TRAVIS SCOTT - ‘UTOPIA’

Writer’s Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

A lot has happened since the release of Travis Scott’s ‘ASTROWORLD’, but the hype for his latest album has been ever-present. However, with the release of the album's lead single ‘K-POP’, a collaboration with Bad Bunny and The Weeknd, fans started to worry about the direction the Houston-born rapper would be taking on his new release.

It’s safe to say that the lead single was not an indicator of what we had in store. ‘K-POP’ is very unadulterated, not bad, but lacking substance. Well, ‘UTOPIA’ opens with ‘HYAENA’, a track that is in every way the complete opposite of the lead single. It’s the most traditional hip-hop song on the record, with an instrumental that sounds like 1995 RZA meets 2013 Kanye West. Travis uses a quick flow to cruise over the beat, “This shit is outta control, I'm drivin' through Hell and I done brought snow”. We then transition into ‘THANK GOD’, which sees Travis embrace the chaos of life and self-discovery, “Way that we killin' the critics and killin' the hate, might gotta talk to a priest”. One thing is clear two tracks into ‘UTOPIA’, Travis Scott is rapping the best he has since 2015’s ‘Rodeo’.

The third track, ‘MODERN JAM’, seems to be the most polarising amongst his fanbase. The track uses an early instrumental from Kanye West’s ‘I Am A God’, and the track clearly takes influence from it, with the first verse even matching that of ‘On Sight’. ‘MY EYES’ is truly the crowning moment of the album in my opinion, with features from Sampha and Justin Vernon, Travis Scott portrays his life through his own point of view, exploring the obstacles and difficulties on his road to becoming one of the most beloved artists on the planet. The first half is melancholic, the very-short verse from Sampha cuts deep, before the track explodes into arguably Travis Scott’s best rapping performance to date, “Look in my eyes, tell me a tale, do you see the road, the map to my soul?”. The next track, ‘GOD’S COUNTRY’ is a song that relies on the atmosphere it creates with its hypnotising trap beat and repeating sample. ‘SIRENS’ is another hard-hitting track with a tough bassline and snapping drums that Travis effortlessly flows over. We transition into ‘MELTDOWN’ in which Drake steals the show, with his most animated performance in a long time, featuring vocals that border into a whisper at times on the first verse, “You act like you love this American shit, but, really, the truth is you scared of the 6”.

‘FE!N’ is another highlight in the tracklist, in part due to an experimentation of vocal tone from Playboi Carti which results in one of the best features on ‘UTOPIA’, especially with the highly addictive hook due to its repetitive nature. The album continues with this solid run through ‘DELRESTO’, ‘TOPIA TWINS’ and the emotionally-charged ‘I KNOW?’. ‘CIRCUS MAXIMUS’ unites Travis Scott, The Weeknd and Swae Lee for a track that carries an uncanny resemblance to ‘Black Skinhead’. The track may seem minimalistic upon first listen, but the production is incredibly layered and all builds to a synth-heavy Mike Dean outro. ‘SKITZO’ is a four part song, with the instrumental and subject matter frantically changing, but the most-realised section of the song is the final verse in which Travis slides over the fluttering instrumental.

Almost one hour into ‘UTOPIA’, we get hit with ‘LOST FOREVER’, a two part track produced by James Blake and The Alchemist respectively. With chopped Chuck Senrick vocals in the mix, the first half is unsettling, and then the signature Alchemist drums kick in and Westside Gunn delivers one of the liveliest verses on the entire record. ‘TELEKINESIS’ creates an ethereal soundscape that the rest of the album struggles to match. Whether it be the opening Future verse, the hypnotic Travis Scott hook, or the elegant SZA vocals that wrap up the track, it all comes together to truly deliver an ambitious, well-executed track. This track is the perfection of the maximalist sound Travis Scott has been chasing since the beginning of his career.

The entire Travis Scott fanbase was questioning whether ‘UTOPIA’ could live up to the five years of build-up, and the answer is pretty much unanimous, as ‘UTOPIA’ is a collection of soundscapes and ambitious ideas that rival the houston-natives best work.