verse was done by Kendrick Lamar, who was just a feature. Also, why is this album called Drunk? I might just be a retard, but does it have some special meaning in the album. 8/10
Really enjoyed it. Tokyo is a blast. new school jazzy rnb rappy nonsense. +1
Interesting sound that I enjoyed very much!!
Good album, can see why Thundercat’s music is so prominent in Kendrick’s music
Funk-soul-jazz... Está bien. Un 4.
Kinda funky in a good way. Fun vibes.
Pretty fun electronic music, couldn't listen to the "E" rated ones since kid was around.
Esse álbum é uma viagem. Incrível do início ao fim, toda a influência do r&b, jazz, blues e rock junto com o talento do Thundercat tornam esse um clássico moderno. Eu tinha ouvido pedaços dele mas nunca tinha de fato ouvido a obra como um todo e to apaixonado. Faixas favoritas: Bus in these streets; a fan's mail; jethro; show you the way; friend zone; them changes; 3am; the turn down.
FUNky!!! This is weird and smooth at the same time. Good album.
What a weird, wonderful listen.
I was just gonna say that this was a delightfully funky and whimsical surprise. And then I went and looked up Thundercat anyway. He's building up quite the list of accolades and guest appearances in the last decade (I seem to recall seeing this and other albums reviewed or on year-end lists), but it was what he did in the prior decade that was more surprising. From 2002-2011, Thundercat was the bassist for the hardcore punk band Suicidal Tendencies. Yep. Stephen "Thundercat" Bruner is clearly an interesting dude with varied interests and influences. On "Drunk," that did shine through. But mostly, "Drunk" was just fun. I might not seek out funk, but when it's done this well I'm happy to listen and bop along.
Thundercat just does whatever he pleases and I dig it. The lazy vibe musical aesthetic and stream of consciousness lyrics create a mood that could undeniably aggravate the audience but there is something refreshing in an artist just going for their own style without following current trends - if anything, Thundercat harks back to 70s acid jazz and Steely Dan for inspiration. An absorbing listen, a genuine curiosity, elusive and intriguing.
Bangerz med ostlyrik… 😀👍
The mileage of this album may depend on if you can stomach Thundercat as an artist. I can, so I like this album. Fantastic bassist, too
4.5/5. This was a very good album. You can tell that he has a lot of musical talent from this album.
4.1 + A black man who wears multi-colored dreads, plays 6-string bass and sings in a thin falsetto about space travel, cats and video games, is going to confuse some folks. But Thundercat's technical prowess allows his playful spirit to bend and transcend genres at will, creating a colorfully goofy soundscape that's a slice of internet pop culture.
Toppen rakt igenom. Allt håller jättehög nivå, jättekul lyssning. Känns väldigt fräscht! Roliga, välproducerade och väl utförda låtar!
Gott mys! Riktig bashjälte, Thundercat, men jag personligen hade kunnat leva med några låtar med lite mer fart i
God baz. Rigtig godt album, men den svinger sig lige netop ikke helt op på 5
Lækkert, vild bas, rnb, sjovt
Pretty interesting songs. Not really that great but I did know at least one before listening. Probably will revisit at some point.
Previously heard Them Changes but never listened to the full album. My mistake. This is fun!
Bijzonder album. Ik vind het wel goed!
Now this was a pleasant surprise. I've only become a Thundercat fan a few years ago when his newest album came out. I was always facinated with this one as well because of that album cover. He is something else. The jazz mixed with an almost freestyle storytelling that is for a younger audience, talking about anime and mortal kombat. Really enjoyed this one!
Whoa, here's one I know pretty well! Love Thundercat, surprised to find one of his albums made this list. He's such a unique bassist and vocalist, definitely worthy of a spot. Maybe not my favorite of his albums but this is a really cool one. I love how many tracks it is, but the average length is pretty short. It's got some classic tracks from him too, like Them Changes and Friend Zone. It's weird trying to write my thoughts on a Thundercat album, especially in the context of 1001 albums to hear before I die. But yeah, this one is fantastic. Favorite tracks: Most of the tracklist, but Them Changes, Friend Zone, Show You the Way. Album art: Absolutely love this one. Too soon to call it iconic, but it's one of the most memorable of the last few years for me. 4.5/5
Oh yea! Uh Uh is a breakneck bass odyssey. Tokyo is funny. Friend zone is a huge lazy neon groove. The lyrics are so discrete. DUI is the shambling, triumphant and just weird af ending to a real trip of an album.
