Yeat 'AFTËRLYFE' Album Review
Yeat has been on a creative rampage since he's rose to stardom. The unique MC first blew up in 2021 with his eccentric vocals and electronic sound. Tracks such as 'Sorry Bout That' began receiving millions of views and populated millions of videos on TikTok. Similar to other artists that blow up, he got his start releasing various mixtapes on SoundCloud. Now an established artist in the industry, Yeat has become an internet sensation and has sparked some interesting debate regarding whether his music is here to stay or not. Last month, he released his sixth full-length record and potentially his first of multiple projects to drop in 2023.
‘AFTËRLYFE’ Is Different From Anything He’s Done Before
‘AFTËRLYFE' is certainly not a copy and paste of previous projects. Yeat toys with even more ridiculous ab-libs and vocal patterns. Purposefully off-beat, he’s able to keep the audience guessing on what tone or pattern he’ll employ next. Take the electric 'Woa...!,' where Yeat seamlessly flows from low to high pitching amidst a heavy beat. He attempts to make up for the distinct lack of features by ushering in his alter-personas 'Kranky Kranky' and 'Luh Geeky' on tracks such as 'Rav3 p4rty' and 'Now.'
Overall, this is a very solid album with a lot of fresh concepts. Yeat has clearly been working towards this kind of sound for many years, and in place of his usual gangster-rap-taken-to-an-extreme lyrics, Yeat has completely departed from lyrics at points throughout this album, taking melodic rap vocals to an extreme.
Teaming up with super-producer, BNYX, the two were able to execute many of the concepts well, and it's clear there was some great chemistry in the studio. As a whole album, the project is well worth a listen, and I feel confident saying that this album is some of the most creative hip-hop you'll be able to get your hands on in the 2020s so far. In all, I see the same reception as WLR got for this album. Yeat doubled down on his style like Playboi Carti did, and his body of work continues to polarize. For those who were unsatisfied with the album, perhaps they will come back around in the following months as the songs continue to stream and be played all over the place.
Album Vulnerabilities
While ‘AFTËRLYFE’ mirrors other records regarding its constant flexing, he’s vulnerable about his shortcomings that continue to put a stain on his life. Whether it be his reclusiveness or drug-related issues, he particularly addresses this to open and close the album. Additionally, ‘AFTËRLYFE’ is certainly a fatiguing record that loses steam over the latter half. However, this has been a running theme throughout his discography.
Fans pick and choose from a handful of tracks that land with them. It’s a strategy that fits well into Internet culture; fleeting, fun, and with plenty of options. ‘AFTËRLYFE’ is no different. The record is a wild combination of bangers that range from redundant to flat-out fun. Additionally, Yeat mixes in new stylistic tropes, from more traditional trap structures to melodic, acoustic songs. While he’s not always able to stick the landing, the attempt is admirable in a record that continues to define Yeat as a musical force.
VWM Favorites
'Now' - Incredible soundscape with a an electric execution of the vocal chain. He's really just making sounds at certain points extremely Thugger moments are sprinkled throughout.
'Sum 2 Do' - another classic adderall track from Yeat. Retune speed turned straight to zero with tons of delay saturating the chiptune instrumentals. I really enjoyed the syncopation of all of the different samples as drums throughout the song
'Demon Tied' - Very groovy and mixed like a plugg song. There's some XBOX startup sounding bass that is too crispy. Lots of thin West Coast Hip Hop type drum sounds, which allows the instrumental to really shine
What Did You Think of ‘AFTËRLYFE’?
If you’ve already listened to ‘AFTËRLYFE’ what are your takes on the project? Has he taken a step back by going for less of a banger-heavy record, or are the occasional switch-ups in sound refreshing? Let us know your feelings in the comments section below.