Major Lazer - Know No Better

Major Lazer
Know No Better EP
2017
Spotify

It almost doesn't feel like summer anymore without Major Lazer putting something out. Their dancehall inspired form of dance music is always a celebration and this new EP Know No Better is no exception. However that is exactly where the problems begin for Major Lazer. "Lean On" was so massive in 2015 that it really put Major Lazer on the mainstage like they had not been before. This meant with more people looking at their music it would have to change to really keep it. Well the simple fact is their music has not changed, and likely it never will. Start with an EDM beat, sprinkle in some house keyboard, add a heavy does of Caribbean rhythms then enlist an auto tuned rapper or foreign singer to provide your vocals and you have a Major Lazer song. In beginning this sound was exciting, but after the 20th time you have heard almost the exact same song you can't help but be annoyed. It is not like you are expecting Major Lazer to reinvent electronic music with this surprise EP, but you also don't want six tracks that sound almost exactly the same. You want something bigger and bolder from them after this much time, but you are not going to get it on Know No Better. "Jump" is slightly more dubby but still keeps the same vibe they have going for the full EP.

What is perhaps the most frustrating about Major Lazer is the talent level that seems to go underutilized. We know all these guys are great producers, and can really make a hit but the choices here really serve none of that. They have all the best tools, plenty of time and money to work on these records but it doesn't seem like they did any of that. "Sua Cara" is far and away the worst track on the record, and so repetitive if you can make it to the end, congrats. Sean Paul also delivers a performance that could have been ripped from 2011. The Major Lazer guys certainly have not recaptured that same magic they had with "Lean On" or maybe the world has just moved on from this sound. Either way Know No Better offers very little so save yourself some time and just go listen to their older stuff, you won't know the difference.

2.0 out of 10