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Pitchfork crowns King Kendrick Lamar (Top 50 Albums of 2012)

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S

Stat Flow

He gonna cry in the car
Huh, nice to see Kendrick get such accolades. Personally, I thought the album was just okay after listening to the entirety of it a few times.
 
F

FrenchMovieTheme

Member
i dont think ive ever agreed with pitchfork on anything but opinions are opinions. i checked out kendrick lamar.... fucking horrible lulz. i don't get how people can like trash like this

then again i dont like rap music so maybe its actually good for people who like the genre. believe it or not i've met people who don't like faith no more, pixies, queens, etc. as for the rest of the list, haven't heard of some of these artists but i dont think tame impala is that good. i also dont see deftones but thats probably too mainstream to be on a pitchfork list. fuckin' sellouts!
 
R

RJT

Member
FrenchMovieTheme said:
i dont think ive ever agreed with pitchfork on anything but opinions are opinions. i checked out kendrick lamar.... fucking horrible lulz. i don't get how people can like trash like this

then again i dont like rap music so maybe its actually good for people who like the genre. believe it or not i've met people who don't like faith no more, pixies, queens, etc. as for the rest of the list, haven't heard of some of these artists but i dont think tame impala is that good. i also dont see deftones but thats probably too mainstream to be on a pitchfork list. fuckin' sellouts!
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You sound like a nice guy...
 
F

FrenchMovieTheme

Member
RJT said:
You sound like a nice guy...
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there's only room for ONE lamar in my life!

lamar2.jpg
 
F

FrenchMovieTheme

Member
Tguy said:
You won't agree with majority sites tbh.
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probably. i wasn't saying pitchfork was the only one that praises Artist X (whoever it has been over the years), just that every year i see their end of year list and i just wouldn't personally agree with who they have at the top or near the top. i read their reviews on albums from time to time and some of their reviews on albums i love just blow my mind. but its really hard to argue with someones opinion on these types of things
 
S

Shredding.Bullets

Member
FrenchMovieTheme said:
i dont think ive ever agreed with pitchfork on anything but opinions are opinions. i checked out kendrick lamar.... fucking horrible lulz. i don't get how people can like trash like this

then again i dont like rap music so maybe its actually good for people who like the genre. believe it or not i've met people who don't like faith no more, pixies, queens, etc. as for the rest of the list, haven't heard of some of these artists but i dont think tame impala is that good. i also dont see deftones but thats probably too mainstream to be on a pitchfork list. fuckin' sellouts!
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It's not that Deftones are too mainstream, it's that they're horrid.
 
T

Tain

Member
huh, I went to high school with a member of Cloud Nothings. Pretty sure I shared a lunch table with that dude my freshman year. Wild. Hadn't really heard of the band until now.
 
L

ledman

Member
Just listened to some of the tracks of Lamar, I didn't like it, rap is really not my thing.
But Beach Hpuse is almost perfect.
 
R

Rpgmonkey

Member
I'm happy with Kendrick at number one. Don't think I would put Channel Orange at #2, but it's still top 10 for me so it's close enough I guess.

Liked quite a few albums on that list, and it's missing a few others I really liked. Very, very good year overall.
 
R

RDreamer

Member
f0rk said:
It's not like there's an infinite amount of good music released in a year, of course there is going to be some overlap / consensus.
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Eh, there's a metric ton of releases. I don't really mean anything by what I said. I was genuinely surprised, but I don't think that surprise is unfounded... that these are the de facto consensus records of the year. There's a ton of stuff outside this bubble. (and I realize there's a ton of stuff outside my own bubble, which is why I don't mind looking through pitchfork lists).

f0rk said:
Pitchfork gets a really bad rap (in my opinion) from the crowd who hate on 'hipsters' just because their tastes might reach a bit further than the radio or heavy metal or whatever.
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Are you saying that Pitchfork listeners get hated on because they have more eclectic tastes?
 
H

HiResDes

Member
FrenchMovieTheme said:
i dont think ive ever agreed with pitchfork on anything but opinions are opinions. i checked out kendrick lamar.... fucking horrible lulz. i don't get how people can like trash like this

then again i dont like rap music so maybe its actually good for people who like the genre. believe it or not i've met people who don't like faith no more, pixies, queens, etc. as for the rest of the list, haven't heard of some of these artists but i dont think tame impala is that good. i also dont see deftones but thats probably too mainstream to be on a pitchfork list. fuckin' sellouts!
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If you can't appreciate the album on a small thematic level I don't think I can even respect you.
 