Frantic, frenetic, smooth, vibey. I'm going to bet Matt gave this a 4, and Ashton a 3. I'm going with Matt here, 4. It's a great album, but not perfect.
Erg funky, goeie bassist, en leuke samenwerkingen. speciale hoes wel
Really good at what it does. It's just not for me.
Almost a 5 but it is slightly too long
really cool album, didn't vibe with all of it but when i did [banderas meme]
Funky as hell, great background music
ЧТО: Четвёртый лонгплей и третий студийный альбом Стивена Ли Бруннера, более известного под псевдонимом Thundercat. Интересный и крайне важный, в том числе для моего личного музыкального вкуса, альбом великого басиста и мастера фриковатых образов. КАКОЙ: На пластинке встречаются типичные для Thundercat элементы: глубокий проработанный бас, обильное использование живых инструментов, нестандартная структура песен и так далее. Альбом вдохновлён джазом и фьюжном 1970-х. Широкий набор инструментов, отход от типичных ритмических структур, атмосфера странности и неформальности - все это стало неотъемлемой частью стиля Thundercat. Музыка получилась довольно сентиментальной. В отличие от двух предыдущих студийных альбомов, которые в некотором смысле «исследуют» смерть и являются переработанными и отрефлексированными чувствами Ли Бруннера по поводу гибели своего друга, пианиста, композитора и частого коллаборатора - Остина Пералты, Drunk более ориентирован на то, как продолжать жить и ограничивать самокопания. О ЧЕМ: Альбом в целом довольно лиричен. Значительное влияние на тексты, как я упоминал выше, оказала смерть друга Thundercat - Остина Пералты в 2012 году (вероятнее всего от передозировки наркотиков и алкоголя, что важно, но об этом ниже). На Drunk Бруннер, используя своё мастерство применения обыденной, но точной и глубокой лирики, рассказывает слушателю, как он сам переживал утрату и заново учился жить в ладу с самим собой. Зачастую Thundercat работает в своём образе фриковатого, забавного человека с трагичной судьбой, использующего странность и юмор в качестве механизмов защиты. Хотя любое описание в данном случае выглядит неполно, и полноценно выразить словами многоуровневый эмоциональный фон артиста-творца проблематично. Важной темой текстов на Drunk является беспредел полицейских по отношению к чёрному населению Америки и проблема расизма в целом. Thundercat часто поднимает проблемы жизни чернокожего человека в США и безопасности (читай «небезопасности») чёрного коммьюнити. В этих моментах на альбоме появляется агрессия и гнев, редкие для данной работы в целом. Название альбома может обозначать самый распространённый способ «решения проблем» - опьянение. Люди зачастую «запивают» трагические события своей жизни, попадают в зависимость и в конце концов оказываются на дне бутылки (и в кругу «лишних» членов общества, что окончательно уничтожает душу). И с первых же песен Thundercat говорит слушателям, что справится с горем можно, для этого надо продолжать жить обычной жизнью. ИТОГ: Самоутверждающая пластинка от одного из главных джаз-фьюжн артистов современности. Противоречивая (местами трогательная, местами агрессивная), как и все гениальное, работа от опытного музыканта, который знал, что и как нужно делать. Альбом выглядит как «желанный ребёнок» и получился, вероятно, таким, каким Стивен Бруннер a.k.a. Thundercat и хотел его создать. Это может вызывать только приятные эмоции, что может также быть частью творческого замысла такого влиятельного и значимого не побоюсь этого слова культурного явления, как альбом Drunk. ЛУЧШИЕ ПЕСНИ: Трудно выделить. С Кендриком хорошая. Мне ещё нравятся Jameel’s Space Ride и Friend Zone. Нельзя не отметить и Them Changes.
