I dunno if I've ever really felt Frank Ocean. I checked out Nostalgia, Ultra and found him to kind of come off as amateurish. I remember my favorite song from that tape being a cover of a Coldplay song (Strawberry Swing). It had a noticeable difference in songwriting than all the other songs there (noticeably better).
I like that he's got the whole African princess thing going on which goes pretty well, it's real sexy. I kinda still trip over lines like "chandeliers inside the pyramid / tremble from the force," I just think he tries to evoke images that seem irrelevant to the song. It feels a little awkward, that's just me. Then he brings it into the present, which is nice and sexy cuz we know he's calling this girl a modern Cleopatra. Good call. But then there are like two entire verses that don't reference the whole Egyptian theme at all. It feels like the last two verses could have been dropped entirely.
Speaking of parts that ought to be ommited, I don't see any reason why the last two minutes should be there. That lonely guitar isn't a bad idea for an outtro, but goddamn, two minutes? Not captivating enough
Another gripe of mine is that his vocals can get kind of sporadic at times, like he's singing a song in the shower that he doesn't quite remember the melody to.
If it wasn't obvious, I can't say this song has won me over. The dude's got a voice, although at times it's a little placid. And the dude's got a lyrical vision, although at times it feels unfocused.
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