Tyler, The Creator; back like he never left (he really didn’t.) Still in the midst of the world tour for his CHROMAKOPIA, the multi-hyphenate quickly announced, teased, and released his ninth studio album, DON’T TAP THE GLASS. Now just over a week old, here are our biggest takeways.
While as always, any body of work is worth tackling on its own merits, we should nonetheless note some of the context Tyler, The Creator himself added around this record: “This album was not made for sitting still. Dancing driving running [sic] any type of movement is recommended to maybe understand the spirit of it. Only at full volume.”
Additionally, he dismissed claims that the record would be of the conceptual quality that many of his new (post-Flower Boy) era have been. The short layoff between November’s CHROMAKOPIA and the project at hand all but confirm that, yet the man himself’s confirmation is essential.
Pharrell Williams’ Direct And Indirect Influence On Don’t Tap The Glass
Once cracked open, Don’t Tap The Glass begins with “Big Poe,” crucially introducing the robot cadence that serves as this record’s central “character” (also depicted on the cover, echoing the bewigged counterpart from IGOR or the cheetah-printed one from CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST.”) Jewelried and sporting vibrant colors, Tyler’s costuming certainly aligns with what you get in the tracklist, but it’s the featured artist who might be even more illustrative.
Pharrell Williams, well cited by the LA rapper as a monumental influence (“Shoutout Papa he for real” from “Thought I Was Dead” or countless interview quotes), is an animating spirit even outside of his Swizz Beats-like feature on the opening track. His work as a member of the Neptunes, crafting everything from era-defining swag rap to bubblegum pop, looms over DON’T TAP THE GLASS in both form and execution, arguably resulting in Tyler’s most accessible yet.
Speaker-Thumping Hip-Hop…
While cleaving the record in half wouldn’t be entirely clean, there’s a softer and a harder side of the material included here. Beginning with the latter, “Sucka Free” doesn’t spare hard-hitting bass, but continues the almost goofy atmosphere utilized for his remix of Kendrick Lamar’s “Hey Now,” even revisiting that same “I’m that guy” refrain. Two-parters, a hallmark of the Tyler discography but famously eschewed for Chromakopia, return for “Don’t Tap That Glass/Tweakin,” where some “only Tyler could get away with this” lyrical highlights bring the saga-like single over the finish line.
We see full chest-out braggadocio on “Mommanem” replete with Hans Zimmer-style action SFX. It’s more of an interlude in runtime but does well to establish “Stop Playing With Me,” an early standout that further allowed Tyler, The Creator to flex his A-lister connections; LeBron James and Clipse appeared in its video.
… And Poppier Fare
If we were flies on the wall, “Sugar On My Tongue” would be our pick for the record that pushed Tyler, The Creator into this direction, the most full-throated embrace of a dance floor concept. Maximalist synths and a delayed cadence in the hook only accentuate the record’s latent bounce in the rest of its runtime. Of a similar quality is “Ring Ring Ring,” heavily deploying trademark pitch shifted falsetto for a genuine earworm built on IGOR style analog keys and strings.
The closing trio is the most cohesive stretch of the record, leaning comprehensively into retro R&B. Looking at the record as a whole, it’s the booming, simplistic, and unrelenting dance hallmarks that define Don’t Tap The Glass, but the looping instrumentals and tender overtones make for some of the most captivating pieces here. “I’ll Take Care Of You” is noteworthy on top of that for how well it represents Tyler’s ever-eclectic blend of influences, pairing the silky smooth talents of Yebba with the Dirty South Standard “Knuck If You Buck.”
Perhaps it would’ve been worth it for Tyler to pin DON’T TAP THE GLASS as a mixtape to denote the break from headier, more fleshed-out previous records. However, even if it’s lacking a bit in the extended character work we’ve seen before, the quality of this latest effort is still plenty serious. If Tyler has established one thing in this chapter, it’s that his commitment to the art never wavers, so if his proclivities point him towards club bangers, we’re happy to accompany him down that road.
Catch DON’T TAP THE GLASS now wherever you stream your music.