Fun, j a bit silly and scattered for me, but them changes is great
You can hear an apparent George Duke influence on this album.
Meow Meow
A surprisingly pleasing album to listen to. Did not think I would like this at first glance, but I enjoyed the laid back jazz sound and soothing singing voice. What a strange group of guest singers though!
Love this album. Stellar instrumentals with funny lyrics. Surprise Kendrick. Honestly all the features are great. Lara says "I didn't get a chance to appreciate all the lyrics but I enjoyed all the melodies".
Very nice album. Love the vibe and energy and jazz influences. Some bangers.
Recommend good headphones and dedicated listening.
Experimental, very interesting.
Soft 4 stars. Interesting music and I feel like I would return to this album, but it fits me best as background music
Well now, THAT was interesting! What a bass player. I mean, wow. Some beautiful homages to Motown and similar R&B greatness yet very much in his own voice and style. Some super-cool grooves, and some fascinating bass and melody lines. Really nice.
2017: Show You The Way, Walk On By, Friend Zone, Them Changes
Wow un vraiment bon album avec plusieurs style. Kendrix, funk etc. J’ai aime 4.25
Nice to have this come up, wanted to listen to ThunderCat for a while. Generally a cool vibe, but got a bit samey, needed the collaborations to differentiate the tracks.
Wow that was way newer than expected. Love it. I’ve had that as a fave for a while, but I don’t think I’ve listened to it end-to-end. Awesome.
Not what I expected. I was familiar with Thundercat the virtuoso, but I didn't know about Thundercat the goofball. Fun stuff that I should have checked out earlier.
I feel weird Comb your beard, brush your teeth Still feel weird Beat your meat, go to sleep - goated Jethro is prachtig kenny loggins, Kendrick Lamar en pharrell features meer heb je niet nodig...of mss nog wel een heerlijke Wiz khalifa feature. tokyo - genieten, zingt zoals sk8er boy maar dan over anime. Prachtig rustig album maar toch zowat all over the place. zeker iets dat ik nog vaak in mijn leven ga beluisteren maar een echte must listen is het nog niet imo. Maar vraag dit over 5 jaar nog eens. We gaan nog veel prachtige dingen horen van Thundercat.
Good album, short songs Interesting sound 4/5
Alt-R&B. Strong base tracks with synth and vocals that gets your head grooving. Good collaborations with Lamar, Khalifa, McDonald (Dooby Bros, Steely Dan), Loggins, and Pharrell. First few tracks have lots of (too much?) energy and mellows out; album gets better the deeper you get into it.
Love the spacey psychedelia of this guy. Them changes was my favourite track of <insert year here>.
Will definitely be revisiting! Very fresh sound
Yeah woo
This is so good.
The bass on Uh Uh is an excellent example of how well Mr. T-Cat knows how to play that bad boy. He plays a six string bass and moves his left hand up and down the neck with the ease a virtuoso four string player has. Doing so with the extra strings allows a much higher range of notes than regular bass (Duh) but this must be tricky with a six stringer since bass strings are much thicker so the neck of the guitar also needs to be thicker, which means his fingers really need to "stretch" to hit all the range of notes. What is completely insane is that he also plays barre chords on the bass. I've never seen another bass player do this. Many iconic rock and roll bands (e.g. The Who, Jimi Hendrix Experience and Led Zep) produced all the sound that was needed with three people playing instruments. This album confirms three is enough, albeit with piano substituted for the regular 6 string guitar in rock and roll. It's bizarre that the title song is not a single and is buried at slot 21 of a 23 song album. I did get a chuckle that the second song following it was DUI. To be sure, this album has its ups and downs. I listened to it two times back to back and some of it did wear on me. The virtuoso six string bass playing gets +1.
Panthro was the best Thundercat in my opinion. Most people I speak to about this tend to disagree. I once sparked a mass brawl by quoting Panthro for a whole hour whilst at a Lion-O gig. Those Lion-O fans are such dickheads. Just using his goal and assist stats to say he's the best, whereas Panthro controls the possession and dictates the game. They need to actually sit down and watch the Thundrcats on the battlefield as opposed to just looking at XG.
