(Image courtesy Glassnote Records)After taking Generation Z by storm with "Because the Internet" in December 2013, Donald Glover's Wu-Tang alter ego, Childish Gambino, dropped his "STN MTN" mixtape and followed up with a powerful EP. The new release provides enough fresh sound to satisfy fans despite its track list of seven songs leaving an ominous and empty feeling of longing.
Childish Gambino's "Kauai" is an eclectic treat with ambitious rhymes and infectious hooks and an excellently refined sample of the raw talent he unveiled with the successful "Camp" studio album that launched his music career in 2011.
The NBC actor turned hip-hop aficionado produces distinctly tasteful beats, with illuminating vocals balancing electronic vibes and uniquely regional sounds.
His ability to switch between self-deprecating humor and philosophical introspection is downright brilliant, and his interactions with his various guest features are playful and fun collaborations, as opposed to some more established rappers like Drake who settle scores through rap feuds and use a featured credit as a platform to start a string of disses.
As talented a storyteller as Gambino is, his most impressive quality might not be his compelling method of chronicling moments and experiences from his childhood, reminiscent of "Camp."
Rather, it's his command and repertoire of both sophisticated and simple musical elements. "Sober" includes a key change that intensifies the track, accenting the emotional trauma Gambino sings of. The title track, "Late Night in Kauai," includes a bongo intro accompanied by a voiceover from none other than Jaden Smith (what!) that slowly fades in with a groovy baseline and sounds of the nighttime tide washing over a sandy beach. The heavy synths in "Pop Thieves" fit into the popular electronic festival hit genre toward which modern artists gravitate.
"Because the Internet" carried with it a much more dark and aggressive tone that Gambino dials back significantly in "Kauai," yet he does so without losing any of the emotional appeal and provocative instrumentation of his previous work.
While tracks like "Crawl" and "Earth: The oldest computer" were more likely to be remixed and played at a rave, the overall pace and theme of "Kauai" is perhaps best described in the newest "3005" remix, "Beach Picnic Version."
It's hard to replicate the picturesque view of the album's namesake, but even if you're playing this while chilling with a group of friends at Tempe Beach Park, you can pretend you're partying on Hawaii's oldest island, I guess?
Best line: "Late Night In Kauai"
"Balling like Jabari Parker, they say I look like him If we met bet it would be awkward break out the sudafed Cause the flow cold, like it's so cold."
Favorite track: "Retro [ROUGH]"
Audacious and catchy, "Retro" is an upbeat hit, as Gambino dares to proclaim, "I'm the new Jay-Z / I ain't write s--- down / I'mma steal that crown."
The theme of this song is reminiscent of the finale in "Camp," in which he reflects "The truth is I got on the bus a boy. And I never got off the bus." This time, he's not only off the bus, but behind the wheel of a BMW 3 series.
Honorable mention: "Late Night in Kauai ft. Jaden Smith"
Reach the assistant sports editor at smodrich@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @StefanJModrich
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