BROCKHAMPTON - ROADRUNNER: NEW LIGHT, NEW MACHINE ALBUM REVIEW
WHO LET THE DOPE BOYS OUT?
BROCKHAMPTON has been a group that has always been in the limelight for the wrong reasons to me. Their one-two-three punch that was the Saturation trilogy from 2017 was an incredible breath of fresh air for hip-hop to me, but with that came some controversy. Ameer Vann, the de-facto leader of the group and the one on all of their album covers so far, was accused of sexual misconduct and abuse allegations by multiple women. While he denied these allegations on Twitter, the group came to a decision for Vann to leave the collective, canceling the rest of their tour and shelving an entire album that was set to come up a month later. After this, BROCKHAMPTON’s music hasn’t entirely clicked for me. Yes, I do feel like their two post-Ameer projects iridescence and GINGER are good in their own ways, but they haven’t felt the same. The guy that made them household names isn’t there anymore, and it took a big toll on their mental health. Going into this new project, ROADRUNNER: NEW LIGHT, NEW MACHINE, I was a little worried. They were losing me as a fan, and I felt like this was a do-or-die moment for me. After the two singles from this, the abrasive “BUZZCUT” with Danny Brown and the chill “COUNT ON ME,” I still felt torn on this. “BUZZCUT” is one of the best singles of the year so far, but “COUNT ON ME” kind of disappointed me. Well, I think I’ve gone on long enough on this one, so let’s just get into how I felt about ROADRUNNER, and there’s a lot to unpack.
This is honestly a pretty emotional album overall, but before that, let’s get to the bangers. All of these tracks have more of a pop feel than their past projects. Hell, Shawn Mendes contributes to a pretty good chorus on “COUNT ON ME.” If that’s not leaning into pop, I don’t know what is. Speaking of Shawn Mendes, this is one of the first times that the group has features on a project. The previously mentioned Danny Brown has, in my opinion, the best feature of the year so far, the multiple contributions from A$AP Rocky are fun, and JPEGMAFIA’s “CHAIN ON” verse is in a tight competition with Brown’s guest verse as the best feature of the year so far. The production on here is gorgeous as well, with some of the beats taking rock influences, especially “THE LIGHT.” There’s even a full gospel track, or at least their take on it, on “DEAR LORD.”
This is a ‘boy band’ in a sense, so we gotta look over the separate performances. Kevin Abstract has stepped up as a performer, giving some of the album’s best verses. The same could be said for Matt Champion and Dom McLennon, who have some pretty funny quotes throughout this. Jabari has some pretty awesome harmonies and choruses, and while I did want more of Bearface, I’m very satisfied with what I got. Some things never change, though, as Merlyn Wood doesn’t miss at all here. But after multiple listens, I can say without any doubt that Joba is the MVP of ROADRUNNER. His verse on “THE LIGHT” is my favorite on the entire project, and on “THE LIGHT PT. II,” Joba closes out the album with a genuinely heartbreaking performance that’s unlike anything I’ve heard this year.
Yeah, this is the comeback I’ve been waiting for since 2018. ROADRUNNER: NEW LIGHT, NEW MACHINE is proof that BROCKHAMPTON is one of the most exciting hip-hop outfits working right now, and with rumors that there’s a second album coming out this year as a farewell to BROCKHAMPTON as a unit, I cannot wait to see how the boys finish up their run because ROADRUNNER is a career-high for all of the members, especially for Kevin and Joba.
9/10
Listen here
YouTube Music
ROADRUNNER: NEW LIGHT, NEW MACHINE is an RCA Records release.
BROCKHAMPTON has been a group that has always been in the limelight for the wrong reasons to me. Their one-two-three punch that was the Saturation trilogy from 2017 was an incredible breath of fresh air for hip-hop to me, but with that came some controversy. Ameer Vann, the de-facto leader of the group and the one on all of their album covers so far, was accused of sexual misconduct and abuse allegations by multiple women. While he denied these allegations on Twitter, the group came to a decision for Vann to leave the collective, canceling the rest of their tour and shelving an entire album that was set to come up a month later. After this, BROCKHAMPTON’s music hasn’t entirely clicked for me. Yes, I do feel like their two post-Ameer projects iridescence and GINGER are good in their own ways, but they haven’t felt the same. The guy that made them household names isn’t there anymore, and it took a big toll on their mental health. Going into this new project, ROADRUNNER: NEW LIGHT, NEW MACHINE, I was a little worried. They were losing me as a fan, and I felt like this was a do-or-die moment for me. After the two singles from this, the abrasive “BUZZCUT” with Danny Brown and the chill “COUNT ON ME,” I still felt torn on this. “BUZZCUT” is one of the best singles of the year so far, but “COUNT ON ME” kind of disappointed me. Well, I think I’ve gone on long enough on this one, so let’s just get into how I felt about ROADRUNNER, and there’s a lot to unpack.
This is honestly a pretty emotional album overall, but before that, let’s get to the bangers. All of these tracks have more of a pop feel than their past projects. Hell, Shawn Mendes contributes to a pretty good chorus on “COUNT ON ME.” If that’s not leaning into pop, I don’t know what is. Speaking of Shawn Mendes, this is one of the first times that the group has features on a project. The previously mentioned Danny Brown has, in my opinion, the best feature of the year so far, the multiple contributions from A$AP Rocky are fun, and JPEGMAFIA’s “CHAIN ON” verse is in a tight competition with Brown’s guest verse as the best feature of the year so far. The production on here is gorgeous as well, with some of the beats taking rock influences, especially “THE LIGHT.” There’s even a full gospel track, or at least their take on it, on “DEAR LORD.”
This is a ‘boy band’ in a sense, so we gotta look over the separate performances. Kevin Abstract has stepped up as a performer, giving some of the album’s best verses. The same could be said for Matt Champion and Dom McLennon, who have some pretty funny quotes throughout this. Jabari has some pretty awesome harmonies and choruses, and while I did want more of Bearface, I’m very satisfied with what I got. Some things never change, though, as Merlyn Wood doesn’t miss at all here. But after multiple listens, I can say without any doubt that Joba is the MVP of ROADRUNNER. His verse on “THE LIGHT” is my favorite on the entire project, and on “THE LIGHT PT. II,” Joba closes out the album with a genuinely heartbreaking performance that’s unlike anything I’ve heard this year.
Yeah, this is the comeback I’ve been waiting for since 2018. ROADRUNNER: NEW LIGHT, NEW MACHINE is proof that BROCKHAMPTON is one of the most exciting hip-hop outfits working right now, and with rumors that there’s a second album coming out this year as a farewell to BROCKHAMPTON as a unit, I cannot wait to see how the boys finish up their run because ROADRUNNER is a career-high for all of the members, especially for Kevin and Joba.
9/10
Listen here
YouTube Music
ROADRUNNER: NEW LIGHT, NEW MACHINE is an RCA Records release.
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