He's no Snarf is he?
This guy is bloody cool. I have only ever heard a few songs, but this album was super interesting. Funk/Soul/Jazzy R&B vibes. Incredible musician, though lyrics are pretty ridiculous. Them Changes is a huge track and really enjoyed the rest of the album for the most part.
8/10. I loved the sounds of this but I don’t think it worked all that well as an album
Boozy and loose, very listenable
7/10. Pretty good I guess, might want to give it a relisten without talking over it
One long, fantastic song. Like if Bill Wurtz was slightly more commercial.
Musically compelling, though some songs are slow and his vocals get tiring in certain places. 8
Funky and smooth. And Loggins and McDonald.
This wasn't what I thought it would be and I think the title of the album "Drunk" seems appropriate. The song writing is ridiculous but also hilarious and somehow it remains musically interesting and engaging. I like the diversity of this bands musical style.
De las cosas que he escuchado sin conocer nada es quizá el mejor descubrimiento hasta el momento. De entrada es obvio que es un bajista virtuoso, eso es evidente; lo interesante es que no es simplemente el clásico bajista que hace solos complejos y trata de apantallar, de inicio trae los sonidos de jazz, electrofunk y soul que suenan a 70s y 80s y les imparte una leve ironia... un tono de humor pero tomados en serio, realmente haciendo homenaje a esos estilos. En las canciones se siente una personalidad fuerte y un sentido del humor absurdo. La originalidad suda de todas las canciones, sea en Tokyo hablando de cómo gastó su dinero en anime, obsesionado con Dragon Ball y cómo "Goku ruined me" o Captain Stupido hablando de un flujo de consciencia sobre cómo quizá dejo su cartera en el bar, Friend Zone en donde en lugar de tratar de hablar de cómo buscaría a la que lo friendzoneo termina hablando de cómo juega Mortal Kombat y Diablo o Fan's Mail hablando de qué se siente ser un gato y miau-miau-miau por todos lados... todas las canciones son deliciosamente extrañas. Por otro lado sí encontramos algunas ideas más serias desde una reflexión sobre la tecnología y el vivir online a baladas emocionales y que se sienten personales. La música es virtuosa y original, las letras entretenidas y divertidas. Tiene un detalle y es que su voz no tiene rango y solo tiene un tono; después de una hora de su falsetto es entendible si a alguien le parece cansado. De los invitados Kendrick Lamar suena bien, Whiz Khalifa suena mal y Pharrell Williams no se siente como si añadiera nada a su canción. A pesar de sentirse un poco largo por lo mencionado de su voz es muy interesante descubrimiento, buscaré más de él a ver qué tal son sus otros discos.
Genre-agnostic music that can pull off soft-rock and progressive funk, often at the same time.
This is fucking great. Smooth, funky, modern. We'll worth the inclusion on this list.
Thundercat's musicianship is undeniably impressive, but a problem I have with him (and most virtuosos for that matter) is that I'm not sure that skill is always put to the best use. It's easy for guys with this level of technical skill to put out subpar and middling songs because they care more about showing off their talent than in crafting good songs. That's the case here more often than I care for: great playing with underwhelming songwriting. Luckily, there are enough straightforwardly good songs to carry it but I would skip at least a third of the album if it showed up on a playlist.
Couple of standout tracks on a solid album
I think as a series of vignettes it works quite well, there isn't anything particularly objectionable here and there are a few big tracks that are standout so I'll go 3*
2.5
Weird one.
