IGOR by Tyler, The Creator: Review

The entirely self-written and self-produced album masterfully captures emotions of infatuation, wrath, and heartbreak—all in the course of just 40 minutes

Intro

He’s coming.

IGOR begins with this ominous warning—which only becomes scary if you’ve listened to Tyler’s other work. For most viewers, it’s a premonition of what’s to come in the next 40 minutes of this creative, experimental, and highly emotional pop album that’s only considered a rap album because people are racist.

Igor is one of Tyler’s many alter-egos, around the middle of the normal-to-utterly-deranged spectrum. The storyline is that Igor’s caught in a love triangle: he’s looking to enter into a relationship with a man he’s partially involved with already, but the man has his sights set on a woman. IGOR chronicles the titular character’s fight to attain the man’s love in any way possible—from charming him with “spells” to buying a gun and shooting the man’s girlfriend.

We can put the convoluted and borderline psychopathic storyline aside because the lyricism isn’t really what shines through here. I typically evaluate albums with songwriting and lyrics as my priority, but IGOR is a far more sound-oriented album. Tyler creates a vocal range more diverse than what any artist has done before: from the melodic ballads of “EARFQUAKE” to the low, droning rumbles of “I DON’T LOVE YOU ANYMORE.” The production is revolutionarily creative—he samples several old soul artists to set the slow tone of the album’s heartfelt mid-section. Each feature is carefully selected and tailored to fit the song’s mood (who knew Tyler could make Playboi Carti have an emotional impact?) and Tyler even uses his voice to create a dazzling effect, like the “la-la-la-la-la-la-la” on “ARE WE STILL FRIENDS?”

This album is a masterclass in setting a mood—if you examine the lyrics closely, there isn’t much substance to be found (several songs, especially “IGOR’S THEME,” are him just repeating the same words over and over)—but the reason we feel such an emotional hit from listening is that each track sonically encapsulates the exact sentiment it wants you to feel as you listen to it (“NEW MAGIC WAND”—anger, “I THINK”—passion, etc.) But the best way to illustrate this is by diving into the songs. This is a review where you should listen to the songs as you read about them, since again, it’s not as lyrically-driven as a lot of the other stuff I’ll review.

1. IGOR’S THEME

This song is incredibly interesting since after analyzing it for a good 30 minutes I’m still unsure of what it’s attempting to accomplish. The lyrics are as cryptic as the 20-second deep bass effect it opens with.

Ridin' 'round town, they gon' feel this one (They gon' feel this one)

Ridin' 'round town, they gon' feel this one

Ridin' 'round town, they gon' feel (They gon' feel this one)

Ridin', ridin' 'round town, they gon' feel this one, oh

(Got my eyes open)

I'm ridin', I'm ridin' (Got my, got my, got my eyes open)

Oh, yeah (Got my, got my eyes open)

I'm ridin', I'm ridin', yeah, I'm (Got my, got my, got my, got my eyes)

Igor

I think the best interpretation of this track is that it’s Tyler speaking directly to the viewer, introducing them to what they should expect on the album: “They gon feel this one.” It’s accompanied by a range of different sounds that invoke feelings of primarily excitement over anything else.

It’s a heavily experimental song that gets carried by its production. There’s a certain level of intrigue that the unique sound creates, but the atmosphere can only do much for an otherwise meaningless, repetitive song.

SCORE: 7/10

2. EARFQUAKE

This is Tyler’s second-biggest song after See You Again—and it’s not hard to see why. It’s very heavily emotional, has some incredible, hard-hitting lyricism, and even includes a soulful verse—from Playboi Carti of all people?

In the context of the story, this is Tyler’s attempt to win back his male love interest, who has recently left—presumably in favor of the woman in the love triangle. His yearning is conflicted as it is desperate: despite remarking “I don't want no conversation” and “I don't want no side information,” he still begs his lover to come back to him—poetically capturing the contrasting emotions of a breakup.

'Cause you make my earth quake

Oh, you make my earth quake

Riding around, you’re telling me something is bad

And it's making my heart break

This song is just as strong musically. The multi-voice chorus, the synth-piano in the back, and even Carti’s child-like voice all mesh together effectively. As far as I could find, the instrumental is entirely self-made and doesn’t sample anything, which makes its catchiness all the more impressive.

SCORE: 10/10

SIDE NOTE: Some speculate that when Tyler says “It’s my fault,” it’s clever wordplay relating the song to a literal fault—like the one that causes earthquakes. Tyler said his inspiration for this song, though, is that an earthquake happened as he was writing it, so I think this may be a bit of a pull. What do y’all think?

3. I THINK

This might be the most underrated track on the whole album (in terms of popularity, at least). It’s a song purely about being in love and how that leads you to overlook your better judgment. This idea certainly sounds a little familiar to me. The track sends a clear message: love trumps all.

It sends that message in a medium that transmits it to its fullest extent. It samples Nigerian funk music to create an upbeat vibe through its many verses about falling madly in love. Even on this song, though, you can see the cracks in Igor/Tyler’s relationship with this unnamed man that doom it to fail later in the album:

I don't know where I’m going (Skate)

But I know what I'm showing (Four)

Feelings, that's what I’m pouring (Skate)

What the fuck is your motive? (Four)

Man, I wish you would call me (Skate)

By your name 'cause I'm sorry (Four)

This is not apology (Skate)

You are such a distraction (Four)

Tyler takes on multiple voices to do the “four, skate” ad-libs and low verses while pairing up with Solange to do the high-pitched, melodic chorus. It’s a very strong song that does exactly what it aims to do.

SCORE: 10/10

4. RUNNING OUT OF TIME

“RUNNING OUT OF TIME” is a song about desperation. Its lyrical content is a lot more emotionally impactful than its slower, lighter instrumental lets on. This is the one exception to the rule of “each song embodies its emotion,” since the track is quite ambivalent—it can’t decide whether it wants to sound hopeless (first half) or upbeat (second half). Either way, it still has its merits.

Lyrically, the piece is very coherent. Two of the song’s sections in particular hit especially hard in my opinion:

I drift to the deep end

Don't save, don't save, don't save

It's a low tide (I'll be fine)

I found peace in drownin'

Take your mask off

I need her out the picture (Wade in your water)

Take your mask off (Yeah)

Stop lyin' for these n****s

Stop lyin' to yourself

I know the real you

I think it’s really unfortunate this song gets held back a lot by its uncertain emotional direction. It would benefit from an ambiance similar to that of “I DON’T LOVE YOU ANYMORE,” especially since the more upbeat second section inexplicably transitions into the rage-fueled “NEW MAGIC WAND.”

SCORE: 8/10

5. NEW MAGIC WAND

SOMETIMES YOU GOTTA CLOSE A DOOR TO OPEN A WINDOW 🗣️🔥💯

This song legitimately unleashes a primal instinct in its listeners. It just makes you want to flop around like a ragdoll like Tyler does when he performs this live. There’s an energy present in this song that’s impossible for any other artist to match; it’s in the conversation for the best hype song of all time for sure.

When you break down the actual lyricism, this is where Igor crosses the line into legitimately just being demented: the meaning of the song is that the “magic wand” is a metaphor for a gun, a gun that Igor will buy to kill his man’s new girlfriend.

She's gonna be dead, I just got a magic wand (Don't leave)

We can finally be together

Tyler’s lyricism here isn’t astoundingly good, but his yelling of the lyrics surely makes up for the gap in his writing. The production here is outstanding, though, the instrumental feels like something that would play in a rage room. This is the peak of Igor’s tone-setting, and it makes the listener want everything to crash and burn.

This is also the only 10/10 song in existence that gets BETTER when you see it performed live. I’ll attach a performance below so you can get a semblance of what a typical NMW live show looks like:

SCORE: 10/10

6. A BOY IS A GUN

“NEW MAGIC WAND” was the clear tone shift, as Igor and the man’s relationship is only downhill from here. Starting with the lighter and more upbeat “A BOY IS A GUN,” Tyler/Igor slowly begins resenting his love interest.

The production of this song is great and appropriate. It samples “Bound” by the Ponderosa Twins, which was most notably also sampled by Kanye’s “Bound 2.” I like Tyler’s version of the sample a lot better since it sounds more well-developed and I never really liked the screeching, nails-on-a-chalkboard-esque “Bound 2” instrumental. The tone in this song sets the slow descent of the album in motion.

