Take Two translates the day’s headlines for Southern California, making sense of the news and cultural events that affect our lives. Produced by Southern California Public Radio and broadcast from October 2012 – June 2021. Hosted by A Martinez.
Each week one of our experts joins us to talk about what's new in music on Tuesday Reviewsday. This week Oliver Wang from Soul-Sides.com and A Martinez talk about Frank Ocean, Vince Staples and Noname
Artist: Frank Ocean
Songs: "Pink + White" and "Nights"
Album: Blonde
"Blonde" is the long awaited sophomore album from Frank Ocean, released a day after his “visual album” Endless.
It’s been described as “formless” and “lacking in songs,” but even if the album feels fragmented, those shards are compelling on their own. It's loose, melancholy, disillusioned.
Artist: Vince Staples
Song: "War Ready"
Album: Prima Donna EP
North Long Beach’s finest dropped an EP that I fear may get overshadowed with all the focus on Frank.
But for fans of Staples’s incredible debut from last summer, "Summertime ’06," this is the perfect snack-sized EP to stave you off until his next album. Production by James Blake on this track. It's terse, propulsive, dark.
Artist: Noname
Songs: "Bye Bye Baby" and "Shadow Man"
Album: Telefone EP
Noname is a Chicago rapper and poet who first came to light alongside Chance the Rapper. She has a very conversational, stream of conscious style that’s similar to Chance’s, but also reminds me of Project Blowed MCs like Abstract Rude and Figures of Speech.
The production on the EP is great, too. Many of the melodies seem built from children’s instruments or weird harp settings on synthesizers. Cam Obi and Phoenix produced both songs. It's bright, playful, melodic.