album #83 i absolutely adoreeeee thundercat's basslines. just absolutely sublime. thundercat is clearly a man that loves his craft! i enjoyed this :) ꩜ favourite track(s): captain stupido, them changes ꩜ least favourite track(s): a fan's mail ꩜ album rating: ★★★☆☆ ꩜ number of albums left to review: 1,006 ꩜ number of albums from the list that i agree with being on the list: 39 (+1 Drunk) ꩜ albums from the list that I would consider on my list: 16 ꩜ albums from the list I won't include on my list: 67
Very good record. 3,5
3/5
Про Тандректа дізнався через Flying Lotus та його лейбл Brainfeeder. На цьому альбомі він вже й сповільнився, й пішов далі від фанку та ф'южну в сторону р'н'б та з більш поп настроєм. Я досить давно саме цей альбом не слухав і він мені здавався більш концентрованим в пам'яті. А тут є як і дійсно чудові пісні й інструментальні замальовки, так і такі трохи moody філлери. Чи фіти, які не дуже спрацювали, наприклад трек з Фарелом в кінці. Не можу сказати, що й у Ламара якийсь феноменальний куплет. В мене на rym вже стоїть 3.5. йому, не бачу підстав міняти)
Альбом дуже хайпував у свій час, Them Changes звучала звідусіль, але я визнаю що витримати цілий альбом тандеркета мені важко що тоді було що зараз. Коли він на фітах, то це прикольно, але в повноформатному режимі всі його модерн джаз приколи мені швидко приїдаються, не знаю. Трек Tokyo хороший.
Off kilter sounding funk/jazz. It was an interesting listen with some unique bass lines and very ear wormy parts. But I'm not a fan of the falsetto vocals and I'm not sure it's something I'll return to.
In the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30) a master entrusts his servants with varying amounts of money before traveling. Two of the servants invest and multiply their assets, while one buries his in fear of the master’s displeasure and accomplishes nothing. When the master returns he rewards the servants who invested his assets and rebukes the one who failed to do so. There are people who are verbally and creatively like the wicked servant. So scared to say the wrong thing that they never say anything that isn’t wrapped in ten layers of irony. So scared to create something uncool that they never create anything of substance. Not all hipsters are like this, and not all people who are like this are hipsters, but there is a lot of overlap between the two. And I don’t get it. You only get one life. Might as well take your licks. Maybe you do good, maybe not, but at least you didn’t strike out looking. This is hipster shit. It’s never particularly bad, but it’s never particularly good either. It just fades into the background no matter how loud I turn it up. I’m not interested in listening to artists who don’t have the courage to at least try to make something memorable and impactful.
I am aware of this album because of rather peculiar cover which is quite memorable, I just wish I could say the same about the music behind it! The guy on the cover is reminding me of Miles for some reason, music is alright, however so many short songs on almost an hour-long album, and they just drift from one to another without too much variety, gets a bit old a bit too soon I am afraid. I imagine at most 3 stars because I do tolerate it. There was a nice jazz fusion instrumental near the beginning of the album, but apart from that it still just seems to similar for me, not enough variety or ideas to carry this album, so if it's 3 stars then you know I am being a bit generous here.
Weird but enjoyable
Better than Coldplay
A labyrinth of chord changes and pop weirdness. Reminded me a lot of Bill Wurtz, the guy who did the ‘history of Japan’ video on YouTube. Knew a couple of the big songs. I respect the originality and complexity but by the time the album finished I was ready for something else. Also good to see an album on the list from the last decade.
Excellent musicianship and it has a sense of humour, both great things, but it still didn’t totally grab me. Even though it sounds nothing at all like them, the group it reminds me most of is Steely Dan in that Thundercat desperately needs you to know that he’s clever and a stellar musician.
