However, the third verse is when Kendrick’s ideas really start to coalesce, as he starts to realise that whilst his own suffering is tangible, it pales in comparison to what others have gone through – “your projects ain’t s**t, I live in a hut b***h”. In the second verse he ponders the efficacy of education – “365 times 4, plus more / if yan’t get it right, tell me, do you got the stamina”. The opening verse sees his bragging about and reflecting on his success – “see a nine to five was so jive turkey / but when Thanksgiving came that cheque didn’t hurt me” – with his trademark wit and wordplay. That track demonstrates the depth and complexity of Kendrick’s lyricism, over the course of 3 verses. Choruses are largely gone, and when they do arrive, like on untitled 8, they are abstracted and menacing. The 8 tracks largely draw from the same well of funk and jazz as his 2015 album, but to an even more esoteric degree. However, whilst it doesn’t have the cohesion of his very best work, Kendrick is such a talented stylist and lyricist that it’s still a thrilling half-hour of music. Where To Pimp a Butterfly was almost 80 minutes long, untitled unmastered. The guest vocals from CeeLo Green and Jay Rock are uncredited, and the entire album deliberately defies traditional classification. It’s only 8 tracks long, and none of the songs have actual titles, being called untitled 01 through untitled 8, all suffixed with dates, presumably the date of each track’s recording. Like Amnesiac, it begs the question of whether it should be considered a full album at all. If To Pimp A Butterfly is Kendrick Lamar’s Kid A, then untitled unmastered.

Kenridkc untitled unmastered review