Starz
by Yung Lean
  • Record Label: Year0001
  • Release Date: May 15, 2020
User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 29 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 29
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 29
  3. Negative: 1 out of 29
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  1. IndianaParkWars
    Aug 21, 2020
    2
    2/10

    I'm not a particularly huge fan of rap, so I expected I wouldn't like the album by default. However, the first track roped me in. It was dark and creepy, with elements of horrorcore, that remind me of Tyler the Creator. The style of the album is defined as cloud rap; it's a low-quality/lo-fi sound with relaxed beats and monotone singing/rapping. This is what most of the songs on    2/10

    I'm not a particularly huge fan of rap, so I expected I wouldn't like the album by default. However, the first track roped me in. It was dark and creepy, with elements of horrorcore, that remind me of Tyler the Creator. The style of the album is defined as cloud rap; it's a low-quality/lo-fi sound with relaxed beats and monotone singing/rapping. This is what most of the songs on the album sounded like. I do enjoy lo-fi, but I can't say cloud rap, or at least this album, is my cup of tea. It doesn't have enough to interest me and feels less human, and more artificial. Sometimes lo-fi gives a very relatable and human quality to the work, but in this case, it's more of a cheap, processed product. I'd equate this album to store-brand junk food. But, some people like that kind of stuff. Personally, it's not for me and I don't see enough to earn respect or interest. The only thing I can say is that the first song was a banger. If he made more like that, I'd like his work a lot more. Otherwise, it feels like the club music I'd hear at a pot-smoke filled basement at a college party of students who are majoring in something they don't care about because they feel like they'll have a steady job afterwards and please their elders.

    ALBUM ARTWORK: The cover is pretty cool, minus the goofy font. I like the green hue and blurry photo. The haziness is symbolic of the "cloudiness" of the music and the relaxed, vape-cloud of a mood the album invokes. Lean has a sort of charisma with his looks, constantly looking either puzzled or angry. At what? I'm not sure, but I know he has had demons in the past that he's struggled with. It makes me sympathize for him and wonder what he's struggling with now.    … Expand

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
68

Generally favorable reviews - based on 7 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 7
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 7
  3. Negative: 0 out of 7
  1. RapReviews.com
    Jul 28, 2020
    65
    Putting the lyrics aside for the moment I’m willing to say there’s something here. The production goes from spartan and airy to distorted and noisy in a way that makes it feel like industrial trap rap, and his accent plays with your expectations of what the flow should be like. ... Ultimately I must still give a “meh” to the overall presentation, because like many of his U.S. counterparts, Yung Lean’s music relies more on style than substance.
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  2. The Wire
    Jun 11, 2020
    80
    The record works best however when Leandoer wears his heart unashamedly on his sleeve.
  3. Pitchfork
    May 21, 2020
    55
    While his singing is strained and incompetent, at least he’s going for it. Too much of the album seems satisfied with the small space Lean was able to carve out for himself.
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