Just by reading some of these titles I’ve realized I’m in for an interesting hour. Rabbot ho, an introduction. Going into Captain Stupido, I genuinely feel like I’m tripping on something. Genuinely what the fuck am I listening to. Uh uh was exactly as advertised. Bus in these streets was as expected, strange. I did not expect A Fans mail to have psychedelic meows. Lava lamp and jethro were… relatively normal? Honestly that’s more concerning than just a weird track. It was nice to have a Kendrick feature on Walk on By, I felt like I was listening to music again. Blackk was alright. I feel like I recognized the track from Tokyo. Never heard it before but it was familiar. Friend zone: some of these lyrics are so weird. Where I’m going had a good vibe and beat to it. Drink dat was in fact a track, and inferno had an idea going for it. I actually liked the title track and DUI definitely closed the album. Overall feelings: maybe I shouldn’t have left my album right before bed. I’m so tired and I feel like I just had a bad reaction to drugs. 3/5 ⭐️ 157/1089
Quite enjoyed - didn’t expect to - very different to what I’d typically listen to
I've listened to Drunk since it came out. The bass playing is excellent, of course. The album is well structured, and it's fun that the final track DUI calls back to the first track Rabbit Ho. Thundercats falsetto vocals are... Fine. But overall it's just kind of boring (save for a handful of tracks). While this made a splash in the late 10s, I do wonder if it will stand the test of time (I'd consider D'Angelos Black Messiah to be in the same vein and is much better ) still though, good listen overall. 3/5
Movin and groovin
Listening to a few of these songs really brought me back to freshman year. I’ve got fond memories of them. A couple of the others were pleasant to listen to but I found that most of the album, while catchy and groovy, felt much like filler and nothing really stood out. Definitely a vibe but not much more unfortunately.
I think in 10 years I’d appreciate it even more
It was so close to being a 4/star album to me, but something was just missing
2 goed nummertje
Was wondering what I was getting myself into with the first couple songs. Thought Trent somehow snuck an album into the list. But then we had a major tonal change and enjoyed it way more. Kendrick Lamar and Wiz Khalifa came out of no where. Although I don’t think I’ll listen to any of these ever again, I was vibing. Could maybe see myself turning it on for background music while getting a little high and playing STS2. Beat my meat. Go to sleep.
3/5 need another listen
Fed plade, en række kæmpe bangere, men om noget får vi måske kastet lidt for mange ideer i hovedet
this was a very weird album
Towards the start of this album, there is a snore. I thought it was mine for a second. Then I was awakened by the craziest bass line I've heard in a very long time. But that awakening didnt last long, sadly. Most of Drunk is unique and I have to commend that. Some of the lyrics are whimsical and I appreciate that as well. But some of the songs sound like something I'd hear on Yo Gabba Gabba. Just not my cup od tea at all
I somehow enjoyed this one. Jazz fusion with all kinds of black music mixed in isn't something I usually like, but this was somehow captivating. I also liked the usage of "vintage" sounds in a '10s release.
Nice; not bad at all.
Thubdercat to me is just noise. He has some funny and witty lyrics, but the 48 string bass he plays is just to frantic for regular listening.
I should really hate this. Smooth R & B vocals. A guy who talks about being quirky and liking anime. 2017??? All of the ingredients for a hateable release are there, and yet they mingle in a way that is not only decent, it's pretty delightful. The bass playing is off the charts, which will come as no surprise to people who are aware of Thundercat, and the lyrics are frequently hilarious. Yes, there are some insufferable passages and some skippable tracks, but overall, I'm picking up what this is laying down. I am in indentured servitude please help me get out of the prison where the man emerging from the pond tells me to pick stuff up and says "I like the view." What does that even mean?? Some cool features, some terrible features, some lyrics about Goku ruining lives. Today was a good day. 3-3.5 GENRE: Frog-adjacent music
Pretty good like the vibes also the opener for the strokes
This album starts out full of infectious energy, with some wonderful bass lines, then it seems to peter out.
I give Thundercat a lot of credit for going off the beaten path and still assembling a pretty cohesively musical album. It's got its fair share of wackiness, but it's also a pretty funky soul jam for the majority of the album. It's hard to thread the needle on something like this but he got pretty close. At a lot of times it is fun and interesting, at other times it leaves you annoyed and scratching your head with confusion. I can see why this would be all over the spectrum for a casual listener. Some likely hate it and others likely find it genius. I'll be damned if Drunk isn't a creative album, I'm just not sure it holds up through 23 songs and 50 minutes. Regardless I mostly enjoyed my time with Drunk. Even if I don't expect to spend regular time with this album I do think I'll get glimpses of these songs in the future. Thundercat seems like a bit of an eccentric character but it does sound like he is having a lot of fun noodling around on his bass and synths throughout. Doesn't hurt that he's yet another Gorillaz collaborator and I say he deserves the minor bump for getting the nod from Albarn as usual. 2.68 stars
something i talk about with friends is how some people can be so connected to the force of music and understand how to play music in a way that only 0.00001% of people may ever hope to achieve, but then the music they make and release is mad boring. I absolutely believe Thundercat sees the matrix in a way that so few musicians do, and what's impressive is that the result is not only listenable, but often exciting to spend time with!
