Tyler the Creator’s Chromakopia: A Kaleidoscopic Masterpiece

I have not written an album review in some time. The last one may have been Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poet’s Department, but then Tyler released Chromakopia. My daughter is a big fan and excitedly put the new record on in the car as soon as it came out. I was aware of Noid and wrote a review about it, but had yet to delve into the entire record. After listening to four or five tracks I realised that I wanted to write reviews on all of them, so the album review was a must.

This 14 song epic is produced by Tyler and follows his experimental, and extremely successful, records Call Me If You Get Lost and Igor, as well as his fire single Okra. All of these records follow his Grammy nominated and critically acclaimed breakout record Flower Boy in 2017, which saw Tyler building his artistic muscles. Each single and record since then has tried new production techniques and new musical experiments…mainly Tyler singing in a falcetto…but have still had the Tyler growl and bravado people connected with. You could see a rapid evolution from his previous work and you could see Tyler’s drive to push hip hop into new artistic landscapes.

Now comes Chromakopia. In a way, this record lands in a similar place as Gabriel’s I/O, The Cure’s Alone, Taylor Swift’s Midnights and even Marvin Gaye’s classic What’s Going On, in that Chromakopia comes off as a record composed by an artist who has mastered all aspects of their craft. It seems that Tyler has taken bits of all of his previous records and boiled them in a cauldron to create a hip hop potion no one has ever seen.

The production on this record is impeccable. Tyler swings from classic 4/4 hip hop beats stripped back to the bone, to full on jazz inspired marching bands to wall of sound operatic compositions that belong in a museum. This record is so expansive it is difficult to go over everything happening in detail. I think the easiest thing is to focus on some main points and some tracks that fit each one.

Let’s start with the classic Tyler growl that people come for. His tracks Rah Tah Tah, Sticky and Thought I was Dead have the classic Tyler barking out fire bars against hard hitting bass. Also, the hook of each track will sit in your brain for years. However, there is a twist where Tyler uses these classic bass / snare hip hop beats as a scaffold he can build off of with some New Orleans’ jazz horns, drum corps snaps and whistles, and step show style stomping. These flourishes elevate these tracks from classic hip hop arrangements to modern twists on tradition. Moreover, these tracks have fire guests like Lil Wayne, ScHoolboy Q, Santigold (even though I wish she had a bigger role), Sexyy Red and my fave GloRilla.

There is also the singing Tyler that we were introduced to on Igor. He has some minor falcetto parts in most tracks, but the tracks Like Him, Tomorrow and Judge Judy really feature his singing. These are my daughter’s favourite tracks and it resembles similar rap / singing from artists like Childish Gambino. It is a style that has an experimental side to it, but fits the kind of slow shoegazey hip hop that works well on Tic Toc. Even though it is a style that I do not connect with, I respect Tyler for stretching the boundaries of his music by committing to singing as well as spitting fire bars.

The one aspect of this record that we have not gotten a lot of from Tyler in the past is the dark and vulernable side of his music. Most of the time we get the Lumberjack Tyler who is throwing $100 bills in the air, while barking about private jets, diamonds and buying Rolls. The Tyler we get on Noid is rapping about the dark side of fame that can trap you, while I Killed You is about overcoming your doubts and intergenerational psychological trauma. Also, on Hey Jane Tyler raps about an unwanted pregnancy and how he will support Jane with her choice to either have the baby or not….feminist pro-choice themes on a Tyler record…I never thought I would hear that. This new found level of introspection and brutal honesty is a sign of his artistic confidence and that he does not need to hide behind his usual bravado. Now, don’t get me wrong, there is plenty of bravado on this record, but it is balanced well with these more personal tracks.

This is a hip hop record with everything. There’s great guests, introspection, fire bars, infectious hooks and some interesting beats/production. I think Sticky is the real standout and will be the big hit off the record. Having said that, this is one of Tyler’s most realised records and showcases his talents.

Listen to Chromakopia