Okay. Now that I've listened about a dozen times or so, I feel ready to give a proper track-by-track review.
Sing About Me: A solid opener, and thankfully the only hint of lisp ("I'm making it for people who just want to get LOSHHHHHT") on the album. A solid chorus. This song isn't super memorable, but it works.
7.5/10
Echelon (It's My Way): Blehhh. I disliked this song when it came out, and I still dislike it now. As usual, the verses are fire, but that falsetto chorus is a giant mess. In addition, it doesn't even remotely fit with the rest of the album. I skip it most times. That being said, I'd much rather have Echelon make the album than the atrocity that was No Bueno. So
4/10
A Tribe Called Red: An instant favorite, and a favorite after 100 listens. So so so good. My favorite hook of hers, and it's really the only song on the album that goes HAM. "Never gave power to none of you cowards who tell me what you think my destiny is" indeed. Also my favorite production on the album.
11/10
Deep Sea Diver: This is when I knew the album was gonna be good. Another solid hook that shows how much better and more confident Angel's gotten at singing. The bridge especially shows this. And of course her rapping is never in question. She's got great flow, and can rhyme like a boss.
9/10
Black Synagogue: The intro, reminiscent of a southern baptist church, and then Angel's declaration of anti-religion at the end, is a POWERFUL POWERFUL thing. Especially with her background of growing up in the abusive religious cult with her mother. Just... wow. I got chills. And admitting that she still runs from the darkness... oh man. It's just so incredible. This song deserves major recognition, and it's one of a kind. Nobody could have done this but Angel.
10/10
Angels & Airwaves: Another song that works because we know a bit of what Angel's gone through. Her message of hope is that much more influential because she's BEEN at that lowest point. Even as someone who's never considered suicide, I can still relate to this song, and still be moved by it. This song also has some of her best singing, in my opinion, on the hook. "There's angels in the airwaaaaaves tonight..." The end of this song, with Angel declaring "Don't give up on you, I didn't give up on me..." and then the drums getting steadily louder gives me chills every single time, and is my personal favorite part of the album.
11/10
April's Fool: I didn't really like this one at first, but it grew on me quite a bit, and I especially like the singing on the bridge. It's the only track on the album that I think could be considered filler, but it's still really good.
7.5/10
White Lilies / White Lies: This song more than anything proves that Dirty Gold, as an album, is more of a work of poetry than it is an album. Angel is at her best when she's telling a story, whether it's about her own past or about one of her poems. And the beat on this one is Angel at her most experimental. Love it.
8/10
Battle Cry: By far the most commercial song on the album, and that's not a bad thing at all. Angel's still preaching her message of acceptance and telling her story, but here she's assisted by Sia on an epic chorus that COULD, with the right promo, be big on pop and urban radio.
10/10
Black Dahlia: The third of Angel's most personal and powerful songs (along with BS and A&A), a hate-message turned forgiveness-letter turned piece-of-advice to her mother. Another incredible work of art accentuated by Natalia's spoken word. Brilliant.
10/10
Planes Fly: The second most commercial song on the album, and one that grabbed me right away. It gives me Airplanes vibes, for obvious reasons. Angel does some more of her best singing here. This should also definitely hit the radio.
10/10
Dirty Gold: Like Sing About Me, this isn't anything spectacular, but it works magnificently as the closer (to the standard version of the album). I especially love how she changes it up on the second chorus "Don't sell your soul, ***** you are dirty gold."
7.5/10
Rose Tinted Suicide: It's more of an interlude, and I kind of haven't really been able to get into it yet. It's not bad though.
5/10
Vinyl: It's easy to see why this is only on the deluxe edition. It's solid, and fits with the theme of the album, but it's not as good as the eleven other tracks that make the standard edition of Dirty Gold so spectacular (minus Echelon, of course.)
7/10
Crown: This is what I was expecting the album to sound like, and while I LOVE this song, I'm happy Angel went the more personal route instead.
10/10
New York: Nothing needs to be said, we've all heard this masterpiece before.
10/10
In conclusion, I'm more than impressed with this album, and I can't wait to see what Angel does next. I REALLY hope she's able to find some level of success with this, because she's certainly put in the work and certainly deserves it. If she were a man, I have a feeling she would have blown up already... She's as talented as Kendrick or J Cole, in my opinion.
You almost have to listen to this album as a whole to truly experience it and get the most out of it (similar to Lorde's Pure Heroine). Listening to individual tracks is fine, but not quite as enjoyable. That's when you know you've got a cohesive album.
Angel
Black Synagogue
I did not expect this.
It doesn't appear to be on the UK chart.