{"id":4874,"date":"2026-07-25T05:05:49","date_gmt":"2026-07-25T05:05:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=4874"},"modified":"2026-07-25T05:05:49","modified_gmt":"2026-07-25T05:05:49","slug":"nick-hakims-i-can-see-is-a-hazy-alt-rb-masterpiece-album-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=4874","title":{"rendered":"Nick Hakim\u2019s \u2018I Can See\u2019 Is a Hazy Alt-R&B Masterpiece: Album Review"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\u201cStoner R&B\u201d is not an insult: It\u2019s the opposite, a loose term to describe a sprawling genre of music that includes everything from Dijon and Frank Ocean to Brent Faiyaz and Jhene Aiko. It\u2019s R&B that has smoked a strong blunt, with languid grooves, heavy bass, psychedelicized production and an unhurried vocal approach. Unlike the tight rhythms, choppy guitars and urgency of traditional R&B, it\u2019s not in a hurry to get anywhere.<\/p>\n

Read more Guillermo del Toro said \u2018Absolutely No Goddamn AI\u2019 in \u2018Pan\u2019s Labyrinth\u2019 3D Re-Release: \u2018We\u2019re Protecting a Lineage of Art\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tWhen Nick Hakim first emerged in 2014 with his \u201cWhere Will We Go\u201d EPs and subsequent albums, he was a bright new voice in the genre, but as the years went by, his music sailed further and further out until, by 2022\u2019s \u201cCometa,\u201d conventional song structures had pretty much drifted off.<\/p>\n

\n\tBut his fourth and latest album, \u201cI Can See,\u201d is his most focused work to date \u2014 and despite the unhurried tempos and smoky vibes, it\u2019s a very seriously structured set of songs, with multiple layers of his soft, soulful vocals and shimmering keyboards. \u201cReal Here Now\u201d is one of the most gorgeous R&B songs you\u2019ll hear all year and is almost like an Usher song from a parallel universe, but as always his music has a crossover appeal that defies pigeonholing: The following song, \u201cU Can Make It,\u201d is a densely layered track built around a thudding electronic bass drum, echo-drenched piano and layers and layers of vocals.<\/p>\n

Read more Trump Says White House Correspondents Dinner Is \u2018Largest Group of Trump Derangement Syndrome People Ever Put Together at One Time\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tThe unusually hazy sound of this album is as vital as the songs \u2014 the vocals and instruments waft in and out of the mix like music from a passing car or sounds from the apartment next door; you\u2019re not always sure exactly what you\u2019re hearing, not that it matters. Equal parts electronic and organic, it pairs conventional snare and rimshot sounds with heavy digital bass, piano so heavily treated that it sounds like a warped calliope, and backing vocals that float in and out like a chorus of ghosts.<\/p>\n

\n\tAfter the more-conventionally structured songs of the album\u2019s first half, the last few continue \u201cCometa\u201d\u2019s journey toward the cosmos, growing murkier and piling on effects reminiscent of dub reggae. Indeed, \u201cI Can See\u201d is a realm beyond alternative R&B \u2014\u00a0it\u2019s more like R&B from a different planet.<\/p>\n

Read more \u2018Blue Bloods,\u2019 \u2018Once Upon a Time\u2019 TV Director Ralph W. Hemecker Dies at 65<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nick Hakim’s hazy and gorgeously souful fourth album ventures into a realm beyond alternative R&B \u2014\u00a0it’s more like R&B from a different planet.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4873,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[3895],"class_list":["post-4874","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","tag-nick-hakim"],"yoast_head":"\nNick Hakim\u2019s \u2018I Can See\u2019 Is a Hazy Alt-R&B Masterpiece: Album Review - Relocation Observer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=4874\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Nick Hakim\u2019s \u2018I Can See\u2019 Is a Hazy Alt-R&B Masterpiece: Album Review - 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