Frank Oceanâs Blonde: "More Damon Albarn than D'Angelo"
By August Cohlmia, Scorched Asia
"Wolves know how to sing too."
This was the last sentence on Odd Futureâs Tumblr post for Frank Oceanâs 2010 mixtape Nostalgia, Ultra, a record which helped break the mold for a new breed of R&B. A breed that, while once considered limp and pale, has dominated album charts in recent years â including with Oceanâs 2012 debut Channel Orange.
A lot has changed since that release with the music industry and with Ocean himself, but his new album Blonde proves two things: He can still sing, and he is, in many ways, a wolf.
With his past as a songwriter for Universal Def Jam and then joining with Odd Future, Ocean honed his skills as an expert in the wild world of the record industry and figured out his own perfect hunting technique â filtering and sharpening the work of his peers. Since then, though, he has strayed from the pack and has decided to go his own way, unhindered by industry expectations. Blonde is Oceanâs declaration as a lone wolf.Â
A few words first on Oceanâs visual album Endless which was released two days prior. Given the expansive nature of this overall project (and the even more expansive time surrounding its release), itâs safe to assume that Ocean had more than enough material to choose from, and focused instead on how to present it. Since Channel Orange there have a multitude of new platforms by which to showcase new material (including both albumsâ exclusive release on Apple Music), and Endless seems more in the way of how new material can be enjoyed beyond just sonically. There are a few moments of enjoyment on Endless, but the breadth of Oceanâs musical and emotional arc is given to Blonde.
Thematically speaking, Ocean once again lies heavily on the ideas of finding new love, coping with lost love, and recognition of oneâs inner strength as a result of said loss, much like he did on Channel Orange.
He has structured the album into these three parts by creating songs which deal with these subjects and separated by segments/skits which address the subject matter of the songs to come, such as his mother saying "be yourself" or a French man talking about his relationship troubles caused by Facebook politics, very similar to The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill with interspersed definitions of what love is. A credit to his wolf-like attitude is âSoloâ, where Ocean declares his strengths and weaknesses in going alone. This dynamic constantly shifts during the record but finds an even flow throughout the narrative.
While R&B has long been both a long accepted and popular genre by the general public, Ocean isnât seeking their approval. Of course there are moments that fit into the same tropes of his contemporaries Drake and The Weeknd such as on âNightsâ and âFutura Freeâ with smoother, slicker production. But these are rare. The album is placed, rather, in a state of bold ambiguity, awkwardness, and triumphant declarations of our fleeting existenceâŠan attitude it shares with another, surprising, genre: Britpop.
Call it a stretch, but there are moments on songs like "Skyline To" and "Ivy" where it feels like weâre listening to deep cuts of Blur and Oasis rather than a contemporary soul record.Â
Itâs not a coincidence that an album featuring James Blake, Jamie XX, and scores written by Radioheadâs Jonny Greenwood gives it perhaps an infusion of Britpop DNA. But more importantly, Ocean has made an incredibly bold move in directing his music as such. It took Drake three albums to establish that he doesnât need to rap in order to be taken seriously. Frank Ocean, meanwhile, has seamlessly created an R&B album which can be enjoyed by music fans who wouldnât normally listen to R&B. A perfect example of this is âClose to youâ where, through an interpolation of the Carpenters, Oceanâs deeper meanings of struggling with a break up transcend genres and connect listeners with a bigger issue.
Speaking from the perspective of a music critic in China, I see this album finding appeal beyond âgenre headsâ, reaching Chinese music fans we rarely (if ever) see at shows or at nightclubs. This is an album about change, about finding something to hold on to, about questioning the shifts your life is taking â and these themes have a special resonance in a growing country like China.
Sticking with what you know is good, but challenging your audience is where it counts and Ocean has done this with a loud howl.