What!? How come I haven't heard of this yet? One listen through something as complex and beautiful like this is not enough for rating. I know I will listen to this artist a lot in the future. I'm giving it only 3 stars now because although I love the musicianship and the production, I'm not sure how the songwriting hits me. Needs more spins, might change my rating later.
Interesting!
Bom álbum de música experimental / jazz fusion com outros elementos. É interessante porque não deixa de ser musical. QoA Cloudscape.
Smooth
Me sorprendio, no es lo que estoy acostumbrada a escuchar, al principio dio un poco de miedo pero me gustó el album
I've never really understood the hype for this album. It has some really solid songs, but Thundercat's weedy falsetto is too annoying to carry an album this long, and there's a lot of filler.
i feel Thundercat has a style of production so peculiar that every time I hear something from him, I know it's him. At the same time, despite all the songs having some bass related ideas, some of them don't feel that fleshed out. Maybe it was intentional, maybe it has to do with the psychedelic, sparse vibe of this record. But sadly, for me, it meant that as a drone out album, it's really good. But not something more.
Didn’t live up to the first few tracks.
Good beats but the lyrics were a little bizarre from time to time. Wanted to like it more
I thought Drunk was pretty good. For some reason, i thought this album was gonna be way older than it was, i wasn't expecting it to be released in 2017. The music here is pretty interesting having that big R&B sound to it with a bunch of extra touches most being of the hip-hop variety helped keep this album pretty interesting. Now the lyrics are honestly the most interesting part about this album as sometimes, i thought they were quite clever and showed off Thundercat's ability to do satire but other times, i did feel as if they were a bit immature even if that is to be expected from hip-hop like this. It's not amazing but i thought it was a pretty interesting listen. Best Song: Friend Zone Worst Song: Captain Stupido
It’s not usually my kind of thing, started out a bit weird, then kinda got into it a little. Kendrick cameo gave an extra point, but nothing on there worth repeating for me
Chill album
Thundercat is a madman. I've seen him live and you're just watching him with your mouth open while he does unimaginable things on the bass. That being said, his highs are high and his lows are basically jazz scatt in a unique and sometimes annoying way. His lyrics are usually juvenile and playful, but some of them hit.
I wanted to like this album more. There are two bangers in the middle and a lot of snippets. Top tracks: "Them Changes," "Friend Zone," "Walk on By"
Not to my taste but it was well done.
Fun fact: this guy used to be in a hardcore punk band. Anyways, it's always neat to hear artists that write a bunch of short songs instead of a normal amount of normal-length songs. It has the unintended side effect of making a lot of the songs pretty unmemorable, although this is definitely an album that's made to be experienced as an album instead of individual songs. The album sounds like his inner monologue with jazz chords and I can't really decide if I like it or not. Sometimes his singing gets a little too Steely Dan for me, though. Some of the songs were fun, but I really only came out of the album thinking "that song in 10/8 was neat, I guess."
Background lofi/techno with vocals
So hip it hurts. It's okay I guess.
Lyrically this alternates between goofy, dude lyrics, cats, and more serious subjects, all against complex meter and jazz chords. And inside a sleepy haze of weed. I don't know what else sounds like Thundercat. I mean, this has a jazz song about DBZ.
La verdad es que el álbum me gustó mucho en general. No es el género que suelo escuchar habitualmente, pero variar de vez en cuando está buenísimo, y más con este tipo de R&B. En ese sentido, me pareció ideal para escucharlo mientras caminás por la calle. Me llamó mucho la atención el manejo de la instrumental y las bases en cada canción. Hay varios temas que destacan por sus ritmos, de esos que te hacen mover la cabeza casi sin darte cuenta. Mis favoritas fueron “Uh Uh”, “Show You The Way”, “Tokyo” y, sobre todo, “Them Changes”. En resumen, le doy un 8/10.