D

Dartastic

Member
I'm surprised I didn't see bear in heaven there. Ah well. Anyway, Kendrick's album is quite good, but personally I like Channel Orange way more.
 
V

VALIS

Member
The homogeneity in end of year lists between sites like Pitchfork, Paste, AV Club, Tiny Mix Tapes and so on seems more obvious than ever this year. I like the Kendrick Lamar album, I like a lot of the albums on these sites top lists, but you'd think there were 100 albums released this year instead of thousands. Same exact albums everywhere. Sharon Van Etten. Killer Mike. Frank Ocean. Chromatics. Scott Walker. Fiona Apple. Beach House. Bat For Lashes. Kendrick Lamar. Tame Impala. Over and over and over but in slightly different order. Music is not remotely this objective, it's just laziness.
 
H

HiResDes

Member
Random Guy on KTT said:
Good Kid, M.A.A.D City: A Short Film by Kendrick Lamar

Setting: Compton

Characters:

Kendrick Lamar (present Kendrick)
K.Dot (young Kendrick)
Sherane
Kendrick's Mother
Kendrick's Father
Dave
Dave's brother
Keisha's sister
Demetrius (Sherane's favourite cousin)
The Two Brothers (Sherane's younger brothers)
Granny (Sherane's Granny who she lives with)
Sherane's Mother (a crack addict)
Uncle Tony (Kendrick's Uncle who was killed)
Joey (either childhood friend of Kendrick or cousin)
L, Boog, Yaya, Lucky (friends/family members of Kendrick when he was 9)
Unknown Woman (who gets the boys to pray)

The Story:

Sherane aka Master Splinter's Daughter

The story opens as a flash-forward. K.Dot has known Sherane for a number of months by this point. He met her at a party where they flirted and exchanged numbers. They kept in contact with each other over the summer and got to know each other pretty well, he talks about her family's history of gang-banging that made him wary but didn't stop him from hooking up with her.

At the end of this song K.Dot is driving to Sherane's house in his Mother's van, he has sex on the brain. But when he turns up Sherane is outside waiting with two dudes in black hoodies (possibly her two younger brothers, or her cousins, one of which could be Demetrius).

Skit #1 - as K.Dot pulls up at Sherane's house his Mother tries to call him but instead gets his voice-mail. We learn from his Mother that K.Dot said he was borrowing her van for just 15 minutes. She warns him not to mess with “them hoodrats” especially “Sherane”.

****, Don't Kill My Vibe

The content of this song doesn't actually follow the Sherane narrative. It is a song told from the perspective of Kendrick Lamar the rapper and how as he gradually gets more recognition as an artist he sees people around him changing, "I can feel the new people around me just want to be famous." He also talks about trying to maintain his credibility while becoming a more mainstream artist, "I'm trying to keep it alive and not compromise the feeling we love/You trying to keep it deprived and only co-sign what radio does."

Skit #2 – The narrative begins. K.Dot's homies pick him up in their white Toyota with a pack of blacks and a beat CD.

Backseat Freestyle

The most self-explantory song on the album. Young K.Dot cruising around town with his homies, getting high and dropping freestyles in the backseat. This is a life is good moment, living free, no troubles. The calm before the storm.

The Art of Peer Pressure

The narrative begins to build. The pressures of hanging with the homies becomes more than simply having a laugh and freestyling. The usually drug free and sober K.Dot is brought in to a world of drinking, smoking, and violence when with “the homies”. Cruising around in a white Toyota, hitting up girls, jumping dudes wearing rival colours, and bragging about what they just did.

The stakes are upped when K.Dot and his homies rob a house that they had been stalking for two months. Cops pursue them but lose them.

Skit #3 - The homies talk about dropping K.Dot off back at home, so he can take his Mother's van and go hit up Sherane – and then they can all meet back up later on the block.

Money Trees

K.Dot recaps the story so far.

He talks about robbing the house, "Home invasion was persuasive/From 9 to 5 I know its vacant."

He mentions ****ing Sherane and bragging about it to his homies, "I ****ed Sherane then went to tell my bros."

