Ivan Ave — Double Goodbyes — Album Review
Hip-Hop| R&B
Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Music
Ivan Ave was somebody who I think I discovered earlier this year through a “Discover Weekly” playlist on Spotify. I was instantly interested in his nicely minimal yet highly colourful productions, along with his smooth vocals and brilliant flow.
At the point that I discovered this artist, there were two tracks already released that were connected to his newest album, Double Goodbyes. These tracks included the likes of “Nu Path” and “Triple Double Love”. I loved the incredibly warm and relaxed vibe that these tracks provided, and it ultimately led me to discover the album as a whole, along with its release date. That being said, this became an album that I had been anticipating quite a bit.
This anticipation was only heightened by the other teaser tracks that were release in the time between my discovery of Ivan Ave and the release of Double Goodbyes. Things only seemed to be sounding better stylistically with each new track, and I became very excited to listen to the full thing.
Thankfully, there were still quite a few fresh tracks to get stuck into, despite the hefty amount of teasers, and these tracks all seemed to fit very nicely into the overall artsy, electronic and minimal atmosphere of the production generally, while each creating a different kind of feel or mood.
The most obvious thing to pick out Ivan’s vocals on this album, is that they sound incredibly similar to those of Mac Miller. At the very least, I definitely got a strong Mac Miller vibe when listening to Ivan’s flows on the album. The production, on the other hand, sounds like it would fit into quite well into Mac DeMarco’s This Old Dog, with its very dreamy, hazy sound.
A good description of how this album comes across to me, is that it feels very stylish and indulgent. It most certainly succeeds in being a perfect album to chill out to. For example, I really enjoyed listening to this album yesterday while sunbathing in my garden, and that is because of just how much Double Goodbyes oozes with warmth. I could definitely see this album making up a big chunk of my summer soundtrack, as long as we are soon able to go out and enjoy music and the great outdoors side-by-side.
From what I’ve gathered from the somewhat cohesive narrative of this album, my assumption would be that this album highlight the impact that Ivan Ave’s career as an artist affects other aspects of his personal and past life, and how his mindset and outlook has also gone through changes. these aspects include his old friends, both true and fake, his relationship, his optimism, etc.
Double Goodbyes, in most cases is quite lyrically sound. Even in instances where the bars can sometimes feel sub-par, the flows helps to counter balance this, and keeps the engagement value.
I have very little to pick out in terms of tracks I didn’t enjoy. I would argue that the only track I felt the album could’ve gone without would be “Dooble’s Shout Outs”. Not only did the production feel off-key, but given that Ivan Ave had already given a shout-out type verse on “Guest List Etiquette”, the context of this track felt a little unneeded.
While this album pretty much was everything I expected it to be, and as a result had no mind-blowing surprises, it is still and incredible enjoyable and pleasurable experience to behold.
I would regard this album as a very accessible and essential listen for those who are in need of an album with a summery vibe, and are also longing for a Mac Miller type of feel.
Favourite Tracks: Phone Won’t Charge | Guest List Etiquette | Hope/Nope
Least Favourite Track: Dooble’s Shout Outs
Mutual Intentions | Playground Music Scandanavia
