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Travis Scott - Astroworld (Grand Hustle/Cactus Jack/Epic, 2018)

Driving to work this AM and saw on Spotify this thing finally came out and ended up spinning it there and back. I've never been a big Travis Scott fan but this album has been in the works for so long and boasts such a ridiculous array of collaborators that I figured I'd have to at least check in on it. It's a monster, really. 17 tracks, I don't know the total length but gotta be in the 70 minute zone, and packed to the gills. Drake, Frank Ocean, Swae Lee, Kid Cudi, James Blake, a Stevie Wonder harmonica feature, Pharrell, The Weeknd x 2, 21 Savage, Quavo & Takeoff, let alone the production credits, which for me is the best part. For me, there are some good tracks here - the album starts very strong with "Stargazing", a total headtrip, Frank Ocean on "Carousel" and "Sicko Mode" with Drake. All 3 are legitimate bangers with some really adventurous, head-turning production. "R.I.P. Screw" is messy and disjointed but in a wonderful way that feels like an appropriate ode to screwed music. After that things get spotty. Maybe I owe the album a few more listens but I think at the end of the day my problem with Scott is that he's just not a terribly interesting rapper. And here he gets upstaged by the production and a lot of the features. It's an impressively put together record, but it feels strangely forgettable. We'll see if it sticks on a few more playthroughs.

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