Soundsystem: Thinkin Bout You / Frank Ocean / The Superslice

Before we indulge ourselves in the verbose pretense of hyperbole and the daily, commonplace de facto oversell…I love this song. I’m at a loss; I really don’t know how to write and comment on this track without sounding like some, creepy and obsessive, lovelorn Twi-hard fan.

Let’s start with this…Frank Ocean takes a proverbial dump on the OFWGKTA = Wu Tang comparisons. This “kid” is carving a new mold. I posit that he might be this generation’s answer; the new Prince/Jacko cocktail. Scoop, you heard it here first! There’s this omnipresent vibration of the improv-I-don’t-give-a-shit-mixtape…co-mingled with this energy of an earnest coming-out debut. And we’re the lucky benefactors of this experiment and entry…er, contradiction.

There are two camps that are brewing; somewhat quasi-familiar to the Drake versus Kid Cudi developments. In this corner, we have Francis Alberto Ocean…and in the other (Canadian) corner…The Weeknd (Drake-bot). I’m clearly showing my biased hand now. There’s this Beyonce-diva/self-promotional thing we cannot embrace and fully get behind with The Weeknd; while homeboy, Frank O, immediately taps into a seemingly real and genuine vibe. There’s this accessibility and an honest verve that is ascertained within Ocean’s tracks. There’s an economy that exists within the mode and delivery of a Frank Ocean. Where The Weeknd would add an extra run, added flourish, sheen of contrived Candadian-emo…Frank is confident in his RNB gift and holds back a little, quietly and confidently showing off his range in a more subtle manner. Frank exudes that pathos that you’re looking for, pulling back the reigns and keeping from the RNB from becoming schmaltz. I think Frank Ocean should/could push this vibe and be successful.

Show me a person who hasn’t had their heart broken and I’ll show you a boring person. I don’t think the Canadian has ever had his heart broken. Frankie-boy, on the other hand, has been disappointed a couple times in his life. I can tell, just listen to his shit. Heart on the sleeve style. Why am I pushing this polarity between Ocean and The Weeknd? I’m that annoying guy who makes you choose between The Beatles and The Rolling Stones (I’ll take The Stones, by the way.). It’s also a convenient comparison, they’re contemporaries who are both on the rise, on that fast-track to superstardom.

Frank Ocean is easily the most honest and intriguing (aside from EARL [sarcasm]) character in the Odd Future camp.

Whatever, though…back to the content of this song. This song will get you laid. It is sonic poetry.

All of the charmingly-awkward, mixtape-freestyle, improv-y RNB rambling is all a setup to the silky smooth, disciplined falsettos. It’s a track that is grounded in the honesty, of not only the performance, but the display of crafting a heartfelt love song. Therein lay the magic of this track, the throwback honest-to-goodness concept of an old-fashioned love song. This young punk reminds me of having crushes and recalls how beautiful and hypnotic that one single and ideal girl-woman can be. It is an unrequited love letter that this guy can identify with. Good saccharine stuff. Frank Ocean is the future…

–@teemunny

They’ve completely wiped this song off of the Internet because they’ve realized that they have a hit. Here’s a slammed version of the track in question. Cot damn, it’s still good…