Four years after Gemini Rights, Steve Lacy has returned with Oh yeah?, a project that has slowly taken shape over time and that dives full-on into melodic and romantic terrains. Where his previous album sometimes found itself eclipsed by the sweeping hit Bad Habit, a brilliant bedroom-pop and R&B production that resonated with an entire generation, a similar dynamic occurs with this new work, with “the feeling” this time serving as the centerpiece of the show.
The track that served as the album’s second teaser is one of those songs with genuine potential to transcend. Drawing on a long tradition of soul and R&B, the composition glides with ease through psychedelic and dream-pop textures, featuring beautiful keyboards and winds. Lacy’s warm voice acts as a powerful conduit filled with melancholy and ardor, shining over a production that is both delicate and chock-full of hooks.
While nothing quite attains those peak moments, there are still a few valuable passages within an album that remains uneven. The carefree “is it cool?”, featuring SZA, possesses a strong melodic arc and benefits from Steve Lacy’s convincing vocal delivery in a near-rap register and from the chemistry between the two artists. It also contains one of the album’s best-crafted lyrics, where the singer acknowledges his tendency toward infidelity and expresses a willingness to change.
The opening track “oh yeah?” encapsulates the spirit of the project well. It boasts a luxurious, exuberant production in which the drums, synths, and processed guitars rise to an epic register. And yet, it also feels incomplete, as if it were more of a draft than a finished version. These kinds of moments drag down a record that tosses ideas around here and there, and even with a few flashes of brilliance, it never quite manages to stand out as a fully realized work.
At times, it even seems that Lacy is trying to make things harder for himself, aiming to surprise or deliberately avoiding catchy melodies. The most obvious example is “pure color” with Erykah Badu, a lethargic psychedelic ballad that seems to drift without a clear destination. “nice shoes / in your world” is also frustrating, especially because the first half of the song (which was the album’s lead single) is excellent: energetic and sexy, with a persuasive use of percussion and a serpentine bass line. But, as if the artist fears success, it then segues into a piano ballad with a gospel aura that doesn’t quite fit the rest of the track.
On the other hand, there are other instances that, while not perfectly rounded, feel more satisfying. “doom” is a pop-rock experiment that, despite somewhat improvable lyrics (“I’m a big baby suckin’ on big titties/ Karma’s a bitch and I bet she’s pretty”), is forgiven for the way those ’90s guitars sound and for that addictive summer melody. While “bebe” closes the album with an intriguing rock ballad, the singer’s voice soars to a high register that sometimes becomes hard to recognize, creating a contrast with the instrumental distortion.
In “Oh yeah?” there is an attempt to reach across many genres and try different stylistic approaches, but Steve Lacy never finds a common thread to weave a cohesive narrative through his ten songs. The result is an album full of highs and lows, with some genuinely valuable moments mixed in with others that feel rather mediocre.
