Drake’s Honestly, Nevermind is his Laziest Album Yet
Kendrick said “When Kanye got back with Drake, I was slightly confused” But when Drake made another lackluster “effort”, I wasn’t.
For a Dance record, it’s lifeless and sleep-inducing.
A surprise album from the ever-present marketing gimmick Drake channels new influences of house and techno, with his usual spin on ballroom and R&B.
This is thanks to a variety of producers like Black Coffee, Gordo, and &ME just to name a few. These producers give an even colder and club-ready feel to Drake’s already dance-friendly slow burners.
If you’re ever a fan of Drake’s dance experimentation from the mid-2010s, like Views or his playlist More Life, this album is a neat little bonus.
I, personally, am a lowkey fan of his dance material too, and most of the time it has something to do with nostalgia on songs like One Dance, and Passionfruit.
However, Drake’s latest “effort” is less of a main course as in without any emotional depth like his previous dance tracks. As I’ve said, it’s merely a bonus for some.
Drake was an absolute downer.
He doesn’t really connect to listeners through his mood, he merely sets it and unintentionally brings it to such a low degree.
Because the production is adequate, at best it’s very cool and promising, but Drake singing on top of it is like smothering it with cold butter.
His singing, which should’ve been the album’s defining strength, one that should bring it to a new level, is way off.
His voice only ranged from uninspired to rough and unlistenable, distracting one from Drake’s targeted tone into just plainly judging his sound.
Not to mention, the mixing of his vocals sound thin, which I guess is supposed to sound more reverberated but just sounds quite weird.
Drake missing the mark on sounding interesting and more whiny is the cherry on the bland whipped-cream cake top of an album about attachments or something. The video sets the precedent anyway.
However, for the fans who are more into his hip-hop ambition, he does rap bars in the album, albeit rarely.
Specifically on two tracks like Sticky and Jimmy Cooks featuring 21 Savage, which stand out rather tantalizingly when the rest of the album sounds like lazy studio fluff.
The first proper track on this record is Falling Back, also the lead single, also very unfortunate first impression. This is ROUGH, no way to sugarcoat it.
Drake switching from his real voice to an autotuned falsetto is no smooth transition, nor was it worth it anyway.
The song structure doesn’t really go anywhere, Drake just rides the same uneventful production for almost 5 minutes while he drones singing “Falling back on meeeeeee” on such a flat and off-putting manner.
What especially doesn’t help is the lyrics’ repetitive nature, which normally helps but in this case, goes against it.
We mostly have the same case with Texts Go Green, though the production sounds more throbbing, it really gets old really fast, simply because it stays in that lane and never goes anywhere with it.
Want to hear the most annoying sound in the world? Want it incorporated in a beat? Yeah Currents has got your back, against a cranky bed, for 3 minutes, this is insufferable.
A Keeper suffer from the flaws of Texts Go Green and many songs in the album; it’s forgettable and would rather not bring attention to it.
Calling My Name is atleast more notable and kind ofinteresting, though some for the wrong reasons. After all, it’s kind of funny to say that your pussy is calling your name.
Sticky is Drake breaking the album’s mold and serves as the sole memoir of any worth in this record. In here, he gets to talk about his career, Young Thug’s incarceration, his jewelry, and the passing of Virgil Abloh.
Massive is, out of all the dance tracks, the one that worked best. A decent contemplative club pop song with a decent performance from Drizzy. Though the beat drop sounded run-of-the-mill, with a continuous drum beat and two switching piano chords.
Though personally, my mind really checked out after Massive, but the tracklist Flight’s Booked onward showed a more nuanced approach in the techno-house influence on this album.
Overdrive and Down Hill both play on heartbreak and Drake serenading a partner or something, though it’s in a way, improved by the uncredited backup vocals.
Tie that Binds try to incorporate a flamenco guitar in the mix, but it never really ties or bind together smoothly.
Liability has a pitch-shifted Drake which does make it different, but at this point, I’m tired, I feel dreary, what time is it?
And finally, the closer Jimmy Cooks sees Drizzy start spitting again this time with 21 Savage. The beginning sample was immaculate, I really like both of their flows, and some very 21 Savage lines
This Glock 45 came with a switch (21)
If I was Will Smith, I would’ve slapped him with a stick
It’s a completely different vibe from the rest of the album, and it’s good that way. This went harder than it should’ve, but really, is the 50 minutes worth of lonely Dj-ing worth this? Nah.
If we both have the same impressions on Honestly, Nevermind, it’s definitely surprising to see the more general lukewarm reception in this record.
Music reviewer Richard’s Music Reviews acknowledges its shortcomings, though sees the album as artistic growth, and also has a few great songs too, Ruff Criminal loves the album, seeing it as a risk worth taking, and his favorite since 2016’s Views.
Despite this, some like Volksgeist and Fantano have put it in a negative, unfavorable light however.
Drake has since responded to the criticism in the album, saying “It’s all good if you don’t get it. That’s what we do, we all wait for you to catch up.”
He sees the album as a trendsetter back into the classic club-ready music, and to be fair, in the same week as this album, Beyoncé released her comeback Break My Soul, which both had elements of EDM.
Fans of Honestly, Nevermind see it as him switching it up, and it’s a risk.
Many praise the two tracks where he raps, but barely praise the rest of the album because we’re resisting change or what not.
When in truth, I’d argue that Drake doesn’t do enough for it to be a risk, no output from him barely changed, and in result, it actively falls short.
But at this point, does it even matter?
Drake certainly hasn’t cared for, debatably, 3 albums now. Critics have slammed his records for having little to no quality and lazy, yet he still tops the Billboard charts.
Drake will release another mid album, critics and music fans lambaste it, fans eat it up hard anyway, he earns from all the streaming revenue. Thinkpieces on the music industry start to pop up while he repeats the process all over.
This is an extended version of my album review on my Instagram: The Left Ear with Lee. Be sure to follow me on Medium and on Instagram. Thanks!
