Welcome back to Caruso’s Critiques! This is the second edition of my album review series, and it’s a good one. There was a lot of great new music released in the time between the last Critique and this one, and this is both a blessing and a curse. For one, there are many great new albums to review and lots of content to cover. However, because of this, not everything that came out in this month-long period could make the cut. Some big snubs are BigXthaPlug and Cordae. I was planning on doing at least one of those, but with finals creeping up and many things happening in my life at once, I wasn’t able to get to either of them. If there is a lull in music production in between now and the next issue, I might come back to one of those. Sorry to all people wanting to see these on the list, it’s my bad for my lack of writing time. There also won’t be a historical album this issue because of the issues above and also the fact that I wanted to focus on the new music coming out. Next time, I will return to the regular system. As for the albums I am reviewing, I think I have some good ones here: GNX by Kendrick Lamar, From Zero by Linkin Park, and A Very Laufey Holiday by Laufey. GNX was an obvious choice because it’s Kendrick, and I have to review Kendrick. From Zero is an interesting one because it is the first album that Linkin Park has released since 2017 when their lead singer died of suicide. A Very Laufey Holiday gets on the list as the resident “Christmas Album” celebrating the holiday season.

For those who did not see the previous issue, here is an outline on how my reviews are structured: 1. Overview of the album and themes, 2. My standout tracks, 3. My stinker track, 4. Individual song ratings (out of 10) and one-word descriptions, 5. Conclusion. The conclusion will also include a total album rating out of 10. Enjoy the reviews!