Tyler, the Creator channels angry energy into new album

Tyler, the Creator is loud, obnoxious, angry and ready to pick a fight with anyone, as evidenced by his Coachella performance this past weekend, during which he insulted Kendall Jenner and the festival itself, calling it “f-cked up” that organizers wouldn’t let his film crew shoot for his tour video.

The angsty idol pre-released his newest album Cherry Bomb online just days before this performance, and it has all the sounds fans love from Tyler, as well as experimentation and features from Kanye West, Schoolboy Q and Lil Wayne. The Odd Future headliner seems to have truly found himself on this album, and though it is rough around the edges, he has finally produced something worth listening to for the first time since he exploded onto the rap scene with his debut album, Goblin.

The album opens with “Deathcamp,” a track full of screams and heavy metal — a perfect opener.

“Named the album Cherry Bomb because ‘Greatest Hits’ sounded boring,” raps the Los Angeles native, full of energy and ready to start a riot with the sounds coming off his album. His style is simple — pumping angry verse after angry verse into each song with lyrical precision, stopping only for skits and love songs. One such moment comes from Shane Powers, host of podcast “The Shane Show,” which is a part of Odd Future’s programming.

“Tyler, Tyler, I swear to, I swear to f-ck! If you f-cking… Do not f-ck this up! You have the whole world in your f-cking hands!” yells Powers in “Buffalo,” which also uses a score of children cheering as an instrumental. Tyler is unafraid, leaving no stone unturned in his quest to alienate and anger every demographic imaginable.

This is nothing new, as Tyler, the Creator has crafted his sound off being a menace to society. Goblin was similarly angry, with lines about his crew like “Wolves I know you heard of us, we’re murderers/ And young enough to get the f-cking priest to come and flirt with us” and other dark, twisted declarations.

Underneath Tyler’s harsh lyrics is a slew of incredible instrumentals that were largely self-produced. The track “Find Your Wings,” sitting snugly between a one-minute hood anthem titled “Run” and the title track “Cherry Bomb,” is jazzy and light, with an airy feel much like that heard in elevator music. The song transitions into an old-school hip-hop beat and a female voice proclaiming the hook, “find your wings,” as Tyler croons.

Immediately following this song however is the heavy drumbeats and rock guitar of “Cherry Bomb,” a track that was made to blow out speakers. The entire song sits underneath a lo-fi static bass that makes it almost impossible to hear.

“I am a god,” sings Tyler on the track, barely audible because of the distortion, but the reference to Kanye West’s Yeezus is clear. Cherry Bomb, much like Yeezus, is experimental, aggressive and exactly what hip-hop needed. So far, Tyler has been on an upward trajectory, launching himself into many different spheres of influence via his clothing line, music and TV show.

There has only been one music video for Cherry Bomb so far, but it features the tracks “F-cking Young” and “Deathcamp,” telling a story within a story about love and anger. The video is charming and stylistic, in a manner befitting the young aggressor’s brand of offbeat wackiness, and the two tracks are both incredible songs. “F-cking Young” is about exactly what it sounds like, featuring the line “When I’m 27 you’ll be 21” and other references to a girl six years younger than the 24-year old artist. Used as a promotional tactic to hype up the album’s pre-release, this video ends abruptly, with a crude graphic listing the album’s release and title. It is purposefully ugly in a counter-culture Internet sense, and it too falls directly in line with Tyler, the Creator’s offbeat style.

The metaphor of flying runs throughout the entire album, and it is fitting considering the high the 24-year-old must be feeling. At such a young age, Tyler has already cemented himself a spot in rap history and continues to succeed despite his alienating opinions. He even rapped with his idol Pharrell Williams for “Keep Da O’s” on Cherry Bomb, tweeting that it was the greatest day of his life, and had the opportunity to feature both Kanye West and Lil Wayne on a track together.

“Smuckers” features West and Wayne putting in verses reminiscent of their earlier works, and it is impressive work considering there is no chorus. The song opens with a piano riff, and Tyler immediately goes in. Everyone’s verses are solid, but Tyler raps before and after each feature and even weaves his own verses through Lil Wayne’s, dominating a track full of stardom. All these artists share one thing, laid out plainly by Kanye in “Smuckers.”

“They say I’m crazy but that’s the best thing going for me,” raps West, cognizant of his status as a high-profile lunatic. Rap is a game of who can be crazier, and Tyler certainly is proving himself to be one of the craziest rappers to ever grace the world. Cherry Bomb is available on iTunes and Spotify now, will be available hard copy on April 28, and I strongly recommend giving the album a listen.

Matt Burke is a sophomore majoring in film production. His column, “Notes on Notes,” runs Wednesdays.