The Neighborhood - Wiped Out!

The Neighborhood
Wiped Out!
2015

"Sweater Weather" was a smash hit for The Neighborhood and on this new release Wiped Out! instead of attempting to re-create that magic that have taken a move toward something very different. They are attempting to blend indie rock, R&B, Trap and Hip-Hip into some kind of smooth amalgamation. On "Wiped Out!" the lead singer even channels Drake to make some kind of trap outro that actually works pretty well. The album actually begins with an unexplained "Moment of Silence" which may make you check your feed to see why you hit play and nothing is happening. The remainder of Wiped Out! is a blow burn, allowing the music to slide in to spaces rather than forcing anything in. Songs like "Baby Came Home 2/Valentines" move like waves coming as rollers, never really cresting or breaking than reseeding back into the void. The song even has beach sounds at the end of it, further amplifying the theme. "Ferrari" however is almost a direct trap song, which just does not really fit with what we have come to know as The Neighborhood's style.

The final three songs on the album feel more and more like knock off Miguel or The Weeknd album. There are people definitely doing this music better, and what The Neighborhood have to add to the conversation is really inconsequential. "R.I.P. 2 My Youth" is so contrived into a PBR&B type of song dealing with the death of youth that it leaves you asking who really cares about the loss of your youth? "Tell my sister don't be sad/I'll be in paradise with my dad" are lyrics that should put forth some real emotional heart, but they fall quite flat. As an album Wiped Out! is super slick and smooth, but that very thing comes to bite it in the ass later in the record leading to some contrived bullshit. take a listen, but maybe stop halfway through.

5 out of 10