Blackbear, Anonymous | Album Review 💿

R&B singer, songwriter, and producer Blackbear makes an enjoyable, if ‘heartbroken’ return with his fifth studio album, Anonymous.

“Do, re, mi, fa, so fuckin’ done with you, girl.” Yep, “do re mi” served as a breakout song for singer, songwriter, and producer Blackbear. You could say that the profane pitch-syllable anthem helped to ‘put him on the map.’ He returns with Anonymous, his first new project since 2017, when he released mansionz (with friend Mike Posner), digital druglord, and his mixtape, cybersex.  Ultimately, he makes up for his absence in 2018 with the enjoyable, 18-track LP.

“Pink Rolex”

“Seein’ me draped in wool / It’s Saint Laurent and it’s itchy / Got your name and your city in the back of my mind / My heart’s iced over, I found a new owner.”  Blackbear commences Anonymous with a bang on the brief “Pink Rolex.”  He’s clearly doing well financially, but suffering from broken heartedness, and finding legitimate friends who aren’t superficial or fans via social media.  On follow-up ✓ “Hate My Guts,” things just aren’t the same. How so? He questions what happened between himself and his ex, reminiscing back on the now defunct relationship. Another brief number, the premise of the song is loud and clear – the end of love and struggling to cope.  Demons dominate the melodic, major-key “Drug Dealer,” where he references his struggles with drugs and worries about his ‘plug’ moving away.  On the verse, he seems to show a friendly attachment for his enabler, which is a bit disturbing. “Drug Dealer” speaks to the degree of the musician’s addictions and demons, and how powerful both can be.

“Swear to God” 

“I ran into God at the liquor store / She asked me what I’m always running for.”  Hmm, what an interesting lyric that blackbear sings on ✓ “Swear to God”. Here, he seems to get serious about cleaning himself up – cleaning up his life. The aforementioned line, excerpted from the first verse, seems to perfectly capture the mess that the singer’s life is in. He echoes a similar sentiment on the second verse, referencing depression, heartbreak, and his own mistakes. Among the reasons why “Swear to God” is clever is because blackbear weaves in relationships with substances, God (loosely), and of course, a ‘woman’ who “Ripped out the best part of my heart and let it bleed.” On the pre-chorus, the singer is focused on his substance abuse issues: “I got too much doubt and I don’t know my limit.” On the chorus, he takes responsibilities for his mistakes, including cheating and drugging, while vowing to change. “Swear to God” packs a respectable punch, even clocking it at a mere two-and-a-half minutes.  Despite his hard times and self-inflicted mistakes, the record is set in an optimistic major-key and driven by rhythmic strings.

“Make a Mess”

Blackbear moves on from the plug back to his ex on “Make a Mess.” “Yeah, I let you wreck everything in sight / I must have been blinded,” he sings on the second verse, continuing, “By that big old ass and that accent / You sittin’ back and you laughin’.” “Make a Mess” is filled with gimmickry from its pitch-shifted vocals, rhythmic pop-rap styled lines, and the overall, broken and detached nature of the production. “Sick of it All” is pretty self-explanatory – he’s sick of everything.  Of course, there are more colorfully sick moments than others, such as “I’m sick of all the fucking trash on Instagram / The ass is fat on every girl in Lululemon yoga pants, no yoga mat.”  As straightforward and un-profound as “Sick of it All” is, it’s also quite enjoyable.

“Changes” continues with the relatively basic and simple script of Anonymous.  Blackbear, admittedly, made mistakes in the ended relationship, but he’s been changing without her.  “Changes” clocks in at a mere two-and-a-half minutes. The sleek standout ✓ “High1x” is slightly longer yet remains shy of the three-minute mark like the majority of Anonymous.  The delivery is equal parts melodic as well as rhythmic.  There’s ample swagger, something that the superb production from Twice as Nice screams for – well, not literally of course.  If he is a bit more in his feelings on “Changes,” he’s more carefree on “High1x,” even if he “Only get this high right here one time.”

“Down”

✓ “Down” features some of the loveliest production work of Anonymous with its harmonic progression. Produced by Andrew Goldstein (aka FRND), Blackbear sounds cool and relaxed on this gem.  Despite the delivery, “Down” questions the legitimacy of ‘love.’ Furthermore, ‘bear seems to play around with the meaning of the word ‘down.’ “Burnt AF” is the first song (and one of only a few) to cross the three-minute mark.  “We belong to other lovers, so we gonna hurt each other,” he sings on the chorus, later adding, “Why we go and choose each other? / We belong to other lovers; I don’t know why I even tried.”  That pretty much sums up the record, where hooking up was a bad idea from the get-go.

“Laid out like a crucifix, she ready for religion / She ain’t go to church but she know how to beg for forgiveness.” ✓ “Heartbroken” features some truly hard-nosed production fueling the singer’s fire – he ‘growls’ you might say.  Perhaps what’s most notable about this record is the fact that he turns things around from being “heartbroken” to being “a heartbreaker.” Follow-up ✓ “1 Sided Love” was released as a single prior to the release of Anonymous.  Compared to the preceding “Heartbroken” track, the ‘bear’ sounds much gentler as he let’s his self-centered lover down easily.  “You’re too busy talking over me to hear what I’m saying,” he sings on the chorus, later adding, “You’re so into yourself, everyone else is overrated / And everything’s changin’; is your heart worth breakin’?”

“Losing You”

On “Losing You,” the effects of the breakup have blackbear totally messed up.  Essentially, he’s under her influence and seems to be losing his mind.  The end of the relationship still lingers on “It’s All Gonna Burn,” even though he accepts and wisely states that the end was inevitable.  On the second verse he sings, “It’s people like you and people like me / We weren’t meant to last, let alone meant to be.” He brilliantly sums things up on the chorus, singing, “We don’t need to wait for the sky to fall down / It’s all gonna burn someday.” On the brief “Dead Balloons,” the mistakes and mishaps run rampant, but he tells his girl, “I’ll make it up to you when it’s all over… when I get sober…”

If some of the swagger of Anonymous drifted away after “Heartbroken,” it returns on the 16^th track, “Too Close.”  Blackbear is more assertive, more confident, and fiery with his pop-rap delivery.  Once more, there’s emphasis placed on ‘closeness’ – “You gettin’ way too close, whoa.” Penultimate number “Dead to Me” is exactly what you expect it to be – putting the memory of his ex to rest.  The record is set in a minor key, features dramatic, biting production work, and emotional, passionate vocals. ✓ “Nyla,” the sole track to clock-in north of four minutes, concludes Anonymous superbly. It is a remake of his popular 2013 song. Vocally, it is one of his better performance, with his distinct pipes shining.

Final Thoughts

All in all, Anonymous delivers a number of worthwhile musical moments from blackbear. From the start, he makes the premise of the album clear – the effects of love and heartbreak.  Relatable and effective game plan – he does a fine job of sticking to script. Does Anonymous run a bit long? Yes. Even at a respectable 50 minutes, there are 18 tracks which is a lot to digest, particularly compared to digital druglord, which was merely 10 tracks with a 32-minute runtime.  Regardless, Anonymous is more triumph than not for the heavily-tatted musician.

Gems: “Hate My Guts,” “Swear to God,” “High1x,” “Down,” “Heartbroken,” “1 Sided Love” & “Nyla”  

Blackbear • Anonymous • Alamo / Interscope • Release: 4.26.19

Photo Credit: Alamo / Interscope