Album Review: Ab-Soul, These Days…

Ab-Soul

These Days… (to be released June 24, 2014)

Ab-Soul fashions himself as the rap game’s leading intellectual. And he’s willing to take listeners into some pretty bizarre places in his quest for enlightenment.

If Ab-Soul’s last release, the amazing Control System, was Soulo’s attempt to broaden minds and lead listeners to the promised land, These Days… is a definite change in direction. Here, he plays the martyr, bearing his sins and putting his troubles on display to force his listeners to look inward.

Trust me, that cover art isn’t a coincidence.

Consider Soulo the conscious of TDE’s Black Hippy quartet – he has the street sensibilities of Jay Rock and shares the same love of vices as ScHoolboy Q, wrapped in an air-tight lyrical package reminiscent of hip-hop standout Kendrick Lamar. Ab-Soul embodies all their best qualities and, when he’s focused, he’s nearly unbeatable.

The bass-rattling “God’s Reign” serves as Soulo’s opening sermon (“All I did was take gangstas to church/got your girl with literature in her Louis bag/got your kids studying outside of class”) while “Stigmata” positions himself as hip-hop’s savior: “Don’t you dare, cast one stone in air/I’m cracking stone with bare hands, you’re a mere man.”

Just when the religious allegories start to get tiresome, Soulo reels you back in with flat-out stellar wordplay. In a mere few bars, Soulo dismisses his personal vision problems in favor of viewing a higher plane: “It makes sense I take interest in the third eye/due to my lack of sight, I guess it’s a sacrifice/cuz I already envisioned what the world looks like/ so when it’s handed to me I won’t need to look twice.” It’s some of the best lyricism we’ve heard all year.

Sometimes, though, Ab-Soul’s messages gets muddled. “World Runners” crawls at a snail’s pace, and despite a strong (but brief) guest verse from Lupe Fiasco, it never really gains traction. J. Cole produces “Sapiosexual,” where Soulo plays mind games to seduce a lady – it’s an interesting concept but winds up all over the map. And “Twact,” an attempt at a club banger, sounds completely out of place with its bargain-bin DJ Mustard production. If Ab-Soul wanted to showcase his vices, the double entendres of  “Tree of Life” and haunting production of “Ride Slow” are much better representatives.

Like the man himself, These Days… is an enigma wrapped in a puzzle encased in a riddle. On first glance, you might question why Soulo would feature a track like “Kendrick Lamar’s Interlude” where he is almost guaranteed to be upstaged by his more famous labelmate – until Soulo comes through with an impressive spoken-word addendum after Kendrick’s verse. And you’re sure to ask what’s the deal with the 25-minute closer “W.R.O.H.,” until you’re sucked into the battle rap between Ab-Soul and DAYLYTE.

On first listen, much of These Days… will leave you scratching your head. But by the third listen, you’ll be nodding your head. This is an album that needs repeat listens to fully digest all that’s being offered.

The ride’s not nearly as smooth as Control System and it definitely has a few potholes, but These Days… is a journey worth taking.

Open your mind and you’ll see Soulo’s vision.

Best tracks: “Stigmata,” “God’s Reign,” “Tree of Life”

4 stars out of 5