Darker Than Black

Darker Than Black is the debut studio album by American musician Nantes, released December 31, 2020 by Sphinx Sound. Sometimes referred to as his third album, it is his commercial debut, preceded by the Nuts & Kids mixtape series and inspired by a currently unfinished screenplay he began writing in 2019. However, development of the album began in 2016.

Mostly recorded at the Sphinx Sound in-house studio in Los Angeles, the album's production mainly handled by Nantes under the pseudonym Eko alongside his brother Sydetrack'd, with contributions from Lucid Soundz and Epikthadawn. The production prominently takes influence from film score and alternative rock while also combining with elements of jazz and soul music. With themes centering on nostalgia and resentment, Darker Than Black is a loose concept album that details Nantes' struggles with depression and his turbulent upbringing in the West Adams neighborhood of Los Angeles as well as Long Beach.

Background
Following the release and reception of his first free album Nuts & Kids II: Streetlights (2015), Nantes began conceptualizing his debut studio album which he envisioned as a “big, polished sounding rap and soul album”. The reception of the album gave him a boost in confidence with recording music and “being truthful” with his lyrics. However, his personal struggles with depression, family problems, and financial problems hindered the album’s recording with Nantes relocating back to California in late 2015. He later stepped back from creating the album, releasing another free album, Nuts & Kids III: Good Noon, in 2018 which helped him understand the direction he wanted to take with his music. Six months after Good Noon’s release, Nantes’ mother Monique passed away and he stated, “My life changed after I dropped [Good] Noon. I dedicated it to my moms and she passed not too long after. Recording music after something like that, man, shit like lifting weights”. Experiencing a severe period of depression whilst dealing with grief further hindered the album's creation.

The album went through many changes in its inception, changing titles and musical styles over its four year creation period, as it was being recorded simultaneously alongside Nantes’ other projects. In an interview, Nantes said he wanted the album reflect his LA roots, specifically the West Adams neighborhood: “I want this album to different from [Good] Noon or Streelights or Slauson [Roses]. I wanted you to feel the essence of this time period in LA and what got me inspired to do this”. Nantes cited older films like Blade, The Mummy Returns, and Van Helsing as inspirations, further adding that music from the ‘90s and early ‘00s helped his concept as well. Nantes spoke on the inspiration film as a whole had on his music, saying, “There’s always been this relationship with film in my life. Like, even when I was at my lowest, it was always there to inspire me, for me to interpret and dissect. Film lowkey raised me”. In 2019, Nantes began writing a screenplay that would serve as a companion to the album, which further inspired the final incarnation of the album.

Recording and Production
The album was primarily recorded in the Sphinx Sound in-house studio Hypostyle Hall where Nantes produced, mixed, and mastered it himself, with additional recording taking place at Misery Recording in Kansas City, Missouri. The recording process was described by Nantes as “no budget” with his equipment consisting of his Epiphone Les Paul guitar, MIDI keyboard, ASUS laptop, and Blue Yeti microphone, with him often working 16 hours a day on the album. His brother and collaborator Sydetrack’d described the process as “emotionally draining” for the artist as Nantes had relocated to Missouri on account of a turbulent relationship that ended shortly after he arrived. In a 2021 interview, Nantes stated that recording the album at times felt “tedious and scary” but added that he recorded music for it up until its December 2020 release.

During an live broadcast via Instagram, Nantes said “What Young Fathers are in First-Person” was the first song I wrote for the album in like 2015”. Further adding that it “set the tone” for the album. Much of the album’s material originated from poems and verse composed when Nantes was still a teenager, collecting them notebooks and journals he kept. The album’s production was inspired by Alan Silvestri’s work on The Mummy Returns and Van Helsing as well as other film scores like Batman Begins.

Music and Lyrics
Darker Than Black has a downbeat, low key production style that incorporates sparse piano sections and guitar riffs. Writers have noted the album’s subtle rock influences with one blogger writing: “By blending the brooding chords of grunge with the woozy synths of the West Coast, the album is abrasive without the discomfort of the fusion”. It features distinct and catchy hooks accompanied by ambient background vocals and string arrangements. Another blogger commented that the album “combines a moody production palette similar to Good Kid, M.A.A.D City with a Nirvana aesthetic”.

Lyrically, the album details Nantes’ experiences growing up in LA and their negative outcomes. The songs address issues such as transgenerational trauma, economic disenfranchisement, suicidal ideation, depression, and nostalgia while exploring the effects on him and those around him. Nantes details the experiences from a “nihilistic first-person perspective” with internal rhyme, tepid storytelling, multisyllabic rhyme, and alliteration using alternatively rapped and sung vocals. GEM wrote that “Nantes transforms, morphing from a lost child to an agile West Coast rhymer and pensive father both shaped and shaken by his treacherous environment”.