He references Backseat Freestyle when he talks about rhyming to beats, "Parked the car and then we started rhyming, ya bish/The only thing we had to free our mind."

And he talks about jumping dudes who looked like they had more money than them, "Then freeze that verse when we see dollar signs/You looking like an easy come up ya bish/A silver spoon I know you come from ya bish."

The line in the chorus "Everybody gon' respect the shooter/But the one in front of the gun lives forever." is deeply important, not just as a life motto, but in regards to the events that later take place in this story regarding Dave and his brother. It's also a reference to Kendrick's Uncle Tony, who was shot and killed at Louie's Burgers; this event is a snap back to reality from the "dreams of living life like rappers do."

Skit #4– K.Dot's Mother leaves another voice-mail. She wants her car back.

Poetic Justice

K.Dot has been dropped off back at home by his homies and is about to go see Sherane. He's probably driving on the way there in his Mother's van. He talks about her and their relationship so far - it appears they may have had some arguments, he talks about her meeting up with her girlfriends to curse him, and going out partying rather than talking with him.

Skit #5 – this is when we catch up with Sherane aka Master Splinter's Daughter. It starts where Sherane ended, and you can tell because that haunting female vocal (used in the beat to Sherane) comes back in this skit. The two dudes with Sherane approach K.Dot and ask him where he and his family are from (trying to work out what gang he is affiliated with). They force K.Dot out of the van and jump him.

Good Kid

This really sets off the theme of the second half of the album and it is all to do with - realisation.

K.Dot talks about getting jumped, "For the record I recognize that I'm easy prey/I got ate alive yesterday."

He discusses the negative effects of gang-culture, and being unable to escape the pressure of people wanting to know what gang he represents, "But what am I supposed to do/When the topic is red or blue/And you understand that I ain't/But know I'm accustomed to." Red or Blue obviously refers to the LA gangs of Bloods and Crips.

The red and the blue in the second verse become police sirens. K.Dot talks about getting no sympathy from the cops because they stereotype him as a gang-banger, making him lift up his shirt in order to look for a gang affiliated tattoo, "I heard them chatter: "He's probably young but I know that he's down"/Step on his neck as hard as your bullet proof vest."

K.Dot is trapped in a violent culture and can't get a reprieve from the gangs or the police.

M.A.A.D City

More self-awareness and realisation of the corrupt city that K.Dot lives in.

K.Dot's recent beat-down brings back early memories of similar situations, witnessing someone with their brains blown out at a burger stand back when he was 9 (I'm not sure if he is talking about his Uncle Tony again, or someone else), he thinks he knows the person who did it but he censors his name. He also talks about how his cousin was killed back in 94.

He talks about his Father telling him to get a job but he got fired after his friends pressured him in to staging a robbery. He gives his reason for why he doesn't smoke when he tells a story of smoking marijuana laced with cocaine and "foaming at the mouth."

In the final verse he tries to let the good shine through and offer respite for the youth and how they don't have to succumb to the temptations and pressures of the street. He hopes that his experience and intelligence can do good for the youth living in similar situations. "Compton, USA Made me an Angel on Angel Dust."

Skit #6 – K.Dot's homies meet back up with him later as planned. They try to boost him back up after his beat-down, and they offer him alcohol to take his mind off it.

Swimming Pools

An anti-alcohol song, that again plays in to the second half of the album's realisation about the vices previously holding Kendrick back. Kedrick talks about growing up around alcohol both within his family and group of friends.

Skit #7 – this is the big impact moment of the narrative. The plan is to take revenge on the dudes that jumped K.Dot. One of K.Dot's homies (possibly Dave) talks about maybe dropping K.Dot back off at home, but this idea is turned down, and K.Dot stays. The homies see the dudes that jumped K.Dot and a shoot-out begins. During the battle K.Dot's friend Dave gets shot. The dudes that shot Dave drive off and K.Dot is left holding Dave as he dies in his arms.

Sing About Me

Verse 1 – from the perspective of Dave's brother. He says the blood is on Kendrick's hands because the whole situation happened out of revenge for something that happened to Kendrick. But he says he appreciates that Kendrick was there for his brother and held him while he was dying. Dave's brother wonders if he will ever discover a passion like Kendrick to get him out of the hood – he says he hopes Kendrick will remember him and sing about him when he makes it big, and if he dies before the album drops...pop, pop, pop – he gets killed.

