Blank Face
Schoolboy Q
Top Dawg /Interscope
Three-and-a-half stars
For better or worse, right now, Quincy "Schoolboy Q" Hanley is likely to be viewed in the reflected glory of his label-mate, Kendrick Lamar. The latter has become a bona fide megastar since the release of last year's stellar To Pimp a Butterfly.
As a result, despite Hanley already being a chart-topper in his own right, Blank Face needed to be a sprawling, jazz-and-funk-influenced masterpiece of biting social commentary just to keep pace. Frankly, it isn't.
But it was probably never intended to be. While Lamar’s clarity of thought has become his most striking attribute, Hanley’s hazy vibes and ability to destroy a stream of thought inside half a beat make his musical journey altogether more chaotic.
There are some similarities in styles highlighted on angrier cuts, such as Groovy Tony and Ride Out. Hanley sneers through street-tough rhymes powered by seemingly ceaseless venom that are occasionally reminiscent of Lamar's exasperated extremes.
The latter track is an unrepentantly nasty masterclass in 21st-century West Coast gangsta rap that demonstrates how far things have come since pioneers such as NWA first developed the art form.
Lamar contributes backing vocals to a trio of tracks, but Hanley is wise enough to avoid a full feature from his fellow member of the Californian rap supergroup Black Hippy.
That said, when he invites Kanye West along for That Part, hip-hop's biggest loudmouth is not the song's MVP – Hanley more than holds his ground.
The previous Schoolboy Q album, Oxymoron, came replete with some less-obnoxious moments of crossover appeal – this time around, that honour falls to Whateva U Want, its daytime-dance-hit tempo overlaid with floaty saccharine melodies by South African singer Candice Pillay.
Elsewhere, there are perhaps too many moments when you need to stretch your suspension of disbelief to snapping point to ignore the rampant present-tense references to drug-dealing. Is an artist who has sold more than half a million albums really still out on the streets moving contraband?
Blank Face could probably have emerged in perfectly good shape without most of its second half, too, although the title track is a late, laid-back peak thanks to Anderson .Paak's soulful lilt.
Closing tune Tookie Knows II leaves a more definitive departing taste of the album, however – while Lamar broke out of Compton and took his vision global, Hanley seems content to sit in South Central Los Angeles talking about gangs, waiting for you to enter his world on his terms.
aworkman@thenational.ae
