Song of the Week: Vince Staples Examines His Bruises on “Black&Blue”

Jonah Krueger
·4 min read

The post Song of the Week: Vince Staples Examines His Bruises on “Black&Blue” appeared first on Consequence.

Song of the Week is our weekly column that spotlights the greatest new tunes. Find these new favorites and more on our Spotify Top Songs playlist, and for other great songs from emerging artists, check out our Spotify New Sounds playlist. This week, Vince Staples hits hard with “Black&Blue,” a cut from his new album Dark Times.

The enigmatic, always-captivating Vince Staples has returned with his newest LP, Dark Times, a soulful project that finds the rapper exploring systemic inequality and detailing stories of personal growth. Throughout Dark Times, Staples’s pen is sharp and his beat selection is second to none, a standard quickly set by the excellent album opener, “Black&Blue.”

After the wind chimes and ambiance of the record’s intro, “Close Your Eyes and Swing,” “Black&Blue” wakes the listener up with a hard-as-hell drum beat and a repeated piano note, both sampled from Thee Sacred Soul’s “Weak for Your Love.” As Staples enters, the beat continues to develop, becoming increasingly dreamy with the addition of syrupy guitars and buckets of delay.

Staples uses this soundscape to examine the systems in which he was brought up, taking shots at Reaganomics and wondering where it all leads to along the way. “Maybe we livin’ haram, can’t go to prom, send me a prayer up/ To the Heavens above, is it a mansion for thugs?,” he raps. “Where did Tupac and ’em go? Where Nipsey Hus’ and ’em go?/ Swavey and Drakeo? Ricche and Slim Foe?”

As if the lyrics and beat didn’t already combine for a compelling enough listen, the insanely catchy chorus kicks in to wrap the whole thing in a big black and blue bow. It’s an incredible setup for Dark Times, and by the time the album closes out, “Black&Blue” makes you want to take it right back from the top.

— Jonah Krueger
Editorial Assistant

Honorable Mentions:

Been Stellar — “Pumpkin”

New York City’s Been Stellar function as their own ecosystem. Their experiments in post-punk, dream pop, and straight up rock ‘n’ roll are always stitched together with their own sonic vocabulary, a symbiosis that only they know how to create. “Pumpkin,” their latest single, is a ’90s-esque detour and lacking their usual tinges of chaos. Instead, the careful catch-and-release of the song functions more in the Britpop lane than anything else; by the time they reach the final chorus, there’s bliss and beauty in each tambourine shake and fuzzy guitar. Each single from their upcoming debut Scream from New York, NY has been equally as intriguing as the last, and the album is shaping up to be quite a statement. — Paolo Ragusa

Gabe Goodman — “Magical Thinking”

The name of this new song by Gabe Goodman lays the most accurate groundwork for its sound: the strings on the fleeting tune are so lush and transportive, you just might be able to visualize faeries and mystical creatures emerging in a sunset meadow. Goodman has spent his recent years primarily working on music for other artists, including Maggie Rogers and Del Water Gap, but he’s now gearing up for releases of his own. “Magical Thinking” and “The Rock,” which he released simultaneously, feel like an excellent starting point. — Mary Siroky

Haich Ber Na — “Sandringham”

UK artist Haich Ber Na tackles mundanity in his new track, “Sandingham,” a dreamy release that straddles the line between indie-pop and R&B. What he captures in the track and its accompanying music video is that life-altering trials aren’t always the biggest enemy of achieving a joyful or steady life — the bigger culprit is boredom. This song is for anyone whose dreams feel so out of reach at the moment, or at odds with the world around them. — M. Siroky

Kaycie Satterfield — “When We’re Older”

There’s a little bit of Lorde energy to “When We’re Older,” a new single from Kaycie Satterfield. She’s gearing up to release her debut album via Earth Libraries in July, and today’s single is a solid display of the genre-blending dreamscapes that might await us in the full project. “When We’re Older” feels like it could make for appropriate backdrop for a coming of age film, especially in the moments when synths are emphasized. — M. Siroky

Mystery Waitress — “Nightbug”

Serving as the lead single to their upcoming album Bright Black Night, “Nightbug” reintroduces Mystery Waitress as lush, melodic, shoegaze-adjacent indie rock heroes. The guitars go from quietly chugging along to full-on fuzzed-out and back again at a moment’s notice while vocalist Tessa Dillon sings of repeated mistakes and staring straight into the sun. The whole thing wraps up with a soaring, hummable guitar solo and a final verse before the tune slowly fades, fittingly, back into the night. — J. Krueger

Softcult — “9 Circles”

Canadian shoegazers Softcult are back with the Heaven EP, another standout release that strikes the balance between knotty grunge and blissed-out dream pop. The newest track is the hypnotizing “9 Circles” — while the hazy, crawling opening is like a lullaby, the duo crack open a window and rush through to the chorus, providing an active kind of brightness that grips and sedates. Each release from the Heaven EP has shown more and more of Softcult’s specific vision, and “9 Circles” joins fellow standout “Spiralling Out” as one of their warmest, infectious offerings yet. — P. Ragusa

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Song of the Week: Vince Staples Examines His Bruises on “Black&Blue”
Jonah Krueger

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