In the second edition of Last Week in Music, 'The Spins' Podcast hosts, Finn Askin and Martin Gross, take a look at Clairo's sophomore album 'Sling' and Isaiah Rashad's new single "Wat U Sed." Each of them joined together to curate and answer three questions for each release.
What was your favorite track?
“Bambi”
Improved, more individualized piano execution, an unbelievable enhancement in vocal mixing, and a deep look into her juvenile experiences with the music industry all fuse together to produce one of the most infatuating openers I have heard in years. “Bambi,” the opener to Clairo’s sophomore album, Sling, ultimately provided a visualization of what Clairo’s music career looked like as it initially was coming to fruition. One minute into the song, Clairo, in a mild, gloomy undertone, sings,
This allusion to the amount of control people have over artists that have just signed their first record deal remains a theme throughout the record. The imagery utilized throughout the song portrays growth that was often restricted by the, predominantly male, hands of the people above her. This track was sadly the only one to check the amount of boxes I needed to add to my “Liked Songs.”
Did this album reach your expectations?
While I am incredibly happy to see Clairo finally discovering her own sound, a large part of me genuinely misses the simplicity that Clairo rose to fame with. Her incredible growth from a student curating bedroom-pop-bops, to a legitimate force in the pop industry is almost comparable to a Yung Lean come-up. That being said, however, I could never bash anyone who is finally able to preach what she was held from actually getting to. From what it sounded like, she had full creative freedom on this record. While it was co-produced by former FUN. member, Jack Antonoff, she still took the reins, without a “claw on her shoulder.” Joanie is the epitome of a song that was wonderfully instrumental, but it went on for minutes too long. That, to my dismay, was the true definition of this album. It was dragged on longer than it needed to. I believe if this album hit in between diary 001’s (14 minutes) and Immunity’s (40 minutes) range, it would've encapsulated every feeling she needed to convey to her audience. If Clairo dropped three or four songs from the middle stretch, I don’t think I would’ve gotten as distracted and fatigued as I did during this listening experience. While I don’t want to rate the album, I genuinely thought this album was going to be a much larger branch out from Immunity. This album felt way too much like a copy-paste-clone of her debut project.
Where did this Album rank on Clairo’s Discography?
I think this album belongs right after Diary 001 as the second best project to come from the 22-year-old. While I said this was a copy-paste-clone of her debut album, I do believe she showed a lot of growth in every aspect of her talent. Whether it was her ability to utilize a plethora of instruments like the sea bass or saxophone, or her newfound vocal complexity, she definitely proved that she was no longer that bedroom-pop-centric teenager. Her storytelling also seemed to be a lot more clear-cut than what was previously showcased. While I hoped this album hit number one for me, it lacked in too many areas to the point of monotony in my ears. It was difficult to find many distinctions between any track.
The continuation of Clairo’s career is something I will forever watch. While this album wasn’t what I dreamt it to be, it still was a piece that genuinely signified growth: something I am always envious of.
Last week, Rashad God dropped “Wat U Sed,” his third and last single before his highly anticipated third album The House is Burning. Where does this single rank out of the three he has dropped?
I have to put “Wat U Sed” at one. It’s a masterpiece. Even though I highly respect Fantano and other music critics' opinions, this track will stay on constant loop to quench my thirst before the album. Even though Isaiah doesn’t necessarily have bars that are immensely thought-provoking, he makes up for it with his hypnotic and drowsy vocal performances and cloudy instrumentals. Every rapper doesn’t need to be throwing hard-nosed bars over and over to provide a quality rap song. Zay is the epitome of this and constantly stays in his lane, creating his own, beautiful influence.
And just for funzies, I would put “Headshots (4r Da Locals)” at two, and “Lay Wit Ya” at three.
Isaiah Rashad has been known to create great solo music. But, some might say his greatest tracks are his dynamic and tremendous features. Out of the three features, Duke Deuce, Iamdoechii, and Kal Banx, who had the most impressive performance?
There is no doubt that all three features provide a positive addition to their respective tracks, and are definitely not detrimental to the song. With that said, I don’t know if Kal or Duke can top Iamdoechii. Doechii does a great job juxtaposing her sweet and charming voice with badass wordplay and rhetoric. If you were to take out the meaning of her words, you would think she would be rapping about something PG. But when you start to unveil the meaning of her words and see how she bounces on the California beat, she unlocks a whole new subcategory of rap. Her verse is electric and opens up my inner bad bitch. (Wow, I can’t believe I just said that).
Speaking of features, after seeing the tracklist for The House is Burning, which feature are you most excited for and which feature do you think will be the best?
There are a plethora of features on this album, including huge names like Smino, Jay Rock, and 6lack. As I am super pumped for those features, I am most excited for Lil Uzi Vert’s feature. I am not as big of a fan of Uzi as I was a few years ago, but I am really intrigued with how these two will collaborate together. Stylistically, they are polar opposites, and I wonder how this chemistry will be on a Zay album. And though I am excited for the Uzi feature, I think the feature that will be the best is SZA. She and Rashad have always created hits together, and I can’t see that trend stopping any time soon.
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