Ladies and gentlemen: Frank Ocean’s new album, Blonde, has finally been released. It’s not like Ocean fans haven’t been waiting for four years or anything. For those of you who don’t have a clue who Frank Ocean is, let me fill you in. He’s a 28 year-old R&B singer-songwriter originally from Louisiana. Growing up around music, he always knew he loved it, but decided to go to the University of New Orleans. But, that wasn’t the way his life was supposed to go, according to Hurricane Katrina, which wiped out practically everything.

So, that was his sign to move to L.A. and start up his music career. He managed to get a songwriting career with Def Jam Records, writing for numerous popular artists; released his first mixtape, Nostalgia, Ultra, in 2011; and he also came out with hit singles, “Swim Good,” and “Novacane.” Then, in 2012, Ocean debuted his first album, Channel Orange. The album featured Andre 3000, Earl Sweatshirt, and John Mayer. A lot of the songs were experimental, playing with song length, sound bytes, and classic video game sound effects. “Thinkin Bout You,” “Lost,” and “Super Rich Kids” were the most popular songs on the album.

Now, four years later, Ocean dropped Blonde and some people love it, some people are confused. Right off the bat, there’s the bizarre album cover: Ocean in the shower with his hand in front of his face, sporting Joker-like green hair. Maybe it’s a representation of the vulnerability and the foolishness Ocean feels with his rising fame? After all, in the last song, “Futura Free”, he hints at the fact that 2Pac is still alive, but went “missing” to escape the press.

But let’s go back to the beginning, to the first song, “Nikes.” Immediately, we’re hearing a garbled, synthesized Ocean singing about the Black Lives Matter movement, acknowledging Trayvon Martin. Channel Orange didn’t use synthesizers in this way, so already this album is much more experimental than the first. The next song, “Ivy,” also has the garbled voice, which then screams over and over, followed by a sound byte of some random background noise. “Pink + White” is an allusion to Ocean’s Channel Orange song “Sierra Leone,” where he mentions warm, pink skies in both of them, the rose-petaled perspective of one of his girlfriends. In “Pink + White,” Beyonce features, singing a lullaby, reminiscent of Ocean’s “Lennon lullaby” to his daughter in “Sierra Leone.” You can also hear birds chirping and singing in the background. It’s a really nostalgic song and one of the more happier songs on the album. “Be Yourself” was kind of funny; it was another sound byte, this time of Ocean’s mom lecturing about abstaining from weed and alcohol in order to “be yourself.”

Of course, the next song, “Solo,” is talking about the exact opposite of that, being alone in Chicago, smoking joints, Ocean’s voice howling and the echoes of the city in the background. It actually came off really lonely and sad to me, but maybe that was the point. “Skyline To” seemed to express the illusion of time and just how fast life is going by, almost wasting away. It has classic video game sound effects similar to the effects on Channel Orange and featured Kendrick Lamar on backup vocals.

“Self Control” had that same synthesized voice and more howling. I interpreted the song to be about a really special love affair. I can see this song being on the radio, it’s so catchy and relatable. “Good Guy” is another sound byte, Ocean auto-tuning about problem girls in the beginning. Another song that I can definitely see on the radio is “Nights.” It’s super catchy, showcases Ocean’s beautiful falsetto, but also showcases his experimental synthesized voice and song format. Andre 3000 comes back from Channel Orange  onto Blonde’s song, “Solo (Reprise),” and kills the rap. The song is about the tricks in the music industry and a theme that resonated with me was “Was I working too hard?” Then, “Pretty Sweet” had a similar message, but it was unlike anything I’ve heard by Ocean, because it had a drum and bass feel, juxtaposed with this overwhelming orchestra in the beginning. It sounds so all over the place, but in an adventurous way.

“Facebook Story” was a sound byte about this guy who’s girlfriend wouldn’t trust him all because he wouldn’t be her friend on Facebook. I’m just going to assume that Ocean had a girlfriend who had pretty bad trust issues. In “Close to You,” Ocean plays with the synthesizer again, and this is another more upbeat, happy song like “Pink + White.” Ocean broadcasted his flashy car obsession with the song, “White Ferrari.” It’s very simplistic in that it’s a memory about a time he and his lover would spend hours in his white ferrari contemplating the mysteries of life. The classic video game sounds are heard again and this time the song has a trip-hop feel, another new genre that Ocean seems to use experimentally.

“Seigfried” also has some of the same classic video game sound effects, except for this time they distinctly sound like slot machine sounds. Throughout the song, Ocean keeps mentioning nirvana and settling down, but he still sounds like he hasn’t made up his mind. Kim Burell is featured on “Godspeed,” a sort of ballad to a lover, and let me just tell you: she is killing it. Her soulful, sultry voice gives me chills every time.

Last but not least, “Futura Free.” I can also see this song being on the radio, because not only is it catchy, but Ocean uses auto-tune in such a creative way. He used it to sound really robotic, which is so fitting for this booming technology age. But, it’s almost used ironically, as if Ocean is saying that he’s turning into a robot for fame. Furthermore, there’s a sound byte of a press interview with young Frank Ocean, then the words “How far is a lightyear?” followed by what sounds like a computer glitching and crashing. I think this album could be interpreted in a couple of ways. It could be interpreted as the worries and fears Ocean has for his rise in fame and how he wants to settle down, it could be him feeling as if he’s losing control, or it could be celebrating how far he’s come.

No matter which way you interpret it, there’s no mistaking that album cover. I think this album is better than his first one, because it tells more of a story and is undoubtedly more experimental–which paid off. I also think that Ocean has paved the way for a new genre, or a new way of looking at R&B in general. 10/10 would listen to again.