Tyler, the Creator review, IGOR: His best work to date

Tyler has never been one for traditional song structure, but on his fifth album he’s like the Minotaur luring you through a maze that twists and turns round seemingly impossible corners

“I don’t know where I’m going,” Tyler, the Creator begins on the song “I THINK”. “But I know what I’m showing.” The US artist’s words ring true throughout his fifth studio album, IGOR, where he adopts the dark and twisted mutterings of the Frankenstein character from which the record gets its name.

The production here is superb. Tyler has never been one for traditional song structure, but on IGOR he’s like the Minotaur luring you through a maze that twists and turns around seemingly impossible corners, drawing you into the thrilling unknown.

Guest features and co-writes are sparse but spot-on, and never disrupt the flow of the record despite the obvious star power of Kanye West, Frank Ocean, Playboi Carti and Lil Uzi Vert. There’s an outstanding beat-switch on “I THINK” that leads into a tight funk jam. Before 2017’s Flower Boy, Tyler struggled with overwrought cuts and unnecessary embellishments – that record made for a far more cohesive experience, and now too does IGOR. Few artists curate their albums as carefully as this.

“NEW MAGIC WAND” is a standout even on this record, featuring verses from A$AP Rocky and Santigold and a brief spoken-word line from comedian Jerrod Carmichael. Its staticky, low-thrumming bass and shuddering synth lines concoct the moody brew into which Tyler spits feelings of jealousy and possessiveness: “I saw a photo, you looked joyous/ My eyes are green, I eat my veggies/ I need to get her out the picture/ She’s really f***in’ up my frame.” Whether the lover he simultaneously threatens and pledges himself to is male or female is not addressed.

Speculation over Tyler’s sexuality has been rife since the release of Flower Boy, which liberated him – and likely conflicted fans as well – from earlier violent misogynistic and homophobic lyrics. There’s nothing so immediately explicit as the line on “Foreword”, where he proclaimed: “Next line will have ‘em like ‘Whoa’: I’ve been kissing white boys since 2004,” but there are more subtle allusions all across the new record. “RUNNING OUT OF TIME”, which features Frank Ocean, seems to address his conflicted feelings over being in an open relationship with a man via a back and forth conversation with his lover: “Take your mask off/ Stop lyin’ for these n***as/ Stop lyin’ to yourself/ I know the real you.” He references the gay romantic drama Call Me By Your Name on “I THINK”. “You’re my favourite garçon,” he declares on “A BOY IS A GUN”. He references Elton John in the piano on “IGOR’S THEME”.

Tyler revels in the contradictions that come with being in love with someone: the knowledge that it would be better to stay away, questioning who is in control in a situation: “I do not have self-control,” he raps on the Kanye West-featuring “PUPPET”, “I am startin’ to wonder/ Is this my free will or yours? (Yours, yours, yours).” “GONE, GONE / THANK YOU” underlines his sadness with a cheerfully delivered refrain.

IGOR is undoubtedly a breakup album, one that closes on the devastating “ARE WE STILL FRIENDS?”, which is more of a plea than a question. It takes you through those tumultuous, crashing early moments of heartbreak and denial, along with those desperate attempts to claw back what was lost. Its lack of resolution at the close – surely the most torturous element of a great love lost – makes it all the more powerful. This is Tyler’s best work to date.