Themes
Throughout the album, Nantes explores themes of parenthood, existential ennui, individuality, escapism, nostalgia, grief, hatred, depression, hypersexuality, and self mutilation. Writer Abubakar Genim examined the album’s “observance of the Black family unit and the pitfalls of its oft shaky foundation” while GEM has recognized the album as a “introspective, emotionally charged conscious rap album that carefully dissects the negative aspects of the Black experience”. The album contains a rather blunt dialogue regarding topics that affect the African-American community, being released during the COVID-19 pandemic following the civil unrest caused by the unjust deaths of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd. On the song “KTLA5”, Nantes raps “I’m fightin' back tears kuz he could kill me and be hailed a Samaritan / Paid for my murder wit medals and public fame / His hand grip tightly around his strap, he know I'm not no threat / It’s power trip, they love seein' your fear so you adhere to their commands” detailing racial profiling and alluding to police brutality as well as affirming his position on the justice system’s handling of cases concerning the racially motivated killings of Blacks; Trayvon Martin and Emmet Till being prime examples. While songs like “Jada Fire” explore sexual perversion, explaining that “some men will find themselves more drawn to the idea of a woman and what she has to offer rather than her presence and identity”. Nantes has been very vocal about his depression and “feelings of anguish” being inspirations on the album.

Release and Promotion
Beginning in 2018, Nantes began releasing promotional singles for the album through his Soundcloud. The album was supported with 13 promotional singles - "Klairvoaynce", "Exsanguination", "Pride Before Fall", "AKATA", "CAMMY", "Devil's Acolyte", "Dedicated", "matrimony", "Affinity", "Her Interlude", "I'm Back", "Zatanna", and "Lost Soulz". Six of the the 13 were released to digital retailers as legitimate promotional singles. On May 4, 2020, he released the music video for "Affinity", which was directed by Tommy Shogun. The video showed Nantes rapping affront a green screen that displayed footage from old video games, various films, and pornographic images; it received immense praise upon release. The visual for "Zatanna" was released on June 27, 2020 and featured lo-res, horror-inspired found footage cinematography. "Zatanna" and "Pride Before Fall" charted the highest of all the promotional singles. Then, on October 31, 2020, Nantes formally teased the album with a short teaser trailer upload to the Sphinx Sound YouTube page and Instagram account. On December 26, 2020, Nantes unveiled the album’s artwork through Twitter and Instagram, formally announcing the album’s release date. The album was released to Tidal, Apple Music, and Spotify at midnight on December 31, 2020. Physical versions were released the following day through the Sphinx Sound website. A day later, Nantes also unveiled a one-sheet poster designed by him for the album via his Deviantart.

Unfinished Screenplay and possible film
In late 2019, Nantes envisioned a film that he wanted to release alongside his album, akin to Childish Gambino's rollout for Because the Internet (2013). Inspired by an actress friend of his, Nantes began penning the screenplay, incorporating elements of his life such as his struggles with depression and grief. Via his Instagram account, Nantes described the film as a "psychological horror mixed with a healthy dose of surreal comedy, drama, and supernatural fantasy". He revealed his influences for the screenplay were Atlanta, Doctor Sleep, Angel, and The Mummy. The original idea was to release the screenplay alongside the album but in the album's booklet, there is a message to the fans revealing that his depression and the fact he lost the outline in Missouri is why the screenplay remains unfinished. As of September 2021, it remains unfinished.

Reception
Darker Than Black was met with critical acclaim from its audience. Listeners praised its cohesive, cinematic production and emotional weight as well as Nantes' improved musicality, overall. Eames of GEM wrote “true to its namesake, Darker is a grayscale painting with bright splashes of rainbow watercoloring to lighten the mood of an otherwise emotional West Coast odyssey”. The tracks "Los Skanless Dreamin'", "Kareem Campell + The Ghetto Bird", and "Jada Fire" were recognized as standout tracks as well as "The Man Draped in Darkness" being highlighted for its dark, descriptive lyrics and mood. Upon its release, Darker Than Black was recognized as Nantes' best opening week, with the album surpassing all over his previous projects' first-week plays. The album also received a moderate push on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok, making it his first project to see same-day interaction to such a degree.

Tracklisting
All tracks produced by Nantes, except where noted


 * 1) 27th + Arlington | 3:52
 * 2) Los Skanless Dreamin' | 3:21
 * 3) Kick Gravel + Travel | Co-prod. by Sydetrack'd | 3:32
 * 4) Kareem Campbell + The Ghetto Bird | Prod. by Epikthadawn | 4:25
 * 5) KTLA5 | 4:27
 * 6) Jada Fire | 4:48
 * 7) Father Figures for a Child wit the Blues | 2:47
 * 8) Memory Cards | 5:12
 * 9) What Young Fathers are in First-Person | Co-prod. by Sydetrack'd | 2:28
 * 10) The Man Draped in Darkness | 4:27
 * 11) Quarter Krysis | Prod. by Lucid Soundz | 5:41
 * 12) Who We Become in the Midst of Martyrdom | 7:07
 * 13) Blood on the Water of the Blue Nile | 1:45
 * 14) Khemet | 5:30

Total length:| 59:30

Samples

 * "27th + Arlington" contains a sample of "Lijah's Eulogy" by Nantes
 * "Jada Fire" interpolates "Affinity" by Nantes