'American Boyfriend: A Suburban Love Story' Album Review

In my 16 years of life, I have heard a variety of albums, both good and bad, from A LOT of different musical genres.

Some on the better end of the spectrum, like Amy Winehouse’s Back To Black or SZA’s Ctrl, and some not so good, like Migos’s Culture (or anything else by them), or any of Maroon 5’s releases after Overexposed. But, do I dislike these albums because I’m uninterested in the music or because I’m uninterested in the artists who have made them? On one hand, Migos might have catchy songs about raindrops and drop tops, but because of personal morals, I refuse to listen to anything released by homophobes (as Quavius has proven to be on multiple occasions). But, in Maroon 5’s case, I lost interest in their music when they released Maps and haven’t paid much attention since then (besides the song they did with SZA, but only because I love her).

Another reason I don’t listen to Migos and music like theirs is because of the very obvious reason that their music has no substance. I like to listen to songs that make me feel something—whether it be happiness, sadness, or impending death and destruction (like Blurryface by Twenty One Pilots).

Then there’s records like Halsey’s debut album, Badlands, that have both a relevant message and catchy rhythm, but in the wrong order. Tracklist order is very important to the flow and cohesion of an album and without a good one, a record can lose my interest very quickly (unless EVERY song is interesting...which isn’t likely).

So, what is THE perfect album? For some, it may be the Frank Sinatra Christmas Album while for others it’s Rex Orange County’s Apricot Princess. One of the best albums that I’ve heard within the last year, in my opinion, was Kevin Abstract’s American Boyfriend: A Suburban Love Story.

Kevin Abstract (Ian Simpson) is the man behind young America’s new favorite boy band, BROCKHAMPTON, and while they are widely regarded as a fan favorite, not many people appreciate Abstract’s music in the same way. His hard hitting rap verses paired with soft melodies and Romil Hemnani’s production made this album a favorite of mine for sure. I also really enjoyed the way that Simpson addresses subjects that have been frowned upon by society and tells a narrative of how these things have affected his life and how he has learned from it.

Abstract’s first studio album, Mtv1987 had more of an Odd Future and old school Tyler, the Creator vibe that seemed like more of a compilation of songs that don’t lead to anything, rather than a cohesive album. The songs on American Boyfriend were more connected and told a more put together, thoughtful story.

The lyrics throughout this album speak about taboo subjects that not many other artists would speak about. He addresses topics relating to homophobia he experiences in his family as well as racism in his community on Suburbian Born, “My best friend's racist, my mother's homophobic, I'm stuck in the closet, I'm so claustrophobic” and touches on not fitting in on Empty, “I hate my yearbook photo, I hate my passport, I hate my last name, I hate everything it stands for.” This blatant honesty about struggles of a queer, male, person of color is refreshing to hear as it isn’t seen as much from men as it is from women in our media.

As I said before, the order of albums is detrimental to their success in my mind. I want to listen to a record that tells a chronological story. This one does exactly that, as it takes us through Simpson’s childhood—when he moved around a lot, to when he realized he was gay and how he dealt with the homophobia in his life, to finally accepting himself for who he is.

If there’s a downside to this album, I think, for me, it would be the flow of it all. While all of the stories that were being told were connected to each other, some of the songs weren’t. But, of course every artist puts together an album that they believe is the perfect fit, and my opinion on it really doesn't matter. So, thank you Ian for this amazing piece of art that has and will be very appreciated.