SATURATION

BROCKHAMPTON call themselves a boy band, but take that with a grain of salt: With “HEAT,” the L.A. rap collective’s first album of 2017 opens with a grinding beat and the ominous admission, “I hate the way I think/I hate the way it looms.” It’s not all so aggro: “GOLD” is a breezy ode to self-love over a golden hook, while the spacious, springy “BOYS” lets the crew’s rappers show off their range of flows—playful, slinky, menacing, and above all, seductive.

The Los Angeles rap collective espouses an all-caps message of self-love on a debut album split between effortless cool and empty platitudes.

Brockhampton - SATURATION review: GOLD STAR, BOYS