After the channel.WAV staff unanimously voted not to do a group review of Drake’s latest album, I began to wonder if an opportunity was being missed. How can we be on the cutting edge of today’s music if we neglect one of its biggest stars? So, knowing what I had to do, I bit the bullet, setting out to review Honestly, Nevermind, for our loyal readership. My dedication to all of you is unparalleled. What follows is a series of one-liners and non-sequiturs, couched in the guise of a review.
What Drake did on Honestly, Nevermind, though, is at least something different. I would rather see artists branch out and stumble than toil in middle-of-the-road-playing-the-hits mediocrity. And stumble Drake did here, as he took exactly one step outside of his comfort zone before his foot landed on a rake, which promptly swung upward and struck him in the face Sideshow Bob style. I’ve seen this album labeled as a curiosity or even a “minor work” by some outlets but I think that misses the point. Whether Drake is trying or not, Honestly, Nevermind is just as much a part of his discography as Take Care.
So, knowing my viewpoint on the subject in the macro sense, let’s talk about Honestly, Nevermind itself. As I previously alluded to, Drake has traded in his normal trap-adjacent style for a foray into house music. The result is, I guess, a mixed bag? The production, as usual, is well crafted and the beats are at least something you can kind of nod your head to if you can remember they’re there. This is the extent of my praise.
The issue here is that Drake himself is the least interesting thing on the album, as he autotune-caterwauls with no real direction; it’s like William Faulkner, but if he took 5 minutes to make clumsy extended metaphors about blocking someone’s number. It’s the sound of your roommate singing in the shower while you’re trying to listen to “lofi hip hop radio - beats to relax/study to” on YouTube. It’s lyricism on par with that poem you had to write for your 8th grade English class that your one friend found and then made fun of you for writing. Drake spits bars that rank somewhere between talc and your childhood teddy bear on the Mohs hardness scale.
Yes, I am aware that this guy once sang the line “Tuck my napkin in my shirt cause I’m just mobbin’ like that” without a shred of irony, but I am still not unconvinced that the following lines were penned by a Drake-parody-AI:
“I’ve been alone in my thoughts / Can’t fill this void between us.” (“Massive”)“Why would I keep you around? I found a new muse / that’s bad news for you.” (“A Keeper”)“I’ve moved on so long ago / you’re still thinking about me though?” (“Texts Go Green”)
Full disclosure: I listened to the first few songs while wandering around a Bed, Bath, & Beyond. At one point, I genuinely forgot I was listening to an album with the specific intent of writing a review. This is music that managed to fade out of my consciousness while I was buying a potato masher. Nothing stands out here. I’ve now listened to it twice and have forgotten every second. I cannot imagine the prospect of listening to this for fun, and one of my favorite albums ever is called Music for Airports (and is exactly what the name implies). In 52 minutes (really 104 with 2 listens), I can recall nothing. Either I need a brain scan, or the music is just not very interesting.
Yet, to reiterate, in spite of the fact that I really have very little in the way of praise for this album, I would rather have 4 Honestly, Neverminds than 1 Scorpion. But maybe that’s just because I’m not expecting anything from this to be overplayed.
* ¾ - below average, “mid,” as the kids say
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What are you thoughts on Honestly, Nevermind? How does it compare to the rest of Drake's discography? Let us know in the comments below!
- Slone
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