All great follow-up albums generally fall into one of two categories, an artistic reinvention or a refining of the original album’s sound. “CHROMAKOPIA” by Tyler, the Creator does neither of these things.
Tyler, whose real name is Tyler Gregory Okonma, released a new album on Oct. 28 after a nearly three-and-a-half-year break. This new project ended up being a disjointed collection of ideas both sonically and lyrically that Tyler has, for the most part, already explored in more interesting ways on previous releases.
“CHROMAKOPIA” is incredibly hit or miss with some songs being engaging, well produced and emotionally moving while others remained boring or straight up difficult to listen to.
When Tyler leans into his signature neo-soul and RnB-infused production, he creates some of the most beautiful songs of the year. With songs like “Darling, I” and “Like Him,” he delivers some of his best performances alongside the catchiest vocal melodies on the album. In doing so, he crafts two more songs that can sit beside “Are We Still Friends” in their emotional potency and ability to make you close your eyes and fall into their masterfully crafted atmospheres.
However, those highs are balanced out by the irritating hooks of songs like “Thought I Was Dead” and “Judge Judy”, the latter of which has one of Tyler’s worst vocal performances and a chorus that pulls me out of the song. I found this unfortunate because the verses are well written and engaging.
The vocals are generally the least important part of a song for me, so some of my favorite musicians have voices that can only be described as an “acquired taste”. However, Tyler’s voice on “Judge Judy” is grating and hard to listen to.
The main flaw I see in “CHROMAKOPIA” is that it is a step back in his artistic progression. The only thing Tyler has made significant improvements in is his songwriting.
However, sonically and thematically these songs are, for the most part, just worse versions of songs he’s already made. Yes, “Hey Jane” is a well-written and told story, but it’s no “Wilshire”; “Rah Tah Tah” is a fun, high-energy banger, but it doesn’t come close to “New Magic Wand.”
It’s disappointing to see an artist like Tyler, who has put out several decade-defining hip-hop albums release a messy, disjointed collection of songs that sound like “Igor” and “Wolf” B-sides.
Ultimately, “CHROMAKOPIA” is a spotty but fun album that, even though it doesn’t compare to his previous releases, Tyler’s B-sides are still better than a lot of artists A-sides. I’d give the project as a whole a 7/10.