A$AP Rocky - Long Live A$AP

It has been nearly two years since A$AP Rocky stomped out of Harlem with the Live Love A$AP debut mixtape.  The critically acclaimed collection of songs got Rocky a three million dollar record contract with Sony and RCA Music, and when you listen to it, you can hear why.  Rocky has a wide range of appeal, and although the topic matter is not always there to back up his focused and well crafted image, his confidence will keep you entertained as long as you don't pay too close attention to what he is actually saying.

Live Love A$AP had Rocky constantly rapping about what he was wearing, drinking, smoking, and little else.  This makes him quite similar to other top forty artists, but where A$AP Rocky stands apart is in his expertly crafted, smoked out aesthetic, and his lurching, swaggering, self assured delivery.  Basically, he raps the same way Captain Jack Sparrow stumbles around in Pirates of the Caribbean.

On Long Live A$AP, Rocky keeps up this style fairly well.  Frankly, the beats are impeccable.  They are consistently dark and hazy, but each one is unique enough to keep the album engaging.  He also ventures into some new sonic territory with the uplifting "Hell(feat. Santigold)," and the epic finisher "Like i'm Apart(feat. Florence Welch)."  Rocky's flow works quite well with these two fabulous singers, and he actually talks about some personal, emotional material when rapping with Florence Welch, which is a nice change.  The only song that felt seriously out of place was Skrillex's addition "Wild For the Night."  Rocky and Skrillex, just shouldn't do any work together, period.  You can't possibly tone down Skrillex's frantic, dial up modem style, electronics enough to match Rocky's drunken flow.

On this same topic, the only real problem I have with Rocky's flow is his tendency to abuse the pitch shifted vocals, especially on the songs "Lvl" and "Pain."  If he didn't constantly remind his audience that he is a pretty nigga with french braids and gold teeth, I would assume he looked like a thugged out Frankenstein.

UNNNNGH...BASS...UNNNGH...BASS.

I also found myself much more engaged when Rocky strayed away from talking about his appearance.  The songs "Phoenix" and "Suddenly" are great examples that Rocky can carry a song with material about his poverty and his youth, even when the beat is understated and calm.  The sad thing is that there just isn't enough of this interesting topic material for me to stay seriously engaged with this album.  Rocky has always been more about style and appearance, than he is about depth and substance, which seems to work for him commercially, but for me that will only keep me engaged for so long.

Other than the singles and the additional songs I mentioned, the beats are so good on this album, that Rocky doesn't really add much by rapping over them.  I find this particularly true for the song "Fashion Killa" which has these dreamy vocal samples, bouncing off the lively percussion, and the song "Ghetto Symphony" that takes an Imogen Heap sample, and switches it back and forth into this airy, threatening swarm of strings.  These beats are so lush and dynamic, they don't really need anyone rapping over them.  Rocky's excellent taste in beats usually does a great job in showcasing his style, but when his rhymes fall flat, they outshine him by miles, and expose his weaknesses clearly, making him seem like a superfluous and unnecessary presence.