Frank Ocean is back.
With “Forrest Gump” appearing in the end credits of an episode of “Big Mouth” this month and Pitchfork naming “Blonde” the best album of the decade, it only seemed like a matter of time.
Last night, Blonded Radio, Ocean’s Beats 1 radio show, returned to Apple Music and premiered new songs “Cayendo” and “DHL.” “DHL” was later released as a single on streaming services.
The drop of new Frank Ocean music means it’s a national holiday, right? Well, it would if the song was worth celebrating.
“DHL” is just an okay song.
There are some interesting production flourishes on the first half of the song, but they’re nothing particularly new for a Frank Ocean track.
The song sounds like it was crafted by a man at the top of the world, but not at the top of his game. It sounds like Frank is complacent, even happy with all his other achievements.
“I’m already rich as fuck,” he raps near the end of the track.
Frank Ocean has always been an interesting figure. Most people seem to revere him like a god. He’s infallible just like the pope, but he’s cooler than the pope because he makes music and isn’t an old man.
There’s been an interesting movement in pop music where certain artists are exempt from criticism. No one speaks ill of Frank Ocean. No one would dare go against him and his legion of angels.
I love Frank Ocean, but I understand that he’s not a god. He can make mistakes. He can make songs that are just okay. He said it himself.
“I’m just a guy,” he sings on 2016’s Futura Free. “I’m not a god.”
I have really only seen praise for “DHL,” which I find interesting. The song sounds like a throwaway single. The electronic drums are extremely prominent in the mix, the synths take a backseat making it sound like any other generic freestyle beat you can find on YouTube.
It doesn’t help that the lyrics are so weak they make it seem like Ocean freestyled the whole thing. It also doesn’t help that the only single for “Blonde” was “Nikes,” and the only other singles he’s released since “Blonde” include “Biking,” “Chanel” and “Lens.”
This may be the only real negative thing some people read about “DHL.” And it’s not even that negative. The song is okay, it’s not terrible. It’s just not as good as his other output.
Maybe the song will work better on the possible upcoming album. It could benefit from being a part of a single, cohesive being.
Who knows?
For now, Frank is back. It might not be his best work, but it’s sustenance for those starving for new music.
