When James Blake and Lil Yachty debuted as divisive wunderkinds, they won feverish acclaim — and controversy — for the way they blurred the lines drawn by their predecessors. Blake invaded the Dubstep dance floor and turned it into a dusty confessional booth. Yachty looked at the hip-hop landscape he inherited, cursed his gods, and spent the beginning of his career at war with a generation. Not everything has changed: They're still divisive, and they're still persistently trying new things. But they are no longer in motion. nor do their subversive ideas break boundaries so much as reinforce them. (So far, saxophones and so far, rap.) A couple that once embodied youth iconoclasm now often seem to see only as far as their next complaint. They sound more and more like the gatekeepers who didn't believe in them years ago.
Thus his defensive crossover spectacle Bad Cameo, their new joint album. Few things herald more loudly than a tag-team LP from a polarizing producer and an equally polarizing rapper-turned-rocker. But instead of provoking, this record largely follows the low-key path, like a laconic postscript to a more transgressive past. It's dreamy and occasionally danceable, steely electronica that rubs shoulders with a sharp, court-ready take on Yachty's sing-rap sensibilities. The rubbing of shoulders is promising, but at a certain point, when the friction hasn't gone any further, the party starts to feel like a corporate lunch: Hey Post-Dubstep, have you met Post-Trap? I'll leave you two alone to achieve it! Sometimes, they do. Most of the time, Blake and Yachty are cozy in their respective corners, taking turns taking the spotlight rather than sharing it. You get the sense that they're trying to rekindle the old magic—the wonders Blake performed with his luscious soul-searching, the weightlessness Yachty offered with its height-shifted tires. These elements sound beautiful next to each other. They would sound even better if they did more than co-exist.
When Yachty released “Poland,” his unlikely 2022 single, part of the draw was his shaky, liquid delivery: “It's a really fucking weird song,” Blake told him in a recent conversation, revealing that he led in tears. He's right to define weirdness as a jerk — at least enough to channel raw emotions or inspire them in others. But when they try to achieve this Bad Cameo, they sound crazy without risk. The title track is recorded as an attempt to run “Poland” through Blake's cold alt-pop treatment and produce something equally suitable for dorm rooms and sound baths. There's a repeating mantra, minimal embellishments that highlight the vocals and an air of confession – only now, instead of toppling each other's worlds, the crossover plays down their respective strengths. “Did you ever love me?” Yachty pleads, in full voice “Poland,” with Blake echoing his prayer in the background. You may remember a similar plea from the 2022 song (“I hope you love me, baby, I hope you mean it”). Where “Poland” producer F1lthy provided Yachty with a thick hearth of snares, Blake's canvas is restrictive, confining the singer to a cramped, weeping closet, both of which are outgrown. As official as it sounds, it's hard to take it too seriously.
