The difference between Bastard and Wolf is the difference between surprise and suspense. and not been freshness and mold. Tyler The Creator, the 21 year old leader of Odd Future, the posse who brought you Earl Sweatshirt, Mellowhype, Syd The kid and Frank Ocean, is the latest in a line that goes back at least to Marvin Gaye and maybe more like Chuck Berry and Louis Armstrong, black boys damaged by the USA and breeding in into eccentric far reaching art.
And the question, particular after the boring first single "Domo23", and certainly after the extremely iffy last future Odd Future album Volume II, is whether the Odd and disturbed young man has anything of any interest to say now that he is rich and powerful.
The answer is yet and the other answer is but not as much. Playing off the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Wolf Gang persona he has played up since the beginning is a very good album but it isn't a slam dunk. "Awkward" isn't as good "She". Tyler plays off the same instinct, as solipsistic as Sharon Van Etten, though not as sexually obsessive as she is, he plays out his Goblin nightmare, his lost boy grown up, losing his Grandma (first big death), ignored by Papa, picking up pussy, dissing the crackers, excusing himself as a good guy who only dresses up bad.
And that means lots of big time guest stars. Ocean is excellent on his two tracks and Erykah Badu steals the album (and is probably an influence on all the jazz samples) on "Treehome 95 ft" -one of the best songs Tyler has created. And even on the pseudo built to offend Earl Sweatshirt and Domo Genesis tracks, they are a step up from Odd Future's last album.
But like I said at the start, it isn't a surprise. The story isn't derailed but even with a new set of problems and stars, it doesn't move him forward, it keeps Tyler in place. And isn't it a little too soon to spinning your wheels?
Grade: A-