Number 11: IGOR - Tyler, The Creator
A look at the high concept 5th studio album from the irrepressible force that is Tyler, The Creator
‘IGOR’ is the fifth album from performer and producer Tyler, The Creator, a deeply personal, linear concept album about a doomed relationship. The album won Best Rap Album at the 2020 Grammys, but to classify this album as singularly a rap album is doing it a major disservice. The album is a neo-soul album that happens to have rap parts to it, expanding and growing on the style that Tyler had cultivated on his previous album ‘Flower Boy’.
‘IGOR’ opens with ‘IGOR’S THEME’ which is the introduction and theme song for Igor, a character created by Tyler to help express the emotions that he has been dealing with through the course of the relationship. The album is at it’s core a concept album with the character of Igor as the main protagonist, he is the embodiment every toxic decision that Tyler makes during the story. As the album progresses Igor the persona is shed as Tyler matures and is able to deal with the relationship in a healthy way. The song is sinister and threatening, drowning in distortion and supported with a recurring lyric of “He’s coming”. The album has started and IGOR is here.
The story is now in motion and ‘EARFQUAKE’ is the opener to the relationship and the indicator of the turmoil already in motion. The song name is an obvious allusion to the fact that the relationship is shaky from the outset. The clever lyrics juxtapose the soul legend Charlie Wilson 90’s R&B style choruses.
“Don’t leave it’s my fault, When it all comes crashing down I need you”
The track ‘I THINK’ is Tyler opening himself up to the idea of love but being unsure if it is actually love. There is no hiding in the lyrics, Tyler is completely transparent on his perception of the relationship. The song also foreshadows the a song later in the relationship “PUPPET” with Tyler acknowledging early in the album that he is being controlled. So far the relationship is shaky and he is being controlled, yet Tyler is oblivious to the realities of this.
“I think I’m falling in love, this time I think it’s for real”
On ‘RUNNING OUT OF TIME’ Tyler is admitting that he is actually having an affair with a closeted man who is still with his wife/girlfriend. The album is identifying more and more toxic traits that he is engaging in and yet he is clinging to the belief that it can work. I think this is one of sadder songs on the album, there is an exasperated tone to the song through the distorted bass and hymnal choruses.
‘NEW MAGIC WAND’ is Tyler being unrealistic and childishly romantic, hoping he can change feelings with some magical gesture. It’s a futile and damaging sentiment that is underpinned by a sinister synthesiser that highlights the desperation in Tyler. The vocals are highly tuned and sound grainy which adds to the overall uncomfortable feeling on the song.
‘A BOY IS A GUN*’ is the end. This is the fight, the boy is ending it and Tyler is not taking it well. The boy is killing the relationship, choosing to stay with his partner and Tyler is trying to put on a brave face but most lines have are a positive followed by a negative. The song ends on a petulant note with Tyler repeating “Stay the fuck away from me”.
“How come you the best for me, I know you the worst for me”
The relationship is over now, but Tyler is not ready to give up. In a final act of desperation, he offers up complete control on ‘PUPPET’ just to be part of something even if it is bad for him. The song is languid and resigned with a great Kanye feature where it is all left out there, Tyler almost offering up all his dignity for this man “I’m your puppet, you control me”. The song closes and merges with the next track ‘WHAT’S GOOD’ through an interlude line of:
“But at some point you come to your senses”.
This is the start of growth within the arc of the relationship, Tyler is taking back control. The song mimics the style of the album opener and acts as closure Tyler. Where ‘IGOR’S THEME’ is the start of the IGOR show, ‘WHAT’S GOOD’ is the end credits music, time for the next thing.
‘GONE GONE/THANK YOU’ start the uplifting part of the album, the drums are playful and the distortion and haze of the first half of the album is lifted. This song is confirmation that is over and acknowledgement that there were good aspects and that he has learned something. The format of merging two songs together is not something new to Tyler who employed this technique on the amazing ‘911/Mr. Lonely’ from ‘Flower Boy’. It gives the song a sense of journey and progression with the songs mashing up together excellently, these are two feelings intertwined that Tyler can’t separate, so he doesn’t.
‘I DON’T LOVE YOU ANYMORE’ is exactly what it says. It’s the closure and acceptance.
“But this just might be better for us you know”
‘ARE WE STILL FRIENDS?’ ends the album on a wonderful if ambiguous note. This is my favourite song on the album and my favourite Tyler, The Creator song. It is a throwback to early soul in it’s style and is a testament to the maturity developed since the start of the album. The music meanders beautifully with the angelic back up singer voices and Tyler sings earnestly and powerfully throughout with a singular hope, “Are we still friends, can we be friends?”
It’s an amazing closer for not just the album but an amazing closer in the history of closers. It’s so layered musically with Tyler at his peak from a production perspective and so vulnerable in it’s lyrics, it’s a wonder.
When you step back from it you can see the progression and the themes of each of the songs that complete the story of IGOR:
IGOR’S THEME - Igor arrives to tell the story
EARFQUAKE - Beginnings
I THINK - Falling in love
RUNNING OUT OF TIME - Worry
NEW MAGIC WAND - Begging and desperation
A BOY IS A GUN* - The end
PUPPET - Desperation and the point of no return
WHAT’S GOOD - Tyler takes over and takes control of his emotions
GONE GONE/THANK YOU - Relationship ends/start of the healing process
I DON’T LOVE YOU ANYMORE - Moving on
ARE WE STILL FRIENDS - Growth, maturity and acceptance
Tyler has created a modern heartbreak and redemption album not bound by genre. It leans on progress of earlier albums but what sets this apart is the honesty and thought that went into the structure and packaging of the messaging. It is a cogent and compelling, narrative driven force of nature.
A few albums to listen to if you like this one:
‘Flower Boy’ - Tyler, The Creator - To see his progression as an artist
‘Channel Orange’ - Frank Ocean - Equivalent emotional resonance
‘The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars’ - David Bowie - The expert in character creation