Not that many records have impressed me this year, but there’s something about Sweet Life by Frank Ocean that stuck with me even though lyrically, it’s completely alien to my life. Somewhere between rap and R&B, Sweet Life takes you to a land of milk and honey somewhere in Beverly Hills where happy young people enjoy the “sweet life” of sun, sand, and drugs. “You had a landscaper and a housekeeper since you were born” goes the chorus. “Why see the world when you got the beach?” Why indeed. Seductive, trippy, and way too easy, says Frank. But he gets you both ways, because as attractive as this scene is, it’s also repellent, and that’s what makes Sweet Life a good song. Thanks, Frank!
