Daniel Caesar: Never Enough (2LP) [REPUBLIC]

Why you'll love it

Caesar produced most of Never Enough himself with his younger brother Zachary Simmonds, with help from Raphael Saadiq and BADBADNOTGOOD's orbit. Mustafa, serpentwithfeet, Omar Apollo and Ty Dolla $ign all appear, and "Always" has become one of his most-loved songs.

This edition

• 2LP set, 15 tracks
• Republic pressing (cat# B003732901)

About the album

Like everyone else, Toronto R&B singer-songwriter Daniel Caesar (born in suburban Scarborough, raised in further-suburban Oshawa and known to his folks as Ashton Simmonds) had a lot of time to himself during COVID-19 lockdown.

The roster of players and producers involved in creating his third album, Never Enough, was thus "mostly me," although Caesar admitted to Complex Canada that this wasn't actually much of a change-up. "I'm not much of a 'go outside and be social' type of person and that was before the quarantine," he said.

Never Enough, mostly written and produced by Caesar himself with occasional help from younger brother Zachary Simmonds and a couple of friendly ringers like Raphael Saadiq, is definitely more insular, introspective and experimental than its star-studded predecessor, Case Study 01. If you're in the mood for a "mood" record, this mood record will get its hooks in you. It plays around with the sleepy, Frank-Ocean-gone-gospel signature sound for which Caesar is known, too, folding such admitted influences as "all Radiohead," the Beatles' Abbey Road, Supertramp, Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and the films of Michael Haneke into the mix. There's plenty going on to keep the close listener occupied. Or you could just use Never Enough as makeout music. Because Daniel Caesar makes great makeout music.

Also at Kops: more Daniel Caesar on vinyl · browse Hip Hop / R&B

Tracklist

Listen

On Republic (cat# B003732901), first out in 2023.