Kendrick Lamar - Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers (New Album) May 13th.

The main thing I was trying to get at earlier, though, is that Kendrick has never really had a perfect public persona. He’s always had some iffy moments in lyrics or public comments. He generally doesn’t feel the need to explain himself or get tied up in internet discourse, so folks take what they want from his lyrics/statements and run with it. It hasn’t stopped him from being a huge, respected artist though. The records as a whole transcend that stuff. But maybe not to the extent they used to for everyone (hence a slightly lackluster first week of sales)

 

Interesting. Might have to give this a listen. For me, the best thing Kendrick has done is his parts on Dr. Dre's Compton album. I like parts of To Pimp A Butterfly, but DAMN was pretty damn dull to me. I sold my vinyl of it recently for an immense profit though, which is a plus!
It just feels like he's supposed to have so much to say, but to me, that's not really the case, and what he does have to say isn't nearly as interesting or deep as the hype machine makes out. He has his moments though.
I'm also not a huge fan of his voice, which I find pretty whiny.... I mean, I know this is an unpopular opinion... however I'm actually here to say that he's intriguing enough that I'm curious to give his new album a listen. Despite being patchy, there's something interesting about him.
Will track it down and give a listen.

 

who is declaring these moments "iffy"

 

People listening to the records. On a personal level, I’ve had conversations with friends about lyrics we think are rough on his records. Reviewers call them out too. It varies depending on the listener

 

+1 on all three counts there, my friend. Lookin’ forward to Friday!

 

I don't understand how a fourth straight #1, with the biggest debut of the year, is a "flop," but ok. Edit: I guess the clickbait title and how people were respondong to this video gave me the wrong impression. The guy seems to know this isn't truly a flop.
Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers’ Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200 – Billboard

 

Expectations are always too high for Kendrick

 

Hmm….

Just been to HMV at apparently the CD isn’t out until next week now - 03rd June.

I’m sure it said 27th May on Amazon, but the CD isn’t even listed as an option on there now!

 

I've four listens in and have mixed feelings. Lyrically it's as dazzling as ever - that's almost a given at this point. Musically though, a few tracks just aren't interesting to me. Perhaps it's because I come to hip-hop from a R&B perspective, but some of the songs I find quite forgettable. Top tracks so far are Die Hard, Father Time, Purple Hearts, Auntie Diaries. I still enjoy it - hell I've listened to it four times and will again - but not quite up to my (possibly unrealistic) expectations.

 

That's my feeling as well and is why I enjoyed DAMN so much (and artists like Frank Ocean). I like the musicality of R&B mixed in with Hip-Hop sensibilities.

 

The music feels deliberately low key so the focus can be on the words. Which I appreciate. But it doesn’t always make for a compelling listen

 

I'm just waiting for the vinyl announcement.

 

I think the new album is excellent. My question going into putting this CD on for the first time was: what, at this stage in the world will Kendrick Lamar’s new album be about, what will he be looking at, what will he be commenting on, what will he not be commenting on? It’s a great listen, I think, and, for me, one that you’ve got to do in two sittings. I love the low keyness of it in places - he covers a lot of new ground lyrically and musically- and I love that it’s sprawling. Worth the wait.

 

Exclusive vinyl announced for end of August. No sure how exclusive this really is ?
Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers Exclusive Vinyl

 

Preorders are up in a few places now, including oklama.com. It’s not cheap (after shipping it cost me $53) but it’s a major label double LP in 2022. Could be worse

store

 

You can get it through the Interscope site as well - same price/shipping.

'Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers' Exclusive Vinyl – Interscope Records

 

I think im going to get the black vinyl from acoustic sounds. its $45 there. Chad says he always tries to carry the best pressing plant versions of records.

I think i have a better chance of getting a non noisy copy.

The colored editions will be more valuable but oh well.

 

These vinyl prices are truly getting out of control. They're going to press a zillion of these so I'll wait till it's around $25, or I'll do without.

 

I listened yesterday and for the first time, the album closing with “The Heart Part V” really clicked for me. I get why he added it to the track list now

 

Major disappointment for me, both musically and lyrically.

 

I like the way that this comment keeps the mystery alive. Specific reasons would just kill the magic.

 

In the past, I would hang on every word KL said, and I would come away not only with a sense of surprise, but also with a sense that only this man could be saying these things. He felt fresh, honest, interesting, unexpected, thoughtful, etc. On this record I don’t get that same feeling. It seems to me that you could substitute any “conscious” rapper and you’d get basically the same result.

Likewise, musically, I don’t find the tracks as compelling as the best of his past work. I’m not hearing the depth. There are some exceptions (“United in Grief” being the most obvious), but for the most part I’m just left cold.

I should note that I wasn’t a huge fan of Damn either, but I was both hopeful that Damn was an anomaly and that the big gap of time between Damn and Mr. Morale would result in something that felt more meaty than what we got.

So, sorry, I know people love this album, but it just doesn’t do anything for me. I would rank his albums:

TPAB
Good Kid
Section 80
Damn
Mr. Morale

 

Caught his tour last night in Philly. It was pretty amazing. I’d never seen him before so I can’t compare to previous tours, but I left very satisfied. The new songs sound really good live and his delivery is a lot more animated than it is on the record. Especially during “Mr Morale” while he’s surrounded by dancers. He did a good amount of Good Kid songs, which I didn’t really expect. Kinda forgot how solid that record is.

 

Did anyone get the UK/Euro vinyl for this today? If so, is it still the Chris Bellman cut from the US edition?

 

Are you ok with lip sync?? You can listen cd or lp at home