Verse 2 – from the perspective of Keisha's sister. She is mad at Kendrick for putting her sister on blast (on Section 80) without even knowing her properly. She talks about how she is living the same life as her sister, as a prostitute, and is proud of her living and what she does. She claims not to be just another woman lost in the system. She says her sister died in vein. Unlike Dave's brother she doesn't want to be sang about on the album. She feels great and says she'll never fade away....but then she does, her vocals slowly fade out in to obscurity...perhaps she died or just became another nameless "hoodrat".

Verse 3 – from Kendrick's perspective. Looking in the mirror. His fear of death. He speaks to Dave's brother, agreeing that Dave was like a brother to him. He speaks to Keisha's sister saying that Keisha's story was the one that drove him to write something that powerful and real – he didn't mean to offend. He talks of how music saved him and pulled him away from the drugs, money and guns.

Skit #8 – K.Dot's homies talking after Dave has been killed. Some of them want to go back and get revenge. K.Dot finally snaps and says he is tired of this ****.

I'm Dying of Thirst

Kendrick talks about been tired of running and gunning people down. It's just a circle of death. The perpetual struggle.

Skit #9 –(EDITED) K.Dot is still angry and upset over Dave's death. An unknown woman (perhaps a passer-by/shop-keeper) approaches the boys, she sees that one of them has a gun “That better not be what I think it is.” She tells them that they are dying of thirst and that they need to take a new path and let Jesus in to their lives. She makes them prayer. From here on K.Dot begins to live a new life as Kendrick Lamar.

Real

This is Kendrick disregarding the street life and turning his back on gang-banging, drugs, alcohol, violence etc. The different meanings of being “real”. Are you real because you represent your hood and shoot people? Are you real because you try to escape that life and make something of yourself?

Verse 1 – about certain girls (but could be Sherane). She loves handbags, French Tip, bank slips. But what love got to do with it when you don't love yourself?

Verse 2 – about certain homies (but could be Dave's brother). He loves fast cars, fast women, beef, streets, ducking police, hood-life. But what love got to do with it when you don't love yourself?

Verse 3 – about Kendrick. He explains the previous two verses - “I love first verse cos your the girl I attract.” and “I love second verse cos your the homie that packed burner.” “I love what the both of you have to offer.”

He wonders if he should hate her for what happened or should he hate his homies for convincing him to seek revenge. Or should he hate the fact that none of that **** makes him real.

Skit #10 – voice-mail from his Father. He tells Kendrick not to make the same mistakes he did, and that none of this stuff makes him real and that he should get out and make something of himself. His Mother tells him that Top Dawg called and wants him in the studio – she tells him to take his music career seriously – that it is his chance to get out and tell his story to the kids of Compton so that they have hope. This is technically the end of the story in a narrative sense - the tape is ejected and then rewound.

Compton

The narrative is over. This song is after Kendrick has made it and is now giving back just like his Mother told him too. It's a positive outlook of a city that is often full of darkness and violence.

Skit #11 - the narrative starts over again when K.Dot borrows his Mother's van
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.
 
D

Deleted member 81567

Unconfirmed Member
VALIS said:
The homogeneity in end of year lists between sites like Pitchfork, Paste, AV Club, Tiny Mix Tapes and so on seems more obvious than ever this year. I like the Kendrick Lamar album, I like a lot of the albums on these sites top lists, but you'd think there were 100 albums released this year instead of thousands. Same exact albums everywhere. Sharon Van Etten. Killer Mike. Chromatics. Scott Walker. Fiona Apple. Beach House. Bat For Lashes. Kendrick Lamar. Tame Impala. Over and over and over but in slightly different order. Music is not remotely this objective, it's just laziness.
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That's why you should check out The Needle Drop. He's a great reviewer.
 
E

enzo_gt

tagged by Blackace
I bet HRD ejaculated when he saw this thread.

Or probably came earlier because he already be on his Pitchfork hipster ish.
 
