On the sequel to his official LP debut
SYRE
, the now-one-named
Jaden
takes a similar approach to his genre-blurring style, whirling a creative blend of styles around a hip-hop nucleus on the hardened
ERYS
. On this album's extended journey, the young rapper dabbles with cloud rap haziness, dark trap, atmospheric electronic production, and even some raw punk rock, placing himself in a similar universe with
Tyler, The Creator
,
Brockhampton
, and
Kid Cudi
. As songs weave in and out of focus, track boundaries are erased as
abruptly switches styles and tempos, keeping listeners on their feet as
swirls and churns for over an hour of runtime. No matter the method of delivery, the spirit of
sticks with two primary modes: tortured and emotive or defiant and confrontational. Mirroring
's four-part "BLUE" opener,
kicks off with the "PINK" suite. Joined by sister
Willow
(who returns for the gorgeous "Summertime in Paris") and producer
Lido
, this prologue alone is worthy of its own EP, a mind-churning abstract that distills
's overall ethos in under 14 minutes. From there,
is joined by
on the menacing highlight "NOIZE";
Trinidad James
on the
Travis Scott
-esque "Mission"; and
A$AP Rocky
on the serviceable "Chateau."
even managed to recruit his idol,
, for the pulsing standout "On My Own." While
occasionally drags over its seventeen17 tracks, it's an immersive experience that finds
at his most vulnerable, processing his messy young adult feelings into a relatable and sonically exciting way. ~ Neil Z. Yeung