Lil Yachty’s formidable new album, Let’s Begin Right here, is an out-of-nowhere dive into psychedelic rock from an artist who previously described his style of selection as “bubblegum lure.” Say what you’ll concerning the venture — essential response has ranged from marveling at his boldly realized transformation to umbrage over his clumsily phrased suggestion, at a pre-release occasion, that he wanted to veer exterior of hip-hop to show himself a “actual artist” — however it’s positively a wild left musical left flip.
On the newest episode of our Rolling Stone Music Now podcast, Rob Sheffield joins host Brian Hiatt to speak concerning the Yachty album and the entire historical past of utmost left-turn albums via the years. Queen’s new-wave flop Scorching Area, Arctic Monkeys’ flip towards space-lounge crooning on Tranquility Base Lodge & On line casino, Stevie Surprise’s experimental Secret Lifetime of Crops, the Killers’ stab at heartland rock on Sam’s City, Fleetwood Mac’s proto-indie activate Tusk, and Taylor Swift’s synth-y revamp on 1989 are just some of the curveballs up for dialogue. (To listen to the episode, press play above, or discover it right here on the podcast supplier of your selection.)
The episode additionally talks about artists whose total careers have been one left flip after one other — together with icons like Prince, David Bowie, Radiohead, and Neil Younger — and tries to think about the psychological motivation behind albums like Tusk: Typically the one approach to observe up a career-shaking hit like Rumours is by getting so bizarre that every one strain is off.
Obtain and subscribe to our weekly podcast, Rolling Stone Music Now, hosted by Brian Hiatt, on Apple Podcasts or Spotify (or wherever you get your podcasts). Take a look at six years’ value of episodes within the archive, together with in-depth, career-spanning interviews with Bruce Springsteen, Mariah Carey, Halsey, Neil Younger, Snoop Dogg, Brandi Carlile, Phoebe Bridgers, Rick Ross, Alicia Keys, the Nationwide, Ice Dice, Taylor Hawkins, Willow, Keith Richards, Robert Plant, Dua Lipa, Questlove, Killer Mike, Julian Casablancas, Sheryl Crow, Johnny Marr, Scott Weiland, Liam Gallagher, Alice Cooper, Fleetwood Mac, Elvis Costello, John Legend, Donald Fagen, Charlie Puth, Phil Collins, Justin Townes Earle, Stephen Malkmus, Sebastian Bach, Tom Petty, Eddie Van Halen, Kelly Clarkson, Pete Townshend, Bob Seger, the Zombies, Gary Clark Jr., and plenty of others. Plus, there are dozens of episodes that includes genre-spanning discussions, debates, and explainers with Rolling Stone’s critics and reporters.