Give Or Take / GIVĒON / June 24, 2022
- Joshua Yoo
- Aug 25, 2022
- 2 min read
Updated: Oct 22, 2022
In both style and sound, GIVĒON has asserted himself as a frontrunner for the modern R&B crooner spot in the industry, the artist to soundtrack the general spectrum of love and romance for the younger generation of the genre’s listeners. ‘Give Or Take’ as a debut album underscores this image throughout the tracklist of one love-stricken confessional after another, but unlike some of the hits that propelled his name to stardom, it seems that GIVĒON may already be becoming too comfortable in his own musical lane.
The production choices most consistently favor smooth and sensual colors, often nocturnal in the way the album cover reflects, and it aims to create a consistent vibe. But it’s easy to fall into a musical lull not too far into the album, where the creativity and diversity of the instrumentals run rather dry, if not unfinished at moments (“dec 11th”). His distinct vocal timbre can only do so much to revive certain songs, and even then his performances sometimes falter in emotional or physical conviction (“Tryna Be”).
Lyrically there are moments of simple yet compelling songwriting that appear, like on the bright and declarative “For Tonight”. There are also tracks that don’t really thoroughly address or capture any sort of sentiment, where he opts to vaguely sing about a general idea with no real specificity. Over the course of a holistic listen, the grasp for substance can grow more difficult.
It’s not to say that GIVĒON is musically stunted or has nothing interesting to say, it’s just that his debut album fails to scratch beyond the surface, especially in providing anything distinctive from his previous work. With already a refined voice and image, the expectation is set to a little more substance than what is provided here.
Highlight(s): Make You Mine, For Tonight, Scarred
Lowlight(s): This Will Do, Tryna Be, Get To You, dec 11th
SCORE: 5/10
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