Jeremih - Late Nights: The Album

Jeremih
Late Nights: The Album
2015
Jeremih - Late Nights: The Album

If you are scratching your head thinking about who Jeremih is does the song "Birthday Sex" ring a bell? It was one of the surprise smash songs in 2009 and to date the biggest things that Jeremih has done. Since that however He has tried to distance himself from that success and taken a more alternative approach to R&B. Late Nights: The Album, Jeremih's third, sees him working towards the throne that the Weeknd and Miguel are currently sitting on. The entire record is silky smooth and far less alternative than the his counterparts. It is almost R. Kelly-esque with the aggressive sexual advances dialed way back. The production is deep bass with some kind of flourish, and is quite similar over the whole album. "Giv No Fuks" is Jeremih's trap track and is probably one of the weaker songs on the album. It is almost to glitchy for a genre that is all about glitch. The late night vibe that Jeremih wants to create however is crystal clear. You can feel yourself in a seedy after hours, ears already blown out from bass but still needing just a bit more before you call it a night. So as a concept Late Nights: The Album really works.

What Jeremih really does well on this record is strip everything down to its core. The beats on the album are super simple yet highly impactful, and Jeremih being the multi instrumentalist that he is did a majority of the production himself. The laid back delivery throughout the album is reminiscent of Future (who features on one of the tracks) and fully embraces the trap style. What is missing however is any kind of energy. While the songs are nice and create a great vibe it leaves you wanting something more, some kind of push that is going to get you through 15 tracks that sound quite similar. The one standout amongst the group is a song that has already been on the charts "Don't Tell 'Em" it is the one time where we do get a new beat and something decently high tempo. "Woosah" is almost comical in its explicitness, with lines like: "I throw this cash on the floor/you give me a private show/I put my dick in the front row" however Twista's verse on the track is highly enjoyable. The rest of the album sort of slides into an ending "Paradise" wrapping everything up with just Jeremih and an acoustic guitar. There are absolutely really great moments on this record, however as a whole it is hard to get really into something when you hear it again and again over twelve tracks.

7.3 out of 10