Earl Sweatshirt – Doris

August 20, 2013 • Tan Cressida Records

I've been following the whole Odd Future thing only casually at best; a lot of the collective's output is really hit-or-miss and there's so much to it that it usually feels easier just to not bother. Only Earl Sweatshirt's material (and maybe MellowHype's too, I guess) has been interesting to me, and I suppose Doris is a fine enough album to go along with the first. It's also hit-or-miss, but I think the hits outweigh the misses, at least a little.

Like most of Odd Future, the beats on Doris are pretty minimal, meaning usually I either like them a lot or think they're awful. Heck, even just the first two tracks show off the disparity well—"Pre" makes a horrible first impression, but "Burgundy" is a really neat, almost cloud-rap-like track. A lot of different producers were on board for Doris which explains the inconsistent quality; as someone who cares a bit more about the beats than the rapping I'd prefer to hear just one producer's stuff, whoever it might be. On the other hand, at least the signature Odd Future aesthetic throughout the album is relatively consistent, so it feels a bit more than just some random tracks arranged together.

As was expected, the guest spots are pretty disappointing; Earl has a good enough voice and actually writes really decent lines most of the time, so everyone else just sounds like a hack in comparison. (To be fair, most of them are hacks. Who decided giving SK La' Flare a mic was a good idea? And I hate to say it, but RZA's part is awful and he really has no place here; he's been grasping at straws for a while and needs to take a break.) I usually don't listen to the lyrics much ever, but there are some really bad / immature lines that stick out that kill the mood for me. But it's not all bad, for sure.

It's hard to recommend an album like this, but if you already like Odd Future you won't go wrong. It's wildly inconsistent quality-wise and I don't see a lot of general hip hop fans being into it, but like Earl's debut there are plenty of really good moments here that make the whole thing worth listening to, as long as you know what you're getting into.

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