Frank Ocean
“Sweet Life”
Channel Orange (Def Jam)

It may have been one of the best albums of 2011, but Frank Ocean’s nostalgia, ultra was also just a mixtape. It’s easy to forget that while you are listening to it, but after listening to his recently-released stuff, it dawned on me how far he’s come in the last year or so and how truly terrifying that must be for other R&B singers. If a Frank Ocean mixtape is that good, how good can a proper Frank Ocean LP be? Early returns say it’s probably gonna be pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty fucking amazing. So far, we’ve heard three songs off Channel Orange: the simultaneously heartbroken and seductive “Thinkin’ ‘Bout You,” the all sorts of Stevie Wonder “White,” and the audacious, 10-minute epic “Pyramids.” The first is a testament to his hit-making ability and penchant for articulate, emotive lyrics. The second is a celebration of his dulcet, resonant tenor. The third is a demonstration of the true scope of his vision, evidence of his fiercely independent spirit, and probably the best song released this year by anybody.

Now we get to meet “Sweet Life.” An adopted Angelino by way of New Orleans, Ocean has never shied away from writing about his adopted hometown. Buoyed by a jazzy, soulful arraignment, Ocean lets his hair down and cruises effortlessly through his lightest, most playful song yet. A sort of half condemnation/half celebration of Tinseltown excess, Ocean tells us the story of a pampered socialite who is consumed by the pills, pools, and palm trees of Ladera Heights (aka the Black Beverly Hills). Honestly, this track feels so good that when Ocean croons “so why see the world, when you got the beach,” I can’t help picturing myself sinking into one of those floaty rafts with a Pacifico and begin asking myself if I should give up the grey San Francisco summer and move back to LA, though I know it’s meant to be a critique.

That feeling is indicative of Ocean’s ability to transport the listener into the story he is telling, and I think it’s the main reason he writes such powerful love songs. And it’s one of the reasons why I would wager that Channel Orange is going to end up being the best album of the year. Obviously, there’s still a hell of a long way to go, but it’s the current leader in the clubhouse.

Frank Ocean: “Sweet Life”

Sean Blackthorn
Bedtime​|​Sleepless EP
Self-Released

The second half of 2012 got off to a gorgeous start, thanks to a new EP from TP-favorite and Toronto-native Sean Blackthorn. Oft-compared with the new breed of indie R&B (hate that term), the talented troubadour’s newest work feels alive in a way that very few tracks do nowadays. He’s always favored stark, piano-driven arraignments, and Bedtime​|​Sleepless isn’t any different, highlighting the raw power of Blackthorn’s falsetto. In a genre that tends to favor inch-perfect auto-tune and flawless production, Blackthorn’s naked, stark music feels incredibly human and perfectly imperfect (shout out to Cee-Lo). His arraignments leave no place to hide, and listening to Blackthorn crack, strain, and stretch his emotive voice to the limit is truly a thing of beauty. Wow.

Joey Bada$$
“Waves”
1999 (Self-Released)

While it’s easy to roll your eyes at his gauche moniker, one spin of the 17 year-old Flatbush-MC’s stunning debut mixtape will make even the biggest skeptic a believer. He may be young, but Bada$$’ music is rooted in Brooklyn’s rich hip-hop history. Rhyming mostly over jazzy breaks, boom-bap backbeats, and soulful melodies, the loquacious youngster flows with incredible grace and effortlessness. While it’s tough to pick a favorite from the consistently excellent LP, “Waves” highlights his first-class wordplay, hopeful exuberance, and exquisite storytelling. Simultaneously relentless and breezy, it’s impossible to listen to 1999 without thinking of another prodigiously talented 17-year old — Odd Future’s Earl Sweatshirt — and while the LA-native might edge Bada$$ on pure flow, Sweatshirt can’t touch the Brooklynite’s original, fascinating perspective and lyrical content. I would say the kid’s gonna be special, but he already is. Remember the name.

Joey Bada$$: “Waves”

Ice Choir
“I Want You Now and Always”
Afar (Underwater Peoples) 

This is the third cut we’ve heard from the debut LP from Pains of Being Pure At Heart member Kurt Feldman’s new, heavily John Hughes-inspired side project. Like “Two Rings” and “Teletrips,” “I Want You Now and Always” is dripping in nostalgic longing, armed with killer 8-bit hooks, and slathered with slinky snyths and MIDI bass. This is hopelessly naive dance music for people who would rather rock out in front of the mirror to their headphones than at a packed discotheque. While many albums that are this rooted in doe-eyed pastiche don’t hold up over repeated listens, everything this Brooklyn quartet has released so far has done little but grow on me. Afar is due out at the end of July, and as long as their next single doesn’t feature Scott Stapp and the dude from Saliva, Mr. Feldman and friends have all but wrapped up my 20 bucks.

Ice Choir: “I Want You Now and Always”

Frank Ocean
“Pyramids”
Channel Orange (Def Jam)

In the last 18 months, Frank Ocean has showed us that he is a lot of things — passionate, eclectic, progressive — but above all, his music has proven that he is incredibly ambitious. Whether it was taking on “Hotel California” on his debut mixtape, distancing himself from Odd Future, or publicly  expressing his frustration with hip-hop colossus Def Jam, the New Orleans native has shown a relentless desire to walk his own path and stand alone as an artist. This is perhaps most evident on “Pyramids,” the lead single from his hyper-anticipated first proper album. A monolithic, expansive, 10-minute meditation that takes us from ancient Egypt into the present day. It’s an audacious assault on what major-label R&B should sound like (name another R&B debut single that cracked 10 minutes), but it’s also a surprisingly engaging experience that never drags, despite its length. Basically, this is Frank all over, and you get the feeling that if we don’t get it, it wouldn’t bother him one bit.

Frank Ocean: “Pyramids”