Funky, soulful, mix in some R&B and you have Thundercat. He's got a nice mix of genres that come together quiet well. Very interesting stuff.
Thundercat is no doubt a talented musician. His instrumentals are always fantastic, but theres just something about his vocal performance that I cant really enjoy. His lyrics are often quite funny, but thats not enough to save it for me. I have a lot of respect for him as a musician, I've seen him with performance credits on some of the most popular artists from any genre imaginable. Still though, this album was decent, but not fantastic.
no m’ha matat
Random thoughts: * I've been hip to this one for awhile. I even saw Thundercat open for the RHCPs a few years ago too. * Them Changes is the key track for me but there is a general smooth/funky vibe throughout this album. * "Ladies and gentlemen, Michael McDonald"!! Obviously, "Show You The Way" is a good track too *Tokyo was an interesting track too. * I want to rate this 4-star for my familiarity and just excitability that this album made 1001. But I think it is probably a 3-star album which your mileage may vary on your particular taste.
I've always enjoyed the grooves of Thunder Cat and his many collabs with some modern greats (Mac Miller! Kendrick! Anderson Paak!). This album is a chill, vibey listen.
Started off strong and unique, but then kinda slipped into a coffee shop music kinda vibe. Each song started blending in together and the album was really long so I got a bit tired of it near the end. It’s still a pleasant listen tho I like r&b
Didn't know he was silly goofy like that. Technically amazing for sure, but I think some other people do the funny better with technically amazing music. Hearing about and seeing this album all over the place, I was expecting a little more. Good time, but probably won't really revisit
Interesting album, I appreciate the unique/modern selection. Goes on too long and it isn't quite my jam, but I appreciate the general flow.
Thundercat played Bass w Mac Miller a ton so familiar w him. Knew of album but never listened to it fully. Great effort for someone who’s known to say it never thought of putting out albums
Like one jazzy soul adventure with funny idiosyncratic lyrics, virtuoso bass lines, tiny falsetto micro-hooks, with a few poppy gems rising to the surface. Fun listen.
Fun listen. I like how he takes a more conventional melody and twists it into something new and the way that his songs are leavened with a quirky humor.
algunas canciones muy buenas y otras muy malas 3,5 estrellas
Weird, funky, I liked it, but I don't think I would every purposefully listen to it again.
Rv
The is a fun album. Not something I would listen to but he is definitely talented.
Meh. I think I get but doing it for me
His bass playing and sound is cool sound but gets old. Them Changes stands out. I prefer the songs that are more jazzy, funky, weird songs over the more R&B and pop ones.
I’m a fan of Thundercat. I’ve even seen him live. There’s a lot to like here, and plenty of tracks I enjoyed, but some moments feel experimental just for the sake of it. It ends up being a bit inconsistent overall—good, but not quite great.
I wish it were as interesting as it thinks it is.
Not as bad as I thought it would be. It my thing, but I can understand giving it higher ratings.
I think it's a great genre bending album. Incredible bassist with a nerdiness that's cool.
Pretty inoffensive, chill, and jazzy electronic music, but it's definitely giving me Instagram/Tiktok parody music vibes that I'm not feeling. Not a fault of the album itself, but unfortunately can't shake that association.
One could, of course, begin a discussion of this album by listing the musicians Thundercat has worked with, but for me, such approaches immediately make me think, "The session member has decided to go solo, nothing interesting." Let's just say that Thundercat is, first and foremost, a very skilled bassist, and in this regard, he truly shines here. Unfortunately, he's not as good a singer, and his falsetto becomes tiresome after the album's midpoint. Most of the album is based on standard modern R&B, but occasionally a whole host of genres breaks through: prog, soft rock, jazz, hip-hop, not to mention the related funk and soul. It sounds like something abstruse, but it's actually easy to listen to. The variety of guests here matches the genres: from Kendrick Lamar and Wiz Khalifa to Pharrell and, surprisingly, Kenny Loggins. But twenty-three songs, even though they are short, are still a bit too many.
Lowkey woozy.
cat