Big Fish Theory

Vince Staples

explicit

Released on 23/06/2017 by Def Jam Recordings
Main artists: Vince Staples
Genre: Hip-Hop/Rap
Distinctions: Pitchfork: Best New Music

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With his 2014 powerful and greasy seven-song Hell Can Wait EP of exclusively live from the street dark hip hop, Vince Staples showed from the get-go that he was to be counted on as a future star by perfectly narrating the daily lives of outlaws. Eight months later, his first album Summertime '06 confirmed this first impression and was considered as one of the best rap albums of 2015. The following summer, Staples took it one step further with his Prima Donna EP made up of seven new ultra-dark snapshots of his City of Angels (but not only…), in which his flow and lyrics shine at every turn. Most importantly, this EP showed that the rapper knew how to reinvent himself, to the extent of collaborating with British artist James Blake on two titles… In the last few years, gangsta-rap California and its derivatives have provided a wonderfully renewed cast (from Kendrick Lamar to Schoolboy Q, YG or even DJ Mustard, the stylistic range is particularly broad), even though the main ingredients remain the same (dope, guns, sex, alcohol and unemployment). In his own distinctive way, Vince Staples reinterprets all of these rehashed conventions and gives them a unique modern feel. The street may remain the same, but its actors know how to reinvent themselves. With Big Fish Theory, which splashes down on Summer 2017, the MC from Long Beach gives us anything but a Summertime ‘06 rehash. It’s rather a natural extension or even an evolution of Prima Donna. This second album, with out-of-this-world sounds, sails through fully assumed electro seas. Minimalist sounds, sometimes edging towards Detroit’s original techno. Supported by very unique tinkers (Zack Sekoff, SOPHIE, Jimmy Edgar, GTA and even Flume!), Vince Staples and his unique story telling dive into the meanders of unprecedented sound architecture. In Alyssa Interlude, he throws in an interview of Amy Winehouse, his idol, with a sample of the Temptations’ I Wish It Would Rain. Further on, Damon Albarn lays his voice on Love Can Be… and Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon lends his lyrics to Crabs In A Bucket. Big Fish Theory is filled with these more or less unexpected moments. In Homage for instance, Staples goes full on into clubbing. Obviously, the album features other prestigious albeit less surprising guests: A$AP Rocky in SAMO, Ray J, Ty Dolla Sign, Kučka, Juicy J in Big Fish, Kilo Kish, and of course the inevitable Kendrick Lamar in Yeah Right. This album leaves you stunned of an orgy of ideas that Staples was somewhat able to channel and give order to. In this regard, Big Fish Theory isn’t a child’s toy, but rather the brilliant manifest of an artist who cares little about genre conventions and makes his own rules. © MZ/Qobuz

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Big Fish Theory

Vince Staples

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Crabs In A Bucket Explicit

00:03:17

Amerie Mi Marie Rogers, ComposerLyricist - Mark 'Spike' Stent, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Stanley Walden, ComposerLyricist - Justin Vernon, Producer, Co-Producer, Programmer, ComposerLyricist - Michael Freeman, Assistant Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Lakisha Robinson, ComposerLyricist - Vince Staples, MainArtist, ComposerLyricist - Kilo Kish, Additional Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Zack Sekoff, Producer, Programmer, ComposerLyricist - Richard C. Harrison, ComposerLyricist - Michael Law Thomas, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - William Francis Delaney VI, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel