Tyler, the Creator - Bastard (2009)
The first time I had ever heard this mixtape, I was 16 and Tyler was 17 when he made this, so a huge part of my enjoyment was "He's (almost) my age and he's making cool music!!" so that along with the fact that we were both angry young men gave me a rapper I could really relate to (even though I didn't partake in any of the activities that he talks about on this mixtape) but now years later when I listen to this album, it's REALLY painfully apparent that a 17 year old made this album.
Tyler, the Creator is a bit of an oddball even if it seems like he's purposely trying to be one at times. He raps about shit you'd -never- want to play in the car to your mom, like violence, rape, and drugs (even though he's apparently straight-edge) in graphic, unapologetic detail, over raw, synthesizer-heavy beats he made in FL Studio with minimal samples. That in itself is pretty notable, given that Tyler pretty much created a style as a producer that he's become known for, and is pretty easily identifiable when he produces for other rappers. Either you fuck with it or you don't, and for a good portion of this mixtape, I do! It's dark and almost menacing at times, even if it does run the risk of consistently being a bit of the same.
Tyler's rage and overall style has major comparisons to Eminem in the way that they're both incredibly angry at their absent fathers, and both actively seek to piss you off and offend you under the guise of "You're upset? You're TOO sensitive!!" which does grow a bit old after a while when you realize that when Tyler is looking to make a name for himself and/or offend you, he's mainly repeating the same jokes with "rape" being the punchline, which pretty much shows that he must worship Eminem's 2009 release "Relapse" like his own personal Bible.
Outside of a few tracks, the entire mixtape carries a loose concept of Tyler talking to his therapist Dr. TC (which, surprise surprise, you can figure out who voices) and also manages to carry an almost claustrophobic feeling where it attempts to suffocate the listener with loud, raw instrumentals and Tyler's internal rage, sometimes even justified (when he's talking about his father) but also carries across the feeling of depression, that his anger, edginess and all, was caused by abandonment and he's lashing out at the world around him, if anything, for the attention that he was never given, but it seems like since this mixtape, he's gotten more attention than he ever wanted!
This armchair-therapist theory aside, the beats can go from ominous sounding piano instrumentals ("Bastard"), to abrasive and loud ("Seven"), to even chill and MF DOOM influenced ("Odd Toddlers (Feat. Casey Veggies)" and that's just the first three tracks on the mixtape! The instrumentals to "French! (Feat. Hodgy Beats)" which boasts the lyrics that sum up Tyler perfectly ("Cruisin' in my go-kart at Walmart selling cupcakes, go ahead and admit it, faggot, this shit is tighter than butt-rape.") and "Assmilk (Feat. Earl Sweatshirt)" are also worthy of note, with the latter song changing every time that Earl or Tyler steps up to the microphone to try to be edgier than the other person at talking about rape, which, as you can imagine, if you're not an angry and edgy teenager, does wear out its welcome pretty quickly.
Tyler's rapping can almost be described as.. Well, nothing special for the most part, but he's got a cool enough sounding voice to make up for it. He can still carry on songs well, such as in pretty much any of the songs I've already named, but it's pretty apparent that his obscene lyrics are one of the main factors separating him from most rappers, while keeping him notable in a listener's mind as being "insane" and "misunderstood" while also being "ONE OF US", a rapper that was practically raised as a child on the /b/ section of 4chan.
The mixtape's quality can vary seemingly from track to track. Some hit the spot in a dark, angsty way, and some sound unfinished or even awkward in comparison to the rest of the songs on the mixtape (see "Parade", "Slow it Down (Feat. Hodgy Beats)" and "Sarah")" so the quality of the songs and even production quality on this album can be pretty hit-or-miss, with some being "Wow, that's kinda impressive for FL Studio" and the others being "Yep, a 17 year old definitely made this in FL Studio".
It seems like my opinion of this mixtape changes often, but this is how I feel about it now: Good, but better in short doses, because Tyler's constant need to try to offend you quickly loses any and all effect even just a few songs into the album when he's thrown all of the tricks up his sleeve at you immediately, and is left with nothing but repetition. That all being said, it holds a special place in my heart for the time and the (thankfully positive) effect it had on me, so I can't really hate on it as much as I will on certain days.
And he's like REALLY rad too like he must like eat like fifteen pizzas a day because sometimes he wears pictures of cats on his shirt haha lol what where does he even coME UP WITH THIS SHIT OMFG
7/10
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