F

FrenchMovieTheme

Member
HiResDes said:
.
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not a big fan of concept albums. i suppose i can "respect" in principle when an artist puts together a full album theme/story, but it doesn't make crappy music good and it doesn't make good music crappy when it's missing. tried to look into coheed and cambria since they do this too.... can't really give a shit about it
 
H

HiResDes

Member
I don't know it's just not for you then, but I feel as though great albums can transcend genre favorings...Like even though I hate country, I still had no problem throwing Daughn Gibson's album in my top ten, which is country influenced, because it connected with me on a transcendent level. Now if you've heard all of GKMC and you still don't like I'd say be done, but if you haven't give it a proper chance before passing judgement then you should. It is probably the best hip-hop album recorded in the past decade.
 
L

Linkhero1

Member
HiResDes said:
I don't know it's just not for you then, but I feel as though great albums can transcend genre favorings...Like even though I hate country, I still had no problem throwing Daughn Gibson's album in my top ten, which is country influenced, because it connected with me on a transcendent level. Now if you've heard all of GKMC and you still don't like I'd say be done, but if you haven't give it a proper chance before passing judgement. It is probably the best hip-hop album recorded in the past decade.
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I agree. He probably listened a song or two. Then again, he claims rap to be horrible, which is a hyperbole itself.

I mentioned it earlier, but it took me about two to three listens before the album grew on me. Sometimes the first listen or even the second won't do it justice.
 
F

FrenchMovieTheme

Member
MuddyDonut said:
Why is rap horrible? Just curious, I listen to shit loads of music and never deem anything horrible, just not my thing.
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i don't know, all the shit sounds the same to me. i do like a lot of dre, nwa and outkast but for the most part i just can't get into it. and i call a lot of music horrible. i'm a trolling music snob but i like a lot of mainstream stuff so i can't even play the "You've never heard of If These Trees Could Talk!? pffft go listen to your mainstream trash bruh!".

like i said to start, arguing about what's good and bad in music is futile because something that appeals to you wont appeal to someone else. my point to begin with is that pitchfork (rap, rock, indie, whatever!) just has some wild opinions.... in my opinion :D
 
F

Fjordson

Member
It is now, but I think that will fade a bit in time. Will be shocked if GKMC maintains its current sterling reputation. Not fade into negativity, just not the "all-time" classic I keep seeing.
 
V

VALIS

Member
I can feel your energy from two planets away
I got my drink, I got my music, I would share it but today I'm going
Bitch don't kill my vibe, bitch don't kill my vibe, bitch don't kill my vibe, bitch don't kill my vibe

:bow
 
S

Sirpopopop

Member
This was a very safe list.

I miss the days when Pitchfork would have off the wall opinions like putting 3-4 Walt Mink albums on a Top 100 90s list.
 
F

Fjordson

Member
HiResDes said:
You sure hope so I bet
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I don't believe I could care less about Kendrick Lamar or his general acclaim in the long run. And while I find his music boring, it's still worlds better than a ton of hip-hop these days so I'd rather it be him than all the bullshit out there. It's merely a neutral observation on something I've seen happen countless times.

edit: and just to be clear, I don't hate it. I still find a few songs good, and a song like Dying of Thirst to be pretty great.
 
R

reilo

learning some important life lessons from magical Negroes
Stat Flow said:
Huh, nice to see Kendrick get such accolades. Personally, I thought the album was just okay after listening to the entirety of it a few times.
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I was bored out of my mind listening to that, Planet Orange, and Beach House.
 
S

Sirpopopop

Member
It's the type of list that the critical establishment would deem as acceptable, e.g. the Spins, Rolling Stones, etc.

You can also just look at VALIS' post.
 
P

pirata

Member
Peaking Lights' Lucifer does not deserve to be on this list. It's okay at best, and that's if you ignore the second half of the album.
 
V

VALIS

Member
Infinite said:
What does that even mean?
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I can't speak for that dude, but I think I know what he means. There are very few wildcards on these lists with no hints of personal taste. It's like a machine picked all these end of year lists based on some kind of algorithm. These are the records Pitchfork and every Pitchfork wanna be site has been talking about all year. How do a couple dozen sites come up with top-25/50 lists that have all the same albums? It would almost seem impossible. But no one wants to be that guy or that website who left "x" album off or boldly put "x" album on, so they all kind of mold their taste and their accolades to what the other guy likes.

And again, this isn't a knock on any particular record or the Kendrick Lamar album, which I like. But I think I've read twenty "best of 2012" lists in the last week or two and they all read the same, it's crazy.
 
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