Saturation (Brockhampton album)
Saturation (stylized in all caps) is the debut studio album by American boy band Brockhampton, released on June 9, 2017.[2][3] It's part of the Saturation trilogy, together with Saturation II and III. It primarily features Brockhampton members Kevin Abstract, Merlyn Wood, Dom McLennon, Matt Champion, Russell "Joba" Boring, and former member Ameer Vann. Group member Bearface also contributes to the album's closing track. Production was primarily handled by Romil Hemnani and Q3—a production duo consisting of Jabari Manwa and Kiko Merley, with additional production contributions by Joba, Bearface, and Rome Gomez.
Saturation | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | June 9, 2017 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | Hip hop | |||
Length | 51:02 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer | Brockhampton
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Brockhampton chronology | ||||
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Singles from Saturation | ||||
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Critical reception
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
HotNewHipHop | [4] |
Pitchfork | 6.5/10[1] |
Pretty Much Amazing | B−[5] |
RadioUTD | [6] |
theneedledrop | 9/10[7] |
Saturation received general acclaim from music critics upon its release. DJBooth's Brent Bradley praised the group's chemistry, noting that "With Saturation, Brockhampton has cemented themselves as a force to behold, the next in an all-too-short line of examples in which groups manage to fully realize their dynamic potential".[8] For RadioUTD, Roman Soriano referred to the group's members as "highly talented", continuing that "it's incredible to think that this was put together in just three and a half weeks, given the complexity of this project", praising its "powerful lyricism, great storytelling, and ... cohesive but diverse sound".[6] In a less positive review, Pitchfork's Matthew Strauss called the album a "split between effortless cool and empty platitudes", praising the group's stylishness and assertiveness, but criticizing the album's less aggressive moments as "sappy", revealing "the collective's lyrical weakness".[1]
Year-end rankings
Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
BrooklynVegan | BrooklynVegan's Top 50 Albums of 2017 | 12 |
|
Clash | Clash Albums of the Year 2017 | 11 |
|
Vinyl Me, Please | The Best Albums of 2017 | 25 |
Track listing
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Heat" |
| Romil Hemnani | 4:32 |
2. | "Gold" |
|
| 4:26 |
3. | "Star" |
| Manwa | 2:41 |
4. | "Boys" |
|
| 4:38 |
5. | "2Pac" |
| Kiko Merley | 1:02 |
6. | "Skit 1" |
| Hemnani | 0:19 |
7. | "Fake" |
| Q3 | 4:36 |
8. | "Bank" |
|
| 3:16 |
9. | "Skit 2" |
| Hemnani | 0:16 |
10. | "Trip" |
|
| 3:23 |
11. | "Swim" |
|
| 3:33 |
12. | "Bump" |
|
| 2:38 |
13. | "Cash" |
|
| 3:15 |
14. | "Skit 3" |
| Hemnani | 0:39 |
15. | "Milk" |
|
| 4:55 |
16. | "Face" |
| Kiko Merley | 4:19 |
17. | "Waste" | Ciarán McDonald | 2:34 | |
Total length: | 51:02 |
Notes
Personnel
Brockhampton
- Kevin Abstract – performance (tracks 2–5, 7, 8, 10–13, 15), executive production, creative direction
- Ameer Vann – performance (tracks 1–5, 7, 8, 10, 12, 13, 15, 16)
- Merlyn Wood – performance (tracks 1, 2, 4, 7, 11–13, 15)
- Dom McLennon – performance (tracks 1–4, 7, 8, 10–13, 15, 16)
- Matt Champion – performance (tracks 1, 2, 4, 12, 15, 16)
- Joba – performance (tracks 1, 2, 4, 10, 11, 13, 16), additional drum programming (track 12), additional vocals (tracks 7, 12), additional keys (track 16), co-executive production, mixing, mastering
- Bearface – performance (track 17), production (track 17)
- Romil Hemnani – production (tracks 1, 6, 9–15), additional production (tracks 4, 8), additional drum programming (track 2), co-executive production, recording engineering
- Q3 – production (tracks 2, 7), additional production (tracks 11, 15)
- Jabari Manwa – production (tracks 3, 4, 8), additional production (track 13), additional synth (track 1), performance (tracks 6, 9, 14)
- Kiko Merley – production (tracks 5, 16), additional production (track 10), performance (track 7)
- Henock Sileshi – creative direction, graphic design
- Ashlan Grey – photography
- Robert Ontenient – webmastering, performance (tracks 6, 9, 14)
Additional personnel
- Rome Gomez – additional production (track 17), additional vocals (track 17)
- Nick Lenzini – creative assistance
- Kevin Doan – creative assistance
Charts
Chart (2017) | Peak position |
---|---|
New Zealand Heatseeker Albums (RMNZ)[12] | 8 |
References
- "BROCKHAMPTON: SATURATION Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2017-06-25.
- Renshaw, David (June 9, 2017). "Brockhampton Shares Debut Album Saturation". FADER. Retrieved June 10, 2017.
- Ontenient, Robert. "SATURATION". Archived from the original on 2017-06-10. Retrieved 2017-06-09.
- Goddar, Kevin (Jun 8, 2017). "Brockhampton - SATURATION". Hot new Hip Hop. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
- "Review: Brockhampton, Saturation / Saturation II". prettymuchamazing.com. Retrieved 2017-12-27.
- Soriano, Roman (2017-06-13). "BROCKHAMPTON - SATURATION". RadioUTD. Retrieved 2017-06-15.
- "Brockhampton - Saturation ALBUM REVIEW". TheNeedleDrop. Retrieved 12 June 2017.
- "BROCKHAMPTON 'Saturation' Cheat Code Album Review". DJBooth.net. Retrieved 2017-06-15.
- BrooklynVegan Staff (December 22, 2017). "BrooklynVegan's Top 50 Albums of 2017". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved December 27, 2017.
- "Clash Albums Of The Year 2017". December 19, 2017. Retrieved December 27, 2017.
- Penn II, Michael (December 20, 2017). "The Best Albums of 2017". Vinyl Me, Please. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
- "NZ Heatseeker Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. June 19, 2017. Retrieved June 16, 2017.