Sydney Bennett, more popularly known as Syd or Syd Tha Kyd, has played an important role in the progression of neo-soul and queer artists.
Many listeners were introduced to Syd through either her role in the music collective Odd Future, or as the lead singer in rhythm and blues group The Internet. Now, five years after releasing her debut solo album "Fin," she is ready to captivate our ears once again.
This thirteen track long project is filled with emotional highs and lows as Syd made half this album while being in love, but the other half after heartbreak. Even though this album is built upon two separate sensations and feelings, it still feels cohesive.
In a grand majority of the songs, Syd takes a step away from her prideful and sedated sound that we heard from her before. In “Broken Hearts Club,” the production is much more fast paced, simple and somewhat similar to R&B artists from the 90’s.
"It almost felt like I joined a club because all of my friends went through similar experiences. It was like a rite of passage...I want people to find it beautiful. It’s super vulnerable, sentimental, and it’s soft. There’s touching moments and a couple of dark moments,“ Syd says, describing the new LP.
Enticing listeners from the start with the smooth guitar and synths in Lucky Daye feature “CYBAH,” and closing out perfectly in “Missing Out,“ this album has no lowpoints throughout.
Some songs like “Tie the Knot,“ “Fast Car” featuring Smino, and “Right Track” all have exceptional qualities including great bridges, upbeat tempos and well placed chords and vocals. Other tracks “Sweet” and “No Way” have the classic Syd vibe from the heavy hitting bass to the swagger filled lyrics.
This album is short, sweet, and well-thought, displaying the growth Syd has had over her career. Going from behind the scenes at Odd Future to a mature and influential figure in R&B, it is simply incredible to see how far Syd has come.
This album possesses many qualities that many R&B or neo-soul albums are missing. It is not overrun with unnecessary songs, but has a genuine theme that is presented well and is just pleasant to listen to. Being Syd's last project under Columbia Records, I am interested to see where this work will take her in the future.
"I have no idea what’s next…I don’t know. Maybe we’ll create an Internet label. We talked about that— just signing ourselves,” Syd said in an interview with NME Magazine.
This album has been the best R&B album of 2022 so far and I rate it a 7 out of 10.
