Young Goats
Goat Life Vol. 1
The slow slappy warble backing of “Welcome to Goat Life” shuffles us into the opener of Young Goats’ brand new album Goat Life Vol. 1. What Samuel Weidler and Johnathan Johnson offer here is a 15-song collection focused on their strong distinctive voices, some subtle island-like rhythms and as much new as old rap sensibilities. I’m not exactly sure what the Goat Life is exactly about but it does seem to be about the good times and soft grooves, as we get on tunes like the roiling “Beautiful,†the piano plink quick rap of “Take You With Me,†and the slow and sexy echo piano of “Whole Snack.†All these just a few of the beginning solid tracks offered in this thick brew.
“Catch my Vibe,†just a little past halfway here features a simple piano and an amazing rap; this might be the best tune on all of Goat Life Vol. 1 for me. I love the chorus, when the blipping synth rhythm kicks in, underplaying the serious of what Weidler and Johnson are on about.
We get some more of those island-like sounds again on the fun “Dubai for the Weekend;†another great lyric here. And a sweeping synth with vocoded vocals slips under the rap of ender “Better Than Them,†another rap with lots to say. This is another tune where when the chorus takes off you are caught in the groove. It’s almost as if the guys left the best for last, or at least a tune that sees them employing all of what they used throughout the album here as “Better Than Them,†is maybe the most realized tune on all of Goat Life Vol. 1.
Overall Young Goats deliver here.
