the ‘feel good’ factor – the internet album review

When Odd Future first hit the scene, their brash, often inflammatory demeanor rubbed many up the wrong way. Some dismissed their newfound notoriety as undeserved hype fueled by childish, attention seeking antics with very little focus, and refused to see beyond the bluster. These criticisms do not appear to be relevant. We have witnessed the entire crew grow and mature musically, and along the way, convert many of the naysayers to Odd Future believers. They are formidable as a unit.
In 2011, The Internet (Syd Tha Kid and Matt Martians) released their album Purple Naked Ladies. It was well received. The project was a solid one but could have easily been lost amongst all of the other distractions of other high profile releases around this time. The Internet’s Feel Good album is a discernible manifestation of the groups’ condensed growth spurt from riotous adolescence into a pleasant listening experience for the ‘grown(ish) folks’.

Review by Ayara Pommells, AFROPUNK Contributor*

The “Tellem” intro rocks you gently into what is a very chilled listening experience in its entirety. There’s no doubt about it, Syd’s vocals are glossy. It has the air of a night live on stage at one of your favorite jazz venues. *Cues the clicking of fingers* This track leads itself perfectly into the luminous, upbeat “Sunset”.

“You Don’t Even Know” is ultra sexy. The chemistry between Syd and guest vocalist Tay Walker is electric. You can almost taste them, oozing into one other as they sing:

“I know how easy, it is to give up/ But don’t let people to hold you down/And I know sometimes it’ll amaze you (it’ll amaze you)/Don’t let it fade you/Just hold your ground…”

On the other end of Feel Good spectrum, you have the peppier songs like the funky “Dontcha” with its subtle 80’s groove or the slightly rockier “Higher Times”. This album never takes you off kilter. The pace of the intro pretty much sets the tone throughout the entire album. I feel this makes for an astonishingly chill, almost hypnotic listen. You can quite easily let the entire album play out without feeling the desire to re-route the vibe. It is a coherent listen without falling into the trap of ever being one dimensional. Feel Good does live up to its title. It does (or at least it should) make you feel good. This album is an album for falling in love (or wishing you were). Not the intensive, superficial, hyper sexual facet, but its emotional, yearning, burning, passionate counterpart.

Easily, one of the best albums I’ve heard all year.

“Cause basically I, I just wanna ride with you/ I gotta get you/’Cause I just wanna vibe with you/ Let’s find some place to go/’Cause I just gotta to know if you want me too/ Dontcha want me?”

Tracklist
01. Tellem (Intro)
02. Sunset (feat. Yuna)
03. Dont’cha
04. You Don’t Even KNow (feat. Tay Walker)
05. Pupil I The Patience
06. Red Balloon
07. Cloud Of Our Own
08. Runnin’ (feat. Tay Walker)
09. Matts Apartment
10. Shadow Dance
11. Wanders Of The Mind (feat. Mac Miller)
12. Partners In Crime Part Two
13. Higher Times (feat. Jesse Boykins III)

* Ayara Pommells is Owner of UK website Rawroots.com and a music writer for Soultrain.com, SOHH.com & AFROPUNK.com as well as an entertainment writer for Kontrol Magazine. Follow @YahYahNah.