This song’s lyrics are also just as strong. Even though Tyler’s voice disguises his resentment with its more neutral tone, the lyrics make his intentions and sentiments much clearer than his delivery does:

Take your hoodie off, why you hide your face from me?

Make your fuckin' mind up, I am sick of waitin' patiently

How come you're the best to me? I know you're the worst for me

Boy, you're sweet as sugar, diabetic to the first degree

I think this suffers from the same identity conflict as “RUNNING OUT OF TIME” but to a much lesser degree. Aside from that, the track is solid.

SCORE: 9/10

Note: Queue Alright by Kendrick right after this song, then apply a 5-second crossfade for a heavenly transition. Thank me later.

7. PUPPET

The most glaring problem with this song is its lyricism. There are pretty questionable songwriting choices, especially in the first verse:

I wanna talk, I wanna call you and talk

I wanna walk to your front door and knock

After I start my vehicle

Drive to your city 'cause we live an hour apart

Land at your driveway and put it in park

Then do the third line of this verse

What do you need? Do you need bread?

Do you need this? Do you need a hug?

Doing a meta-reference to your own verse and misdirection just seems kind of corny and underdeveloped to me. The lyricism is decently strong for the rest of the song, though—standard Tyler fare.

This song shines mostly through its musical aspects, though. Kanye’s “Did I wait too long” ad-libs, the unique, lo-fi-esque production, and Tyler’s “la-la-la-la” singing during Kanye’s ending verse are all beautiful to hear.

SCORE: 8/10

8. WHAT’S GOOD

This song is immensely underrated. The Kanye influence is undeniable, as he embraces Ye’s signature “I’m a god” persona, and even interpolates “New Slaves”:

Niggas turning it up, well, shit, I'm tearing it down

Hard to believe in God when there ain't no mirrors around

This represents Igor’s enlightenment, as seen by the repeated “I see the light” ad-libs throughout the track. It’s the first song not to focus on Igor’s love interest, as it sends a far more self-centric message.

The lyricism is impressive here—bar after bar of powerful verses just hit the listener like a truck. You can almost feel Tyler/Igor’s passion:

Dracula, Dracula, Dracula

Suck me first, I might get back at ya (I see the light)

Is that shit clear? Check the aperture

Hahahahaha, I can't laugh at ya (I see the light)

This the shit that make you nervous

'Bout to go buck wild, nigga, Steve Irwin (I see the light)

Sick of that 'Claren talk, I'm on my third one

Niggas talkin' reckless, I never heard 'em (I see the light)

The only thing holding back this track from a 10 is that it breaks the storyline of the album thus far—although the songwriting is solid, it doesn’t fit as well into the context of the tracklist as a whole. This is also just standard rap fare, not the unique, unorthodox pop-like tracks we’ve been getting on the rest of the album.

SCORE: 9/10

9. GONE, GONE / THANK YOU

This might be Tyler’s best song to date. My only complaint is that “THANK YOU” (by far the better half of the song) should be longer—but that’s just a personal preference thing. Every element of the song comes together perfectly.

The whole album thus far has been defined by emotion, but this is the song where you can feel it the strongest. You can feel Igor’s introspection on where he went wrong:

I know my temperature was set

You finally flew south

The bird gon' leave the nest, you're so chromatic

At least I had it (Uh)

Instead of never

Or maybe I'm too dramatic

You can feel him question whether his lover’s new girlfriend deserves him:

I just hope to God she got good taste

Could put you on some shit you never seen

Could play a couple songs that you could dance to

I hope you know she can't compete with me

When Tyler says “I’m scarred for life,” you believe it.

Everybody making a choice according to plan and

We had two different blueprints, but understood influence

You opened up early on, I thought I had a permit

You started buildin' a bridge and turned it into a fence

Then my buildin' got tore down all because of your new tenant

I'll just buy up some new shit, never down with a lease

The slow, somber instrumental complements this song perfectly. This gets even better in the 1-minute second section of the song “THANK YOU,” where the repeating arpeggios hit just as they need to while Tyler gives his strongest emotional performance of the whole album:

Thank you for the love

Thank you for the joy

But I don't ever wanna fall in love again

Thank you for the time

Thank you for your mind, mind

But I don't ever wanna fall in love again

An incredible payoff for the buildup of the first 8 tracks of the album.

