It’s sometimes hard to listen to this and remember that, before formulating any initial opinions, that SATURATION III represents tracks 35-50 of their year’s work. I was a little worried, well, not really worried, but the thought crossed my mind, that their third project would be a direct follow up of their last two, and maybe lose the flavor that was so vibrant and fresh in the beginning months. The first 2/3 of the SATURATION trilogy was a consistent listen; the two projects were similar in nature, but didn’t lack in originality. And, SII got even better than SI in my opinion. But after listening to SIII this week, it’s safe to say that BROCKHAMPTON has shown no signs of staleness, and has only stepped up their musical composition skills and production game to defy the logic of the music world; that quantity can coincide with quality unlike anything we’ve seen in a while.

If you haven’t listened to BROCKHAMPTON yet, you should take a listen, but be prepared. These guys are exciting, provocative, and have an incredible charisma, work ethic, and originality to them. Their SATURATION trilogy is a blend of really fresh and crisp production, mixed with contagious hooks and a diverse set of hardcore & modern hip hop, pop, r&b, and at times, lo-fi rock. You’ll catch yourself singing their hooks quite a lot throughout the day, blasting their hardcore tracks in the car, and serenading alongside Kevin Abstract to any of their guitar ballads at night. Songs like “HEAT” and “GOLD” off of SATURATION show no resemblance to songs like “QUEER” and “SUMMER”, yet that’s frankly what makes this group so awesome; nothing falls short in ability or originality, and their strong-suits transcend any genre or stylistic boundaries. SATURATION III keeps doing exactly this; the only stark difference is the production, which is better and more unexpected.

“BOOGIE” is one of their most interesting songs yet, starting off with an intense, catchy dance/rap/punk beat that sounds like “Sexy Back” on crack. Each member gets a quick hook, all of which are extremely catchy, starting off the album better than SII. I also really enjoyed tracks like “BLEACH” and “TEAM”, which represent their more R&B/sung tracks of the album. “SISTER” is something unlike anything from the trilogy, with a Death Grips vibe on the production, and strange, experimental, dissonant beat changes.

I wouldn’t recommend listening to this album first if you haven’t caught the first two, because it may take away from the genius of their discography. I listened to SII all the way through before listening to SI, and it may have influenced my opinion on which is the best. But the fact that there are such mixed opinions on the best to worst of the trilogy shows how incomprehensible it is that these kids can mess around in their house, work hard with all they’ve got, make nearly 60 songs, and compose three genius rap albums all in 2017. These guys, as I said, are the future of rap, and America’s rightful boyband.

Notable Tracks: BOOGIE, JOHNNY, BLEACH, SISTER/NATION, RENTAL, TEAM