Album Mode

This week Démar and Adriel discuss Janelle Monáe's fourth studio album 'The Age of Pleasure', its reggae roots and how seamlessly Monáe blends genres.

Démar’s rating: 9
Adriel’s rating: 7.5

The Love List: Water Slide, Phenomenal, The Rush, Haute

*NO SKIPS*

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Janelle Monáe – The Age of Pleasure / 2023 / reggae, dancehall, soul, R&B

Démar and Adriel talk about Drake's Honestly, Nevermind hitting its one-year anniversary and how its aged (hint: that joint slaps, you haters). Also The Weeknd's 'The Idol' is purposefully unsettling but also cringe.

Time Codes:
0:00 – introduction
14:34 - Honestly, Nevermind's one-year anniversary

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Démar and Adriel talk about how Taylor Swift got bullied into dumping Matty Healy and whether The Weeknd’s acting is genuinely off-kilter or just bad on ‘The Idol’. The duo also debate whether bad haircuts are The Weeknd’s brand and why there hasn’t been a hip hop #1 on the charts yet.

Time Codes:
0:00 – introduction
2:15 – Bought in
5:50 – Taylor Swift fans like to cancel people
13:00 – The Fumble
21:30 – The Weeknd’s hair is terrible
24:15 – The Weeknd’s hair being terrible is allegedly his brand
30:00 – Realizing we lost a generation of artists

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This week Démar and Adriel discuss the first collab EP between Dave and Central Cee, ‘Split Decision’, how Central Cee has freed Dave from seriousness and how Dave’s lyricism challenges Cee to elevate his own.

Démar’s rating: 4 Stars
Adriel’s rating: 4 Stars

The Love List: Sprinter, Trojan Horse, Our 25th Birthday

0:18 - Introduction
04:09 – Projects that never happened
4:38 – CC Fans
10:00 – 25th Birthday
13:20 – Could have had a Drake feature
21:44 - Generic bit it bumps
24:26 – Central Cee Outta pocket
25:51 – Central Cee vs Gunna

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Dave x Central Cee – Split Decision / 2023 / rap, hip hop, uk rap, drill, grime

This week Démar and Adriel discuss Arlo Parks’ sophomore album ‘My Soft Machine’, it’s adventurous production and Parks’ revamped (and blunted) song writing style.

Démar’s rating: 8.5
Adriel’s rating: 8.5

The Love List: Blades, Purple Phase, Impurities, Puppy

0:00 Intro
4:00 Arlo Parks is Tyrese Haliburton
5:30 She doesn't need features
6:40 Romil from BROCKHAMPTON
8:35 Weightless with Paul Epworth
10:00 Sounds like Carly Rae Jepsen
14:30 Emotion in her vocals
17:30 Blades is Demar's favourite
23:10 Arlo Parks signature production
23:25 Why is Phoebe Bridgers on the album?
26:20 Heaviest song of her career
30:57 Simple songwriting
42:41 No skips?

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Arlo Parks – My Soft Machine / 2023 / indie, r&b, rock, alternative

This week Démar and Adriel discuss the KAYTRAMINÉ collab album ‘KAYTRAMINÉ,’ Aminé’s 90’s references, being a pop Pusha T and whether improved KAYTRAMINÉ is a crossover point for Kaytranada.

Démar’s rating: 8
Adriel’s rating: 8.5

The Love List: 4EVA, Westside, K&A, EYE,

Time Codes:

0:00 Intro
3:20 steez
4:20 lots going on in a good way
7:30 he’s like Portland
8:20 he’s like Pusha T
9:00 song of summer doesn’t work for everyone
9:50 this is not scaring the hoes music
14:30 the ticking hi-hat 16:30 joey badass
19:30 snoop 22:00 rap resume
23:00 808s wiggle not a rattle
24:50 STFU 27:50 hype track
28:00 Terrence Ross
29:30 rap is a secret language
31:30 Smart Guy
37:00 Freddie Gibbs
38:00 Big Sean x Viola Davis
42:45 The Matrix

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KAYTRAMINÉ – KAYTRAMINÉ / 2023 / rap, hip hop, house, electronic

Démar and Adriel discuss why there’s no song of the summer yet, Kid Cudi nixing his single release after being roasted by twitter and the death of the great Tina Turner.

Time Codes:
0:00 - Intro
1:00 - Tina Turner
4:35 - Song of summer / Adriel is a hipster
7:15 - Travis Scott … it’s music it’s on a USB
10:45 - Cudi snippet removed from Twitter
15:15 - Chance the rapper
16:15 - Summer Walker
22:45 - Adriel has a lot of Travis Scott shit to talk
25:45 - Can Demar count the forgotten “Drake” album

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Démar and Adriel discuss how the hip hop developed over the 90s and how many artists have maintained their relevance beyond the monumental time for the genre. The duo also talks about DaBaby’s potential comeback because of the Repo Reaper account on TikTok’s virality.


Time Codes:
0:00 - Intro
2:00 - Tribe
4:35 - 90s Dr Dre
7:05 - Wu-Tang
11:35 - Rihanna son named RZA
12:29 - RZA to Riff Raff
13:20 - 1 hit wonders
16:05 - Bootylicious
17:05 - DaBaby & TikTok


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Hip Hop turns 50 this year so Album Mode has decided to look at an album per decade to see how the genre has evolved since that primordial party in New York that started it all. This week Démar and Adriel discuss one of the god MC’s, Nas’ and his debut classic ‘Illmatic’, it’s iconic lines and one liners. The duo also discuss the legendary production list and how 'Illmatic' traps the listener in New York with Nas.


Démar’s rating: 10
Adriel’s rating: 10

The Love List: NY State of mind, The World is Yours, Life’s a Bitch, Represent, It Ain’t Hard to Tell

* NO SKIPS *


Time Codes:
0:00 - Intro
5:00 - it’s like a new console
5:45 - the phrase ill & slang
9:50 - NY in the 90’s Mecca of Hip-Hip
13:00 - Production
20:08 - record scratch…. doesn’t sound dated
26:00 - AZ lyrics
30:00 - the person that said it is no longer important
37:00 - using different languages in 4 bars
39:45 - Mount Rushmore of backpack rap
40:45 - his music aged better then he did


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Nas – Illmatic / 1994 / rap, hip hop

This week Démar and Adriel discuss rapper Destroy Lonely’s debut album ‘If Looks Could Kill.’ Lonely’s Nav-ness and whether his lack of variance on a feature-less album can work long term.

Time Codes:

0:00 - Intro
7:15 - If you know what 9/11 is then you are old enough
9:25 - One flow all the way through
14:45 - Sounds like he has to take a dump
16:00 - Something to his voice
18:30 - He is your cousin that raps who you hate his music…
19:30 - Ball like Dellavedova
21:30 - Reminds Démar of Nav
32:59 - Whistle adlib

Démar’s rating: 3
Adriel’s rating: 5

The Love List: if looks could kill, how u feel, which one

Destroy Lonely – If Looks Could Kill. / 2023 / rap, hip hop, rage

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