Cherry Bomb
Like *Goblin* and *Wolf* before it, the third studio album from rap’s prince of misanthropy feels like a deep dive into a sometimes-unstable mind: dreamy, dark, wildly creative, and menacingly personal. Musically, Tyler continues to explore extremes, alternating between thrash (“DEATHCAMP”), junkyard funk (“PILOT”), and low-key soul-jazz like “FIND YOUR WINGS,” making for an experience with an intensity matched by its range. Featuring Pharrell (whose productions with N.E.R.D helped draw Tyler’s musical blueprint), Kanye West, Lil Wayne, and ScHoolboy Q, among others.
Cherry Bomb, Tyler’s fourth long-player and third official album, bears all the hallmarks of his personality, for good and for ill. Smart, annoying, obnoxious, and creative, it's a reminder that Tyler, the Creator only creates as the sum of his exhaustive, trying, kaleidoscopic self.
Who is Tyler, The Creator? That was the burning question during the height of the media circus surrounding Odd Future four years ago. The music press wanted to know where this fatherless provocateur came from, what inspired his incendiary rhymes, and how he rationalized his most risible lyrics. And so Tyler answered…
It's hard not to link Tyler, The Creator's effort Cherry Bomb to Earl Sweatshirt's 2015 LP I Don't Like Shit, since these Odd Future-related albums were released less than a month apart; plus, they were both digitally leaked ahead of their official street date.
Dare say it, but has Tyler grown up? In his first effort post-WOLF trilogy the breadth of styles undertaken hints at witnessing a transition into more mature themes, even if the lyrics are still stuck in Odd Future mode
Tyler, the Creator's gradual musical maturation can be observed on each of his studio albums since the shock-rap of Bastard engaged angst-fu...
Is the rapper’s multi-layered fourth album a bid for serious-musician status or just a facetious entertainment? It’s a joy to deconstruct, either way<br>
Tyler, the Creator - Cherry Bomb review: Business as usual for Tyler, the Creator.