SCORE: 10/10

10. I DON’T LOVE YOU ANYMORE

Here’s yet another sonically-driven song. The 2-minute, 40-second-long track is only two verses and two choruses. This is one I’m not a fan of, however. The high-pitched vocals don’t mesh too well with the dark production. I do like the drawn-out ending note, but it does tend to get annoying after a bit, and the effect has already been done on “IGOR’S THEME” (where the beginning note is held for about 40 seconds) and will be done again at the end of the very next song (far more effectively, at that).

The lyricism, limited as it is, is decently strong:

But now, movin' on, but how?

Uh, somethin' put my feelings in the lost and found

Now I'm stuck forever, and ever, and ever

And ever, and ever, and ever

And ever, and ever

Forever, and ever, and ever

In the context of the story, this song might just be the most heartbreaking: it shows that Igor still has feelings for this man, but chooses to hide them because he can’t stand the heartbreak, forcing himself to commit to this idea he doesn’t want to believe in: “I DON’T LOVE YOU ANYMORE.” Oddly enough, on an album defined by its unique sound, it’s how hard this song tries to be different that pushes its score down.

SCORE: 8/10

11. ARE WE STILL FRIENDS?

We’ve finally reached the end of the cycle. After cycling through emotions of love, anger, heartbreak, and ignorance, Igor wants to continue his friendship with the man on good terms. The title of this song—and the storyline of this album—is like poetry, a representation of heartbreak’s “5 stages of grief,” if you will.

This is a perfect ending to the album. The production is incredible—Tyler’s creativity is put on perfect display through the instrumental of this song, an instrumental in which he even incorporates vocals (not sure if they’re from him or another artist), creating an almost heavenly vibe.

This is another song with only a limited amount of actual lyrics, but Pharrell Williams’s feature is probably the peak of it here:

Bouncing off things and you don't know how you fall

Your power is drained, so you cannot go through walls

You're caught in this matrix, don't know where you play it

You hate it, it could be your favorite if you make it your friend

A brilliant touch at the end is the note that ends the song loops perfectly with the one at the beginning of “IGOR’S THEME,” representing the endless cycle of falling in and out of love. It’s a beautiful conclusion to an outstanding album.

SCORE: 9/10

Wrap-Up and Overall

This project was Tyler’s most successful ever at its release. He evolved from an artist who capitalized on an edgy, violent style to one that released far less unhinged music while still keeping the creativity and willingness to experiment that defined his earlier discography. With his foray into pop music, Tyler made good use of unorthodox production, sound, and musical structure to create an eye-opening product.

Despite the diverse range of musical styles Tyler draws inspiration from to create IGOR, the commonality it all shares is how well it encapsulates the story he’s trying to tell. And it’s a story that is just as impactful when you go through it the tenth time as when you first hear it. Listening to this album beginning-to-end pieces together an intricate, highly emotional saga of gaining and losing love.

This album’s sole flaw is its lyricism—more so its lack of it. Its songs are primarily defined by Tyler's unique instrumentals and musical brilliance, not the poetic songwriting I’ve come to prefer. Where the lyricism does exist, though, it’s executed incredibly well—with “GONE, GONE / THANK YOU” being an obvious standout.

But combining all the moving pieces of this album gives you an end product that is a perfect representation of the emotions associated with a relationship doomed to fall. Its prophetic nature is just as strong as its sound.

OVERALL SCORE: 8.9/10

TL;DR:

Best:

1. GONE, GONE / THANK YOU

2. I THINK

3. NEW MAGIC WAND

Worst: IGOR’S THEME

Best Lyricism: GONE, GONE / THANK YOU

Best Production: I THINK

Best Performance: ARE WE STILL FRIENDS?

Best Feature: Solange, I THINK

Most Overrated: RUNNING OUT OF TIME

Most Underrated: WHAT’S GOOD